The Arts

Visual Art  

News from the Art Rooms 

Preps - Students are learning about the Primary and Secondary colours. They are working on a project- ‘Colour wheel Turtles.’

What are you making today?

Tinaya - “A Colour wheel Turtle! I will finish adding more colours in the next lesson.”

Alexander - “Today I used coloured sand to make my turtle. I have used 3 primary colours red, yellow and blue.”

Grade 1- They were introduced to Russian artist Wassily Kandinsky. They learnt about the Art Element and Principles - Colour, Shape and Repetition. Students explored watercolours to create their “Friendship Hearts.” 

Grade 2 - Students enjoyed making and creating 3D coloured clay fruits and vegetables on the theme “Healthy Living.” They learnt about the Art Element of Form and Shape through the activity.

What did you learn?

Chris - “I learnt about the art element ‘Form..’ I made watermelon, banana, carrot, cauliflower and blueberries. They are good for me.”

Aaliyah - “You can be creative using coloured clay. I loved making 3D vegetables and fruits.”

Year 3 - Students are working on a unit titled “Kiwis”. They created stunning oil pastel observational drawings on Kiwi Fruit. They are also enthusiastically working with clay to make their kiwi inspired pinch pots. Through the activities, they demonstrate their understanding of Art Element- Form. 

What have you found interesting about the medium -Clay?

Chris - “I learnt how much ratio of water to clay I need to make my pot. I learnt to shape a pinch pot so that it stands and not falls apart.”

Theron - “I learned to shape air-dried clay through steps shown on the video and your (Mrs T’s) demo.” 

Year 4 - Students have been passionately experimenting in Acrylic medium exploring a variety of Shapes: organic and geometric, and Lines. They have trialled painting with unconventional art tools like earbuds to create marks. Prior to making the final artwork, they have created draft ideas and practised mark-making. Through this Art Unit, they learnt about the Australian aboriginal artist, Judy Napangardi Watson.

Year 5 - Students have explored the work of the contemporary artist Yayoi Kusama. The artist was an intriguing subject to study. Her artistic journey began with roots in formal, historical Japanese culture, yet travelled through the movements of contemporary and the avant-garde. Her existence as an artist is all-consuming and her personal resilience finds her still making and exhibiting at age 93.

Students learnt about her curiosity for pattern and shape and her Net paintings of meticulous freehand circles covering entire expanses of canvas. We discussed her move in 1957 to New York and the influence of other art movements and how she began to create other forms of artmaking such as environmental installations and sculptures covered with colourful repetitive patterns and dots. Students loved that from that time on her trademark became her use of dots that obliterated her art forms and even covered her own clothing! She had become Japan’s most famous living contemporary artist and was forever to be known as the celebrated ­Dot Queen of the art world. 

Year 8 - In Year 8 Art, students are exploring the concept of Juxtaposition and have produced wonderful artworks in term 1. Students are developing their emerging personal styles and aesthetics. 

Year 9 - Students are studying a Unit titled “Identity.” Through the inquiry question, students explore the statement ‘Portraits are based on the appearance of the subject, but they also reveal connections to their environment and a point in time.’ How we express ourselves: an inquiry into the ways in which we discover and express ideas, feelings, nature, culture, beliefs and values; the ways in which we reflect on, extend and enjoy our creativity; our appreciation of the aesthetic. Students are creating in pencil/charcoal an A3 size Indigenous portrait using the shading techniques. Some have also applied photoshop manipulation techniques to photos before sketching them to enhance the image.

Drama

Year 6 - Students are continuing their investigations of ‘Myths and Legends’ through the exploration of Forum Theatre. They are focusing on representing the life of Lionel Messi through the use of Freeze frames and vignettes.

Year 8 - students are starting to create their own original drama work, using the song ‘Get back to the land’ by DRMNGNOW as their stimulus. This work will be recorded and presented in Drama Victoria’s ‘Connections Festival’, which asks students to engage with First Nation’s material to devise and share their own artwork. More information about the festival can be found here: https://www.dramavictoria.vic.edu.au/events/connections-festival/ 

Media 

Our Year 7 and 9 Media students have started to develop their media productions as part of the Semester 1 assessment. In term 1 planning and preproduction took place. In term 2, shooting and editing (production and postproduction) will take place.

Students in year 7 are filming a Movie Trailer around the school 

Students in year 9 are filming their short film on identity. 

As part of their pre-production process, they had a guest speaker come to discuss working in the film industry. Rhys Sherring who owns his own company is a Media Entrepreneur. Sherring is a director and cinematographer, he assisted students in developing their understanding of composition and using a storyboard during a 60 minute workshop session.

Asked about the workshop session with Rhys Sherring in term 1, students reflected on their experience …… "we have an idea on what to do before filming a short film .. being organised and prepared”. And how to understand composition as a way to “reflect the mood of a film, a character’s personality”. As well as knowing how to storyboard, as a way to communicate “to understand what shots and angles will be used” in a short film or media product.

Product Design

Year 7 - Great work has been done by the year 7 Product Design students in Term 1. Students designed a coat rack for their home considering aesthetics, form and function.

In Term 2 students will make a box with a lid for the home for function and form.

Some of our students reflected on their experience in Term 1, product design has helped me learn “how to research more (or find other products)” to help in constructing and building a product. Thinking about the user, who needs it and why? What does it need to do?

Juxtaposition

Year 8 - Art students are exploring concept of Juxtaposition and have produced wonderful artworks in term 1. Students are developing their emerging personal style and aesthetic.