From Tess Vu, Senior school Art teacher

National Reconciliation Week has been an important focus in the Art room, with students from Grades 3–6 learning about a variety of Aboriginal artists and their connections to Country, culture and storytelling through art. Throughout these lessons students have explored how Aboriginal artists use their artworks to share identity, memories, nature and community.

Year 3

Students have been learning about Badger Bates who an artist from the Barka River region in NSW. He creates lino prints inspired by his life growing up along the river and his strong connection to Country. Students will respond by creating their own foam prints inspired by our connections to nature and home.

Year 4

Students explored the achievements of Helen Milroy, an author, artist, professor, psychiatrist and children’s advocate. Students learned about her significant achievement as the first recognised Indigenous Australian to qualify as a medical doctor and read her children’s book about bush bugs and insects. In response, students will create reverse acetate insect artworks inspired by her illustrations and storytelling.

Year 5

Through their studies of Albert Namatjira, students learned about his artistic journey and the difficulties and racism he faced throughout his lifetime. Students also discussed his importance as the first Aboriginal person to be granted Australian citizenship. In upcoming lessons, students will use watercolour crayons to create Australian landscape artworks inspired by his iconic paintings of the outback.

Year 6

Inspired by the bush plant artworks of Emily Kame Kngwarreye and her niece Barbara Weir, students explored the artists’ intertwined lives, family connections and shared inspiration from nature. Students also learned about Barbara Weir’s experience as part of the Stolen Generations and how she later reconnected with her family and aunt Emily, helping her reconnect with her culture through art making. Over the following weeks, students will continue learning about native flowers and their importance in traditional Aboriginal ways of life before creating paintings that celebrate and show appreciation for Australia’s natural environment.

Across all year levels, students have shown great respect and curiosity while learning about truth telling and the histories of Aboriginal peoples. It has been wonderful to see students engaging in meaningful discussions, asking thoughtful questions and developing a deeper appreciation for Aboriginal cultures and perspectives. Students are looking forward to sharing their finished artworks with the school community in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, here are some photos of student sculptures created earlier this term inspired by the imaginative artworks of Charlotte Love and the floral sculptures of Anastasia Fainberg.

Art Club

This fortnight in our weekly Tuesday Art Club, students enjoyed a range of creative, student-led activities.

Year 5 students Hayley, Amelia, Ellie and Summer worked together to run small group workshops where students learned how to create colourful origami lollipops. Students showed great leadership and patience as they guided younger students through each folding step. We also had Xiao Zhen lead a night sky drawing activity, encouraging students to use their imagination to create a scene.

Wellbeing