Visual Art

Visual Arts

HUGE congratulations goes to Tristina Pham for being shortlisted for Top Arts 2022! 

Tristina has worked tirelessly in VCE Art over the past two years. To be shortlisted for the exhibition for her amazing graphite drawing, is an outstanding achievement. 

I wish you all the best for being selected to be part of the exhibition at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, Fed Square.

Fros Stabologlou

Visual Arts teacher

Year 9 Art 

After attending the Making Space: Weaving workshop with Donna Blackall at the Monash University Museum of Art, in July, I was inspired to share this new found knowledge with my Year 9 Art students. Having commenced the Australian Indigenous ceramics unit in semester two, the goal of combining ceramics, Indigenous studies and textiles was seamless.

Prior to Lockdown, students used terracotta clay slabs to construct the vessels. Once we returned to school, students smoothed out their work and used ceramic hole cutter tools to cut out the holes for the weaving. After bisque firing the clay, the students selected their materials (string, raffia, jute twine and rope) to weave with their ceramic vessel. There was an amazing buzz in the room with students helping each other perfecting the blanket stitch to help build up the walls of their artwork. As a teacher, this is the atmosphere we love to be part of in the classroom. I am very proud of the students’ artwork.

Artworks and Contemporary Culture

In Unit 2 Outcome 2, students used visual language to communicate  ideas of personal, environmental, cultural, political and contemporary issues.  Students chose individual topics and continued to develop and refine their skills using the art process. Below are the Year 11 paintings with a few excerpts explaining what is being communicated within the work. Part of this outcome was produced at home during our last remote learning time.

 Well done students!

Ms Pearson

Angie Chan Yai Ching - "Obscured"

My artwork, “Obscured”  is meant to reflect this damaging cycle that is fast fashion, a social issue that we are unconsciously contributing to. It is a dire situation that is not widely acknowledged by modern society.  Even more frighteningly so, as this issue is continuously overshadowed by the loud fashion industry, who feed off the backs of their workers, charging buyers outrageous price tags. In my piece I have drawn an exaggerated form of a female figure that dominates the painting at first glance. It is the focal point representing the domineering industry, obscuring any other figure from light or rather from justice and basic human rights. As the painting travels downwards the red cloak is overbearing, entrapping the rest of the figures into an enclosed, trapped and dark space. I intended for the visuals of these dulled figures to scream and fight for attention against the weight of the cloak and the severe contrast of colour, light and shade of the overbearing female figure. 

Keisha Huynh - "Garzafication"

My painting titled, “Garzafication” aims to capture the ideas surrounding the social, racial and cultural issue of racism. Particularly focusing on the idea of racism regarding the Black Lives Matter movement, the painting is symbolic of the oppression and glorification of black culture and people. It is an issue that has been unfortunately present for a long time in history, and more disappointingly, still prominent today. This issue is important to me as I am against racism, to whomever it is directed to, which is why I wanted to capture the importance of shedding light on an issue that should be talked about more. 

Jan Monycheat - "Alcmene" 

My paintng is about sexual violence against women. In my painting I wanted to raise awareness about how common, normalised and embedded sexual violence against women is in societies around the world. The dark shameful green colour seen enclosing the body of the womanly figure represents the disgusting amount of women we have lost to violence every year. More than one third of intentional killings of women was done by their current or past intimate partner. The teal seen in the highlights of the figure is the representative colour for awareness about sexual violence. Women should not be silenced and shamed for their experiences. I used teal in my painting to comfort victims and help them release the shame they might feel after their experiences.

Kyley Nguyen - "Dining for the Spoilt"

The painting I have created named, “Dining for the spoilt”  represents an ongoing environmental issue, food waste, that constantly happens all over the world and largely affects the environment and people’s public health. Food waste produces greenhouse gases which can largely affect the health of the people and the economy as well. I also included many foods that were considered the top foods that have been wasted around the world. 

Alicia Lay

My painting depicts a man who appears scared and frightened. It shows a bruised, injured face facing violence. This refers to the Asian hate crimes due to Covid-19, and how Asians are being treated unfairly, and at risk of violence and racism. I made most of the colours in my painting dull, and grey, which emphasise the dark mood of this painting. It also contrasts with the red string tied to the figure, which is more vibrant than the rest of the artwork. The red can symbolise blood and danger, and ties in with the theme of violence.

Ashmitha Kurikulasriya

The artwork concentrates on the concept of deforestation and the disasters to nature that is due to humanity's unthoughtful nature of the future of the planet's life. The abundant use of yellow was due to the colour yellow symbolising life and joy but also danger and the bleak monotone grey scale is an example of the tragedy and emptiness that the world would experience without vegetation and trees. The monotone emptiness also symbolises death due to the colour being sucked out of the tree slowly making the one thriving life dimmed to a black and white carcass. The yellow chains demonstrate the meaning of restraints and danger due to when trees often get cut down; chains are attached to be able to roughly yank the tree to be sent away.