The Arts 

Since the last newsletter, visual arts students have participated in virtual excursions to the NGV Triennial. 

Year 2/3/4’s excursion was around the theme of sustainability and we saw building materials made out of salt, repurposed everyday materials being turned into artworks, JR’s Homily to Country installation about the degradation of the Baaka (Darling) river and Porky Heffer’s colossal installation Plastocene – Marine Mutants from a disposable world that featured a 14 metre octopus-like creature that is made from hand-felted ‘cigarette butts’.) The sound was a little difficult to hear at times but I was really proud of the students for the great questions and responses that they had with our educator Sarah.

The Year F/1 students participated in the Young Learners excursion for the Triennial and were highly engaged in the session. They drew many responses and designs for the Moja Moja Life (installation by Japanese artist and designer Misaki Kawai) and many students exclaimed that they wanted to go to see the exhibition in real life!

The Triennial continues until April 18. I would highly recommend attending if you happen to be in Melbourne over the holidays. The exhibition is free but bookings should be made in advance online as some days are already booked out in the holidays (due to COVID protocols, tickets are timed entry.)

Years F-4 students are all now learning paper sculpture techniques and will move onto using found objects such as wood, plaster, metal, magic clay, foam and textiles early in Term 2. 

Many thanks to the staff and families who have been sending along recycled materials for us to use in visual arts and Maker’s Shed.

Year F/1 have been developing skills in using recycled cardboard boxes, covering the faces with paper (this gives an excellent surface to paint on) and painting them in preparation for making an object of their choice. 

The students in Year 2 have been creating textured designs on large sheets of paper. These papers have been used to wrap recycled cardboard boxes (like wrapping a present) and will be arranged and glued together to make abstract sculptures.

The Year 3/4 students have been exploring techniques for manipulating and joining paper to make 3D sculptural pieces. This week they designed pieces based on cylinders and will be making them in the coming week. Students had the choice of working individually or in a pair for this project and it was awesome to see some cooperative designing going on!

Many thanks to Damon and Jonah in Year 9 who have been assisting in primary visual arts once a fortnight as part of the Teacher’s Aide elective. They are a great help with the students and also with organising and distributing materials during classes… Jonah even learned to pack the kiln!

The Year 9/10 Visual Arts elective students have worked incredibly hard on their Beyond the Borders projects and it is exciting to see these pieces coming together. These works incorporated painting and drawing techniques (including stippling where form and tone are built up with thousands of small dots) and I cannot wait to have them all framed up and displayed in the corridors next term. Well done Jadeen, Jonah, Talia, Damon and Jaali!

VCE Unit 1 Studio Arts students have been generating ideas to explore as a finished art work in Term 2. Each student has been working through the stages of the studio process and their visual diaries are quickly filling with sources of inspiration, information about styles and techniques and experiments and drawings related to the pieces they are going to make. 

Students follow their own ideas in this subject and I am impressed with the diversity of ideas and materials and techniques that the students are choosing to explore. Sam is hoping to complete a mixed media portrait, Brooke a series of mosaics on furniture, Ashleigh a series of mixed media collages and Erin a large scale painted portrait. Our Unit 1 Visual Communication Design student Chloe has been incredibly hardworking and is experimenting with a wide variety of rendering styles and media. She is also learning new skills in using Photoshop. 

Some new resources have been purchased for the secondary art and design students for next term and I look forward to seeing how these positively impact student learning.