FPS Newsletter

Visual Arts Focus

Print Making

Term two began with great excitement and anticipation… an artist was visiting!!

 

Corrin McNamara arrived in her white overalls ready to share her print making skills.

Corrin teaching print making
Corrin teaching print making

How fortunate are we to have a School Council who funds an ‘Expert-in-Residence’ program to enrich our curriculum, as well as providing such valuable learning to both students and teachers.

 

Corrin ensured each year level understood print making and its history. Our student artists were fascinated with the variety of ways you could print and just how you actually do it. I was intrigued as well. Corrin presented the students with practices that I had never imagined they could possibly achieve. And yet they did – and they had so much fun in creating them.

Firstly, you know it is not painting!  You use ink!
You don’t use a roller, oh no... you use a brayer!
Firstly, you know it is not painting!  You use ink!
You don’t use a roller, oh no... you use a brayer!

 

We even inked straight onto the tables, much to the astonishment of the students. They had to check that it was fine with me!

 

As a result, our students are now proud print makers!

 

Each year level has completed a printed work, inspired by the Eleven Bark Ladies.

 

Foundation Artists

Students used Naminapu’s ‘River of Stars’ to stimulate stamp printing of stars with sponges and card. They also imitated the first print makers and stencilled, and mono printed their hands.

Stamp printing - stars in the night sky & reflecting on the river
Stamp and stencil printing hands
Stamp printing - stars in the night sky & reflecting on the river
Stamp and stencil printing hands

 

Years 1 & 2 Artists

Students used brayers and ink to print plain and textured backgrounds, onto which they stencilled a simple Australian shape, motivated by the animal images from the Eleven Bark Ladies exhibition. Detail was added by stamp printing lines and dots.

Stencil printing Australian animals & decorating with stamped dots and lines
Stencil printing Australian animals & decorating with stamped dots and lines

 

Years 3 & 4 Artists

Students printed with ink and a brayer creating coloured and textured backgrounds. As Malaluba from the Eleven Bark Ladies connected to Country with her ‘Waterlilies’, they connected to FPS Country with the Morton Bay Fig Tree, cutting a stencil of an image relating to it. Stencilling onto their background, they then layered a mono print of it on top.

Year 3 print-makers stencilling
Year 3 print-makers stencilling
Stencil printed images from the Fig Tree & layering with a mono print
Year 3 print-makers stencilling
Year 3 print-makers stencilling
Stencil printed images from the Fig Tree & layering with a mono print

 

Year 5 Artists

Students etched into a polystyrene plate an image of the Morton Bay Fig Tree in an Indigenous style, informed by Malaluba’s ‘Waterlilies’, from the Eleven Bark Ladies. A print was made, additional detail carved out on the plate, reprinted with another colour and repeated.

Year 5 print-makers etching into polystyrene plates
Etching
The printing process
Year 5 print-makers etching into polystyrene plates
Layered etching printed from a polystyrene plate - reflecting connection to FPS through The Fig Tree
Year 5 print-makers etching into polystyrene plates
Etching
The printing process
Year 5 print-makers etching into polystyrene plates
Layered etching printed from a polystyrene plate - reflecting connection to FPS through The Fig Tree

 

Year 6 Artists

Students used a polystyrene plate to etch an image of their favourite place at FPS, designed in an Indigenous way. Printed once, then carved more detail, reprinted with a different colour and repeated.

Layered etching printed from a polystyrene plate reflecting connection to FPS through their favourite place. Style influenced by Australian Indigenous artists.
Layered etching printed from a polystyrene plate reflecting connection to FPS through their favourite place. Style influenced by Australian Indigenous artists.

 

Children’s Gallery – Art Exhibition

All these prints will be on exhibition at Art4All – 11, 12, 13 November, in the Children’s Gallery.

 

We all had such an exhilarating time with Corrin in the Art Studio. Her expertise and encouragement have allowed us to become print makers! 

 

Thank you, Corrin!

 

~ Marjie Tkatchenko, Visual Arts Teacher