Visual Arts News

What a great year we’ve had in Visual Arts in 2025!

Art is not just a fun, easy activity. It is meant to challenge our artists' technical and intellectual skills. Art activities encourage creativity and perseverance, they emphasise  hand/brain/eye coordination, focus and concentration. Developing, refining and completing  an artwork is a great achievement!

This year our students covered a wide variety of subject matter including the seasons, bush landscapes, endangered Australian animals, portraits, book illustration, fast food, ice creams, jellyfish, journeys and still-lifes. We explored perspective, symmetry, patterns, layering of colours and shapes, the ways artists use everyday objects as inspiration and how symbols in artworks can be read by an audience. Students were introduced to artists including Piet Mondrian, Andy Warhol, Bridget Riley, Kenny Pittock, Vincent van Gogh, Claes Oldenburg, Abdul Abdullah, Paul Klee, Melanie Hava and Elaine Russell. 

Of course, all art needs an audience and I hope you have enjoyed our ‘rolling displays’ of artworks in the main playground throughout the year. The whole-school self-portrait task asked students to collaborate on a project that culminated in 378 self-portraits exhibited at our Christmas Carols evening.  We’ve also been able to present artworks to a wider audience through our entry into local and national art competitions: Operation Art, Wild at Art, SCS Portrait Prize, The Christmas Story and the Australian Wildlife Society National Colouring-in Competition. 

I hope students spend some time over the summer holidays making artworks and visiting an art gallery or two. Don't forget the wonderful free exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW designed especially for children to enjoy, The Key’s Under the Mat or visit their Summer Blockbuster Ron Mueck’s Encounter.

Have a wonderful Christmas and holiday season and I wish all the SFX families a wonderful 2026.

Ms Vicki Armstrong

Visual Arts Teacher