Visual Arts Faculty

From the Co-ordinator of Visual Arts

Year 9 Photographers get a Visit from Feature Creatures

On Wednesday 13 May, from 3:30pm to 5:30pm, Year 9 Photography and Digital Media students took part in an exciting real‑world photography incursion with Feature Creatures. The session brought an impressive array of animals into the classroom, including snakes, stick insects, a blue‑tongue lizard, a shingleback lizard, a frog, and a gecko.

The room buzzed with energy as students spent two full hours photographing each animal from a variety of angles and experimenting with creative compositional arrangements. Working entirely in manual mode, students put their technical knowledge to the test adjusting aperture, shutter speed, and ISO to achieve correct exposure while responding to constantly changing subjects.

This hands‑on experience forms a key part of their upcoming assignment, where students will produce a series of edited animal photographs and design a magazine cover for either National Geographic or Australian Geographic. The workshop provided an authentic professional context, allowing students to apply their skills in a dynamic, unpredictable environment just like real wildlife photographers.

A big thank you to Jacqui and Kev from Feature Creatures for generously giving up their time and sharing their expertise. Their passion, knowledge, and calm handling of the animals made the experience both educational and unforgettable.

We can’t wait to see the incredible work our students create next.

Year 8 ‘Urban Apocalypse’

Year 8 Visual Arts students have unveiled their highly imaginative cardboard relief artworks, marking the conclusion of a unit focused on urban architecture, street art, and apocalyptic world‑building. The final pieces reveal an impressive combination of technical skill, creativity, and thoughtful conceptual development.

Throughout the term, students examined the work of contemporary artist Joshua Smith, renowned for his hyper‑realistic miniature cardboard cityscapes. Inspired by his approach, students re‑imagined their own school environment this time through the dramatic lens of the theme ‘Urban Apocalypse’. Students heard zombie apocalypse.

The completed artworks are bold and richly detailed. Students constructed layered cardboard reliefs depicting familiar school buildings transformed by imagined disaster: overgrown vines, barricaded entrances, shattered windows, warning signs, and subtle traces of survival. Many pieces feature striking textures, inventive spatial layering, and a strong grasp of 3D form and architectural structure.

Beyond the technical aspects, the project encouraged students to think deeply about environment, narrative, and visual symbolism. Their artworks reflect not only the influence of Smith’s practice but also each student’s unique interpretation of chaos, resilience, and transformation within an everyday setting.

The result is a visually compelling collection that reimagines the school grounds in extraordinary and unexpected ways. This unit has strengthened students’ skills in 3D artmaking, problem‑solving, and creative expression, and their final works stand as a testament to their imagination and growing artistic confidence.

Well done, Year 8 and their wonderful Visual Arts teachers Ms Stubley, Ms Mooney, Ms Blundell and Ms Sainsbury who were not harmed in the creation of this project.

Year 9 Visual Arts ‘Is this life still’

Year 9 Visual Arts students have embarked on a rich and thought‑provoking investigation into the genre of still life, tracing its evolution from traditional painting conventions to contemporary reinterpretations. The unit invites students to look closely at the visual language of still life, examining how artists across time have used objects to communicate ideas about wealth, status, time, and mortality.

Students began by studying the historical foundations of the genre, developing a strong understanding of classical techniques such as dramatic lighting, tonal modelling, and chiaroscuro. These conventions, central to traditional still life and vanitas painting, provided a technical and conceptual framework for their own artmaking.

Throughout the unit, students completed a series of drawing and painting exercises designed to build confidence and skill. These studies culminated in a final canvas painting, where each student developed a postmodern concept that reimagined the still life genre for a contemporary audience. Many students experimented with irony, juxtaposition, digital influence, and unexpected object combinations to challenge traditional expectations of the form.

The result is a diverse and thoughtful body of work that demonstrates not only technical growth but also a deepening ability to communicate ideas visually. This unit has encouraged students to think critically, observe closely, and express themselves with both creativity and intention, hallmarks of strong emerging artists. Great work, Year 9, and a big acknowledgment to their Visual Arts Teacher Ms Stubley, whose skill, knowledge and expertise helped guide each student to reach their full potential.