The Arts Learning Area Snapshot

GATE Workshops at Applecross

This term, our Gifted & Talented Visual Arts Program has started the year well with an enriching experience in workshops held on Saturdays. These workshops, a cornerstone of the program, offered students diverse opportunities in a variety of studio areas to immerse themselves in.

Some highlights this term included a collaboration between GATE Visual Arts and Drama in a Stagecraft workshop where art students designed and created costumes and props for the Term 3 production “Into the Woods”. Led by tutor Hanae Meyer, in collaboration with Drama teacher Ms Grant, students learned to work to a brief, come up with creative designs, build solutions, and meet deadlines. (Work in progress below)

GATE: Chalk Murals Around the School

For the last five weeks, students and staff may have discovered fresh chalk murals or drawings as they arrived at school on Monday mornings, after the Saturday art students had spent their mornings creating and developing chalk murals in various locations. Chalk is ideal as it is quick to apply and then erase, making way for future creativity so the space is ever changing. Each mural, led by long time tutor Jo Bowman, was based on a theme or technique and includes birds and butterflies under the C Block stairs, Op Art on the south side of A Block, mythology on the concrete blocks in the Arts courtyard and antique vessels on the ground in the Year 9 handball area. Other workshops enjoyed by the GATE Art students this term included Ceramics, Fashion Design, Printmaking, Oil Painting, Photographic CYMK Printmaking. Our new Year 7 students were immersed in foundational drawing and painting techniques.

Flextangles

Year 7 GATE Students have been designing sophisticated patterns to create a folded paper Flextangle product. This three-dimensional origami-like form relies upon the geometric shapes of triangles and hexagons in the planning stages. Students could choose a symmetrical approach where the arrangement of their design motif is paired with its mirror image to mimic a kaleidoscope. Otherwise, a freestyle approach could be adopted, resulting in a collage of designs. As you can see from the photos, the Year 7s have had some fun with shapes and colour.

GATE: Artist Talk Abdul-Rahman Abdullah

This term, our Year 10 Gifted and Talented Visual Arts students had the privilege of welcoming internationally renowned artist Abdul-Rahman Abdullah for an inspiring artist talk. Abdul-Rahman is an ex-student of the Applecross Special Art program, making the visit more remarkable. He shared insights into his creative process, themes, and inspirations, captivating the students with stories of his journey and the cultural narratives that shape his work.

His visit provided a unique opportunity for students to engage directly with a professional artist, enriching their understanding of contemporary art practices and encouraging them to explore their artistic voices. Abdul-Rahman showed images of his most iconic works and installations featuring real, imagined and mythical creatures, most often life size and carved from wood. More about his work can be found here, https://abdulrahmanabdullah.com/section/284090.Html

Year 9 Make It For Market Art Class  

Ms Cason’s Year 9 Make It For Market art class this term is working on designs to develop a range of lino block prints that can be printed on cards, gift wrap, fabric and as a limited series. They will also have the opportunity to apply their design through embossing brightly coloured polymer clay jewellery, pendants, and other products to create their own range to sell at the Art Market. One of our former GATE students, Hanae Meyer, who manages and runs her own brand, came in to share her marketing knowledge and experiences with the Year 9 students. She set up a small market stall and discussed topics such as branding, merchandising, business planning, budgeting, advertising, commissions, and more. The Year 9s were inspired to learn that there is a lot more to marketing one’s art than simply creating things they like.  

Stephen Armitstead, HoLA - The Arts