This is also an exciting time for the new Year 7 kids… coming from Primary school into High School! They must be excited and scared all at the same time!

Back to school

As part of transition at our school, for the first time, we have developed a cross-faculty unit that will allow the Stage 3 students to come to high school and settle in with more ease.

The theme is based upon the text, “Where the Wild Things Are”, and the Project Based Learning Direct Question is:

What Kind of Wild Thing are you?

One representative from each faculty all sat down and brainstormed ideas for how this could be adapted to each of the syllabus outcomes in each subject area. Some teachers were reluctant and not sure how to approach this, but together we slowly made it all come together.

During Orientation Week the students will have mini lessons on how to cope with high school. These include internet logins, study skills and bullying classes. This week will also see the students go to the zoo and get in touch with their wild side. They will also watch the film, read the book and have a CSIRO science exploration day.

In my excitement, I developed this booklet for the Visual Arts Faculty….

What kind of Wild thing are you? Why don’t you build your WILD SELF….

After marking the HSC Visual Arts Written Exams, I had many frustrations running through my head.

Piles and piles of exam papers regurgitated pre-learned essays/artists/ideas. Our Syllabus requires us to teach case studies.

investigation of content through at least 5 case studies in art criticism and art history

The content is driven by the teachers strengths and interests, and most teachers try to cover an array of artists. Some case studies are also student research based, so that they can have autonomy over their learning and find artists that interest them and support their art making.

Well, this is the goal anyway….

It was evident that deep learning and understanding was lacking in some responses. It seems that some students think that HSC Art is only about the art making and not about the written component… Now, this is not a criticism on any teachers – more on the role of the HSC exam in their learning.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE what I do!

But feel there is a disconnect in the content that I have to teach and the end exam. How can learning and understanding from 5 case studies… which should be approximately 15 different artists…  be represented in a 1 ½ hour exam? The questions ask the students to make sophisticated links between artists and ideas. They must understand not only the aesthetic qualities of the work, but the conceptual practice of the artist and the world influences on their work.

I know that no matter what happens, we are controlled by the Syllabus and there will probably be some sort of quantitative tool used to evaluate a students learning as the endpoint… But I also want my kids to have a visual language and understanding of the art world that goes beyond an exam.

After seeing the Picasso exhibition yesterday, my teaching values are even firmer in my mind. I don’t want all my students responding to the exam with the same wrote learned artists. I want them to be involved in the work of the artists that they know – so much so that any question thrown at them they will be able to make links and develop an argument.

Don’t you just love my holiday romanticized view of Teaching!?

But what does this have to do with Picasso???

Well… just as the HSC exam questions required the students to make links, develop arguments, draw conclusions, recognise the impact the world has on art and do all this in a short space of time.. when seeing the audience viewing the Picasso exhibition, I am sure many were confused, didn’t know how to react, but thought cause he is famous and the work was in a gallery it was art. But were they all able to EVALUATE his artistic practice and realise the importance of all his processes. I want my students to be able to engage in a meaningful dialogue about art beyond the HSC exam.

Portrait of Olga in an armchair, 1918

Not all his works were good and not all works were ‘typical’ Picasso. His body of worked developed and changed in response to the world around him. Picasso experimented with different approaches to the picture plane and was confident in his own aesthetic. He was a talented artist, but was also smart enough to be able to challenge the traditional artistic conventions. Picasso’s oeuvre ebbed and changed as he tried new things and figured out what worked for him. He did not let anyone sway him and continued the Cubist style throughout his lifetime. It was evident when looking at Picasso’s work that he has awareness of the art world around him. His work did not exist in a vacuum. The aim of studying HSC art is to develop creative thinking and problem solving skills that help you to respond to the visual world around you.

Aim

Visual Arts at Stage 6 is designed to enable students to:

•      gain increasing intellectual autonomy in their abilities to aesthetically and persuasively represent ideas in the visual arts; and

•      understand and value how the field of the visual arts is subject to different interpretations.

Picasso’s work shows an awareness of the world around him, and his response was to turn it on it’s head.

Le Déjeuner sur l'Herbe, Manet

‘The déjeuner sur l’herbe’ after Manet, 1961, Picasso

MY CONCLUSIONS….

When a student sits the HSC exam, it is like a Picasso -

Portrait of Dora Maar, 1937

you have to look at the question for a while, consider everything you know, turn it upside down and inside out… extrapolate what they are really asking of you, minus the number you first started with, use evidence to support your findings and write an essay that actually means something to you.

After the HSC, you are not going to have to write an essay, but you will probably go into an art gallery and engage in a dialogue about the art you are viewing. I hope that my students can do that meaningfully and with passion when they leave my classroom!

REFERENCES:

image retrieved from http://everything-underthe-sun.blogspot.com/2011/05/exams-at-iit-described-in-funny-style.html#.Tw4gv96z6Qo
image retrieved from http://www.robinchung.com/top-5-sources-of-daily-frustration/ 
image reference http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/picasso/room-by-room/return-to-classicism/
image reference http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/picasso/room-by-room/anxieties-love-war/
image reference http://www.ululating-undulating-ungulate.com/category/art-appreciation/aesthetics/
image reference http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Manet,_Edouard_-_Le_D%C3%A9jeuner_sur_l'Herbe_(The_Picnic)_(1).jpg
image reference http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2008/aug/27/art.france

I have created a new blog to document my leap into art making and hope that you enjoy my flailings…

http://illustraight.wordpress.com/

www.whokilledmodernart.weebly.com

I am on the hunt for the History of Modern Art…

This has been designed as a stage 6 assessment for learning task. Instead of me blabbering away at the front of the room, telling them what I already know about Modern Art, this is a scaffolded research task where students are given some evidence to solve the mystery, but then they have to synthesis their findings into their closing arguments of the case.

To make it engaging, I have tried to weave this detective case narrative throughout, with suspects, motives, evidence and breaking news as the metaphor for artists, influences, events and facts.

I know that at stage 6, Year 12, students fear that if their learning is not teacher guided with chalk and talk, they may not be getting all they need to know for the HSC exam. While  I know that this is not true, at the beginning of each theory lesson I present a breaking news segment where  present on one modern art movement with a key example, some facts about the visual qualities and the conventions, and a little video. For the rest of the lesson the students autonomously gather their own findings. These are being documented as blogs, websites or a onenote file.

Kids are really engaged and beginning to use the metalanguage in class. They are excited to post their latest work and see what I think. They are working  collaboratively to figure out the technology if they need help and are discussing where to find the best information.

They OWN their understanding of this topic. Won’t that last beyond the exam?

In incube8r at the moment,  I have just stocked some awesome umbrellas!! Created from the Alphabetism collection of fabric designs, at $45 they would make great Xmas presses.

There is also U for Umbrella and J for Jewel designs to choose from….

Can’t see one here that you like???

Please tweet, email or comment on this post to have one custom ordered just for you!!!

And don’t forget there are cushions too…..

I am quite impressed that I was able to engage gifted and talented students for that long with the same task…

While some of them have started to lose interest and are maybe not as competitive as at the beginning, they all still are doing the work and producing some great responses. Also giving them a definitive end point has been good, as it has driven them to resolve all the final outcomes.

When we brainstormed in class what CONFLICT was to start drawing conclusions to end the topic, I was really impressed with the responses.

“It is social and emotional..”

“It can’t be controlled… like the environmental conflict of the earthquake in Japan”

“It is necessary to resolve problems”

“There are good and bad conflicts”

“It helps us see different points of view”

I wasn’t sure where to head next, as there is still a Level 4 of LearnQuest where the whole class works together to make a video. I considered the fact that 2 Terms had already been spent on this, and maybe it was time to get the students working on an individual learning plan and the chance to get off the computers and do something else…. but I still wanted it to be related…

So, I created

Miss Chance

You never know which way she will roll…

To reflect on their learning during LearnQuest, students will answer the driving question

Why do people play games?  What types of internal and external experiences (inside and outside a player’s head) do players appreciate and expect from games?

I am inspired by Jane McGonigal at the moment and introduced the topic with her TED talk.

I am going to get students playing games in class and at home as an experiment, and then write a research report to draw conclusions from their findings.

Part of their report will be a proposal/creation of new game that they design.

I think this will be a great way to tie in everything they have learnt so far and it will be interesting to get their perspective on gaming.

level4games

For those spring time rainy days, how about a U for Umbrella umbrella?

At $45 you can’t really go wrong!

And some new rings that combine perspex and my fabric!

Want one??

Just contact me and let me know!

Only $30, great idea for Christmas pressies!!

One student got into the t-shirt comp to design an image that promotes 826 National, a literacy school that helps students one on one.

His design is great -

However, this comp ended and some students hadn’t entered, so they then worked towards a two colour design for a TOTE BAG. With the entries having to be in by the 19th September….

To help the students with file sizes, I whipped up an example and entered it to see what would upload….

Now my design has gotten in and I know 2 of my students works that didn’t get in…. OOPSY!!

It wasn’t meant to be about me… it was their chance to enter….!!!!

So, here is my design…. I guess you can vote for me it if want? Or vote for my students???!!!

Skully Tote Bag design

Coming into Spring, I thought it was time to reduce prices and add some stock!

Cushions and Bangles are now available online! Just choose your fabric and items will be made to order!

Or, if you are in the Mosman area, my stock is also available at in.cube.8r!

A swatch book of all my fabrics is on show at the in.cube.8r store, or check out COPYANDPAINT to see all fabrics in the  Alphabetism Collection. 

I decided to enter the The Tessuti Awards….

The theme this year is….

Linen & Lace

This year’s brief is simple, fresh and pretty and follows one of the trend forecasts for next Spring/Summer. Design a dress in any length using a combination of Linen and Lace in Neutrals, Whites or a combination of both tones together – see the TessutiAwards collection in our online store.

Inspired by the design brief, “Linen and Lace – everything old is new again”, I looked to Vivienne Westwood and her appropriations of 18th Century Men’s clothing. I wanted to add an edge to soft silhouettes of the lace but putting a contrasting black line that references the punk juxtapositions in Westwoods garments. The buttons, collected from the Tessuti collection are an embellishment that adds a touch of difference,femininity and edge. I have also used glow in the dark thread to make a fun and playful effect when wearing this garment at night.

“Westwood recalled: ‘I didn’t know what to do … Malcolm said “look at history”‘” as retrieved from http://nga.gov.au/westwood/Wilessay.cfm

The bodice of my design refers to 18th Century Men’s clothing, making what was old, new again. The fresh look of the linen and lace adds a contemporary feel to the retro style dress that is a fresh and bold look.

No matter what happens – I have loved making this dress and am really proud of my sewing efforts. This is only the 6th dress I have ever sewn and think that my craftsmanship has improved by completing this design brief.

Please vote for my design in the PEOPLE’s CHOICE AWARD!

There are only a few days left to vote…. so do it NOW! Thanks!