Students discuss the concept and practice behind their HSC ArtExpress work.
Wednesday February 14th 2015
Notes courtesy of Barbara Gorman with additions from Alison Duff
KATE ALEXANDRA MacDONALD
I WOKE AND WE WERE SAILING ON
Caringbah High School
Graphite pencil on paper.
Kate suggested students use their teachers at school to guide, direct and help them make on-going decisions.
All work was completed at school. She used 80 minutes Art periods as well as free periods and afterschool time.
She started planning about March 2014 . The completed work is smaller than her original design and plan.
Her work is an allegory, depicting a wild hallucination of a dream world.
She used her HSC subjects of Art, Drama and English for concepts and inspiration. Coleridge’s poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner [for the ship and the sea], Goya’s etching The Sleep of Reason Producers Monsters [for the cat and the owl] and the waves of Hokusai [for the hair and waves].
She loves horses and has a fascination for hair. She used the long strands of hair as an imaginary source to link all the parts of the drawing.. The hair turns into waves – turns into the ‘white horses’ of the waves – then transformed into the sailing ship [in the style of ‘the old masters’]
The eyes from left to right [darkness to light] to have the story revealed.
When asked, ”Why work in pencil?” She stated that she has always drawn a lot. – and loves using pencil to draw. She worked from 9B through to HB pencils to get the degree of dark to light tonings and shadings. To produce the cloudy effect, she put 9B shavings onto light sandpaper and rubbed. These tonal shading and highlights give a whimsical sense of a girl dreaming.
Kate shaved the 9B pencils with sandpaper then applied the graphite. She used paper stubs and a kneadable eraser to get the cloudy effects and the veins on the horse. The work is on watercolour paper as she intended adding watercolour but later changed her mind.
SOPHIE LIN
404 NOT FOUND
St George Girls High School
Acrylic on canvas, permanent marker, newspaper, collage
Sophie stated she wanted to do something big [7 panels] while exploring the impact of technology on society.,
She did most of her work at school, using set art periods, free periods and out of school time. And sometimes at home.. Good time management is essential. The guidance from her Art teacher was essential. She said she need time to ‘step back’ to see her work, and consider ‘where she was going with it’
By using only 3 colours – black, white and red – her aim was to limit ‘distractions’ from the theme of personal disconnection and loss personal intimacy because of the individual’s interaction with technology.
By using body parts – the ‘whole person’ becomes ‘lost’
The 2 hands do not touch. They have lost connection with each other – only linked by electrical cords with attached plugs.
The brain – shows mental strain and meltdown – from use with the internet and technology.
The ear – listens to an Ipod – isolated from human contact and voice – with possible hearing loss or damage
The heart – although connected – not physically there – technology overtakes human feelings and emotions.
The lungs – taken over by technology – artificially maintained and supported.
Thinking about this works – a frightening realisation is, that the loss of human contact is possibly closer to us all.
GINGKWAN BOONPUN
DUCDAME
Macarthur Anglican School
Graphic design,
Box installation, laser print on Perspex
GIngkwan said she listened to her Art teacher and took on her ideas when she suggested she use recycled white Ipad boxes.
She said that her interest lies in ‘expressive graphic design’. Her work does not tell a story as in drawing and painting. Her work is purely ‘conceptional’ as its title DUCDAME means ‘full and successful’. The early stage of this work was her writing the concept behind the idea..
Ducdame is a line from As You Like It. She played to her strengths as she is poor at art practice but good with words and concepts. The 3 images she used with the school’s laser printer were words, finger prints and images from the Rorschach Blot Test.
She originally planed to develop 50 boxes – ended up with 8 white Ipod boxes.
The ‘white box’ is seemingly nothing. By adding a mirror – its perception changes – and perception is knowledge – and knowledge leads to truth. Art – or through the perception of art – you see- historical things, environmental things, personal connections and belonging. Art is life – its an emotion – its spiritual and up-lifting. Art enables people to understand truth – it forms a platform for contemplation and self reflection.
Mirrors, inserted into the boxes at eye level [see your eyes in the mirror] allow more to be suggested or even simplified.The glass in the boxes contain ‘finger prints’ expressing that all people are different. This allows self reflection, contemplation and slowing down of the fast pace of life. It makes you ask how you feel about yourself and your world. The lights and shadows cast below the shelf come though the mirror – a refection of what is above.
TANIYA ELIZABETH COLDHAM
SONDER (N.)
Abbotsleigh
Drawing
Ink, charcoal on stiffened fabric
Definition of “Sonder” – The realisation that each random passer-by is living a life as vivid and complex as your own” There are 3 large and 10 small round works.
She started the work in Term 2
The fabric used is calico that Taniya had buried in the ground for several weeks before commencing the work. She also stiffened it with a sugar mixture before working on it with charcoal.
The charcoal drawings have a smudged appearance that resulted after experimentation with materials.
This work is materialistically based on people and society/ The concept involved the exploration of feeling – everyone has a life. The idea arising from ‘6 degrees of separation’ the circles and people’s lives collide. .It is a reflection of her understanding of the world and the importance of peoples’ lives around her.
GRACE CRACKNELL
THE OWL AND THE PUSSY CAT
Inaburra School
Collect of works
Oil, watercolour, ink, feathers cotton, rag, cotton wool
Her works consists of 4 framed pictures , showing the elements of the poem The Owl and the Pussy Cat by Edward leer – pig – owl – runcibile spoon – moonlight – 14 smaller photos – 4 larger photos with painted masks over the photos.
The poem explores the constructs of marriage, freedom, and love using animals to represent human love.
Grace uses anthropomorphism which gives the attributes of human form, behaviour or characteristics to animals. In many cultures, anthropomorphism is used as devise in moralistic story telling. [The Three Little Pigs, Goldilocks, The Three Bears]
She uses this imagery and symbolism to re-engage the audience with the timeless themes of fragility of life and the elements of fear and the joy and delight love can give.
She used her brother, friend and grandma as her models-grandma represents the turkey because of her wrinkly skin!
AMELIA LOVE
WANDERLUST
Ravenswood School for Girls
Painting
Gesso, acrylic paint on canvas, found objects
Painted on 4 large panels. This work was all done at school – mainly because of the size of the panels
This work is about travel, history and connection to family. It draws together personal recollections and belongings and builds on the exhibition of personal belongings of her great grandfather – passport, photos, torch, diary, maps, etc. It links the past memories with the present and highlights the growth in modern technology, mass communication in the world of travel today.
Artefacts belong to Amelia’s great grandfather and grandfather. The words are taken from their passports. Amelia worked on this at school as it’s made of wood and was too heavy to transport. The selfie on the string and the iPad showing Google Earth images are reflections of modern day travel and means of recording it.
BYRON HURST
Teacher and Director of Hazelhurst spoke about 2 exhibits by his students.
He spoke first about his daughter’s work
He said that students need to ask themselves some questions when commencing their major Art work.
What do you want to say?
What research needs to be done? – Where does this research lead to? What dreaming is especially yours – as distinct from your teacher, your parents, other influential people?
Your Art teacher is an essential part of your work’s development….. Its about relationships … Its about advice… Its about trust.
Its important [as an artist ] to visit Art Galleries ….to see works that inspire…see techniques and colours used.
Its important to visit professional artists’ studies and have dialogue with them ….to talk to them…ask about paints used to get certain colours, brush technique
At Bundeena – use the ‘Artists’ Trail’ on weekends to make personal contact. Artists love to talk about their work.
HELOISE HURST
THE SECRET GARDEN
De la Salle Catholic College, Cronulla
Painting
Oil on canvas
2 canvases of the portraits of the gardeners at Wendy Whitley’s Secret Garden at Lavender Bay.
Heloise visited the Secret Garden at Lavender Bay – she took lots of photos of the garden then cut them up to make a collage which she used for her work background and foreground.
She met and spoke to the two gardeners before doing their portraits, so to her these men were real people with personalities, likes and ideas. The rich colours she has used express the ambiance of the garden and the personality of the men.
Paintings also reference Brett Whiteley by adding the three palm trees and Matisse-like section on the right hand side as did Whiteley in his Lavender Bay series. Jai Wei Shen suggested the colours to use for European skin tones.
ZOE IZZARD
THE DRYAD
De La Salle Catholic College, Cronulla
Photomedia
Canon IDS MkIII, 16-32 mm lens
A dryad is a spirit that inhabits in wilderness in ancient mythology.
She explored the classical interdependence between humanity and nature by focusing on the aesthetics of the athletic figure in the landscape.
Byron Hurst explained that Zoe is an elite class gymnast who is aware of the athlete’s body shape and has the ability to use her body as a trained athlete.
She was aware of the fragility of nature and the fragility of the human body.
She took thousands of photos – and ruthlessly culled, looking for the fragile connection between the human body and the landscape.
She started with lots of experiments – testing light & shade, natural land/tree/seaside shapes, positioning of the human body in the scene
Her interest involved using the embryonic shape of girls enclosed in complimentary scenery. The natural shapes of the landscapes working with the shape of the human body. Body shapes compliment the natural land shape.
The use of contrasting light and shade also compliment the landscape and the human body shape to make a whole and complete work. They are not superimposed – but one artistic work.
The Hazelhurst Guides 