Visual arts / Year 7 and 8

Curriculum content descriptions

Analyse how artists use visual conventions in artworks (ACAVAR123)

Elaborations
  • visiting and critiquing a physical or virtual exhibition of art, craft or design, and reviewing how artists have used visual conventions in their artworks
  • critically analysing an artist’s intention for an artwork and their use of visual conventions
  • presenting an informed opinion about a display of artworks as a written review, referring to previous and subsequent works by the same artist/group of artists
  • Considering viewpoints – cultures: For example – How do artists from different cultures represent the concepts of Place/Country? Compare examples of street art found in Australia to street art from another country.
General capabilities
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and creative thinking
ScOT terms

Composition (Visual arts)

Video

Emma Boyd: 'The quail shooter' 1884

In this work Emma Boyd depicts the landscape near her home, ‘The Grange', in Victoria. See how the landscape dominates the single human figure? What do you think this suggests? What is the artists trying to say by creating this sense of scale?

Video

John Eyre: (print after) 'Port Jackson Harbour NSW' 1812

This panoramic view of Port Jackson shows the fledgling European settlement taking shape. Part of a set of 12, this print was drawn by convict artist John Eyre who was transported for breaking and entering. The intended clientele included local trading ships and members of the British military and naval forces. The series ...

Interactive

Contemporary: Art Gallery of NSW - iTunes app

Explore a selection of artists and artworks from the contemporary collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, including the John Kaldor Family collection. Contains images, background information on the artists and their art, and some audio curator insights and video interviews. Artworks are from 1960s to 2010s. Free ...

Online

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art

This lesson plan (PDF) examines the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art contained within the National Gallery of Australia collection. Links to artworks are provided to support students' critical analysis of the forms of each work of art and to understand the rich diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ...

Video

Charles Conder: 'Hot wind' 1889

In the late 19th century symbolism was used in depictions of the Australian Colonial landscape. This example painted by Charles Conder was painted during the Victorian drought in 1889.How does the artist convey the heat of the Australian landscape in this image? What role does the female figure play in this painting?

Video

Creating art and meaning from waste

Welcome to Marina DeBris's exhibition, "Beach Couture: A Haute Mess". How would you describe Marina's art? What are the ideas she communicates through her artworks? How do the processes, materials and techniques Marina works with contribute to the creation of meaning in her art? Do you agree with Marina's belief that art ...

Video

Eugene von Guérard: 'North-east view from the northern top of Mount Kosciusko' 1863

In this landscape Eugene von Guérard blends topographical accuracy with the grandness of a mountain top view which he witnessed in 1862 as a member of a geographical survey led by scientist Georg von Neumayer. The artist has taken some liberties with the depiction of the boulders in the foreground to demonstrate the enormous ...

Video

The Sydney Bird Painter: 'The white gallinule' c. 1791-92

Can you imagine what it would have been like to arrive in Australia and see its unique flora and fauna for the first time? Scientific drawings of Australia's flora and fauna emerged with the arrival of the first European settlers who were fascinated by how unusual they were. Sadly, even as they documented these extraordinary ...

Text

The Conversation: arts explainers

This is a collection of short articles (explainers) about arts movements (modernism, cubism), visual arts (film lighting), artistic method (Feldenkrais Method), music (classical, indi), institutions (the Oscars) and more. The articles are written in plain language and are authored by experts from universities in Australia ...

Image

Nici Cumpston, 'Campsite V, Nookamka Lake', 2008

This is a photographic print by Barkindji/Paakintji artist Nici Cumpston (b1963) depicting Nookamka, a freshwater lake situated in the Riverland region of South Australia. The work is shown as an enlargeable image. Text onscreen gives information about the Murray-Darling River system’s degradation, and a description of ...

Image

Patricia Piccinini

This is a PDF resource that focuses on the artworks of artist Patricia Piccinini, based on the exhibition 'Patricia Piccinini: Once upon a time ...' at the Art Gallery of South Australia (2011), and explores themes such as biodiversity and biotechnology. It comprises 28 pages and includes background information on the artist, ...

Interactive

e-Museum: app for Android

This Android application contains high-resolution images and descriptions of over 1,000 items from four Japanese museums: Tokyo National Museum, Kyoto National Museum, Nara National Museum and Kyusyu National Museum. The images are organised into twelve categories: Painting, Calligraphy, Sculpture, Architecture, Metalwork, ...

Image

Daniel Walbidi, 'Kirriwirri', 2010

This is a painting by Mangala/Yulparija artist Daniel Walbidi (b1983) depicting his grandfather and grandmother’s country on his father’s side. The painting is shown as an enlargeable image. This work was exhibited as a part of the second National Indigenous Art Triennial, ‘unDisclosed’, at the National Gallery of Australia ...

Image

Carol Rudyard: 'Northern theme', 1973

This resource includes an enlargeable image of the painting 'Northern theme' by Carol Rudyard and catalogue information about the painting. There is also a video with audio commentary and corresponding onscreen text that provides an interpretation of the painting and information about the artist's views. The painting references ...

Image

Sidney Nolan: 'Ned Kelly', 1946

This web page focuses on Sidney Nolan's famous Ned Kelly series of paintings held by the National Gallery of Australia including links to a gallery of enlargeable images, a primary education resource and a lesson plan with interactive resource for Years 5 and 6. The webpage also includes a video with audio commentary about ...

Image

Water

This is a PDF resource that focuses on the theme of water in Australian artworks, featuring 15 different artworks using various mediums. Each page includes an image, description and context of the artwork, and information about the artist, as well as specific focus questions or key statements that prompt a response to the ...

Image

Sidney Nolan: 'Kiata', c1943

This resource includes an enlargeable image of the painting 'Kiata' by Sidney Nolan and catalogue information about the painting. There is also a video with audio commentary and corresponding onscreen text that provides an interpretation of the painting, and information about the artist's views. The painting represents ...

Video

Remembering Wu Guanzhong

This is a slideshow of five artworks by renowned 20th-century Chinese artist, Wu Guanzhong (1919-2010). The slideshow is accompanied by an audio tribute to the artist by curator Melissa Chiu, which is also available as a text transcript. There is an enlargeable image of his landscape 'Camels in the desert' (1981), related ...

Image

Ian Fairweather: 'Monastery', 1961

This resource includes an enlargeable image of the painting 'Monastery' by Ian Fairweather and catalogue information about the painting. There is also a video with audio commentary and corresponding onscreen text that provides an interpretation of the painting and information about the artist's views. The abstract painting ...

Image

Zhang Xiaogang, 'Bloodline (Two comrades with red baby)', 1995

This is a painting by Chinese artist Zhang Xiaogang (b1958) depicting two parents and a child. The painting is shown as an enlargeable image. Text onscreen gives information about the context and intention of the work of art, critical of the one-child policy in China, as well as a comprehensive visual analysis explaining ...