Visual arts
Stage 6 visual arts students use frames, conceptual frameworks and practice to learn about art, its development and history. Students develop their knowledge and skills in a broad range of art making techniques and use a process diary as they develop a body of work. The HSC involves both a written exam and submitted artwork.
Artmaking
Students will develop knowledge and skills in artmaking when:
- using judgement when making artistic decisions for varying contexts, audience purposes, and situations
- making artworks exploring the content of practice, the conceptual framework, and the frames
- using research to guide artistic practice
- experimenting with various processes, techniques and skills adapted from various artistic styles
- considering, interpreting and influencing meaning when constructing layers of their body of work and expressive forms.
Art criticism and art history
Students will learn about art criticism and art history when:
- assessing and describing particular artists, artworks, audience responses and representations of the world through art
- investigating points of view expressed through art by artists in various styles and interpretations of the world
- using judgment to justify and argue qualities and meaning of an artwork or an event as represented through art history
- studying representations of history in artworks as portrayed by an artist’s ideas, issues, events, circumstances, beliefs and technologies
- reading, viewing and criticising critical and historical interpretations and evaluations of artworks, exhibitions, personal and written accounts.
Teaching and learning resources
Assessing Visual Arts Bodies of Work
This resource is designed to assist stage 6 visual arts teachers to make informed and valid judgements when marking HSC bodies of work. It has been written to compliment the NSW Standards Authority (NESA) Visual Arts – 2020 HSC Marking Support Pack.
Teachers can use the resource to:
- familiarise themselves with the characteristics of the benchmarks and language of the marking guidelines
- understand the importance of undertaking critical dialogue with a colleague in the lead up to independently marking bodies of work
- develop confidence when making judgements through practice using the work samples
- ensure that marks awarded to bodies of work reflect the standard demonstrated.
Sample scope and sequences
The sample Preliminary and HSC scope and sequence documents provide teachers with overviews for programming and assessment in visual arts.
Advice for developing the BoW and use of the VAPD
Advice for teachers on approaching the development of the body of work and the role of the visual arts process diary (VAPD). This page contains a termly plan of teaching and learning activites outlining the key stages of the development of the body of work and a digital VAPD scaffold.
The body of work
In the videos below, seven year 12 students discuss the development of their body of work including their use of a visual arts process diary, their inspiration, ideas, use of materials and techniques. They reflect upon their journey, the successful completion of their works and inclusion in ARTEXPRESS.
These videos are derived from a forthcoming professional learning resource titled Visual Arts Stage 6 and the body of work. Participants completing this course will find a correlating set of filmed teacher interviews unpacking the teaching and learning process.
Sebastian Clarke (00:09:11)
Jamie Wong (00:05:48)
Alexis Potts (00:07:33)