Visual Arts
OPPORTUNITIES AND EXTENSIONS
This unit of work could be extended to include the following learning experiences to support student outcomes in the arts, English and mathematics.
The Arts
Exhibition
Students select one or two artworks made during the unit to contribute to a retrospective exhibition. The exhibition could be shown in the classroom or a school space (such as a school hall, the school administration block or a multi-purpose space). If the school is in proximity to a local art gallery, the teacher may like to negotiate the use of the gallery space for an afternoon or evening. Wherever the exhibition occurs, allowing the students to be involved in the curation of the display is important. The exhibition could be supported by a catalogue that is written and laid out by students using a publishing program, thus supporting the Australian Curriculum general capability of Information and communication technology.
Cubism's reach
Cubism was one of the first truly modern movements to emerge in art. An extension to the unit could involve looking at the work of artists in the Cubist movement, such as Georges Braque, Fernand Léger and Juan Gris. The study could be extended to the work of Abstract Expressionists, particularly Willem de Kooning who was heavily influenced by the Cubists.
Cultural influence
Many of Picasso's stylistic traits were drawn from his encounters with African masks in the ethnographic museum in the Palais du Trocadéro in Paris. The lesson sequence in this unit could be extended to create opportunities for students to explore the exchange of ideas and visual languages among Indigenous, Asian and Pacific cultures. This exploration could be moved into drama through engagement with mask drama from Indigenous, Asian and Pacific cultures.
English
Students could be placed in the role of art critics and write a review of the exhibition of still-life collages (Lessons 4 and 5) or the retrospective exhibition. This activity would support the Literacy strand of the English curriculum in which students explore the narrative, expository and persuasive potential of written and spoken language for different purposes.
Mathematics
The investigation of shape and form could be extended into mathematics in the content strand of Measurement and Geometry with particular emphasis on the shape, location and properties of shapes.