Creative Sustainability: Illustrating an Issue - Visual Arts - Years 7 & 8

Activity Introduction

Quick summary: In this activity, students will consider political and environmental cartoons as an art form for communicating messages about sustainability. They will explore environmental issues that are relevant to them, document their ideas and plan their own cartoon illustration. Using watercolour techniques, students will create their own cartoon portraying a message about their chosen issue.

Faber-Castell has long understood the importance of creativity to all people, especially to young people. It is also continuously searching for environmentally friendly processes and high-quality materials to enhance children’s creative experience throughout every development phase. For more information about Faber-Castell, click here.

Learning intentions:

Students understand that cartoons can be an effective art form for communicating messages.
Students know watercolour pencil techniques.
Students understand that art can portray a message or a meaning to be understood and interpreted by the audience.

21st century skills:

Australian Curriculum Mapping

Content descriptions

Year 7 & 8 Visual Arts:

Practise techniques and processes to enhance representation of ideas in their art-making (ACAVAM121)
Develop planning skills for art-making by exploring techniques and processes used by different artists (ACAVAM120)

Syllabus outcomes: VAS4.5, VAS4.5.

General capabilities: Literacy, Critical and Creative Thinking, Ethical Understanding

Cross-curriculum priority: Sustainability

Relevant parts of Year 7 & 8 Visual Arts achievement standards: Students identify and analyse how other artists use visual conventions and viewpoints to communicate ideas and apply this knowledge in their art making. They plan their art making in response to exploration of techniques and processes used in their own and others’ artworks. Students demonstrate use of visual conventions, techniques and processes to communicate meaning in their artworks.

Topic: Sustainability.

Unit of work: Creative Sustainability – Year 7 & 8 – Visual Arts.

Time required: 60+ mins.

Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium – facilitate discussion and analysis of artworks.

Resources required: Student Worksheets – one copy per student, device capable of presenting a video to the class, A4 paper, artists tools including watercolour pencils, erasers, sharpeners, fine liners, brushes, water. Watercolour Techniques Handout (printed, one per student). Optional: Art Elements and Principles Factsheet.

Keywords: Cartoon, caricature, watercolour, illustration, audience, sustainability, art.

Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.

Worksheets

Teacher Worksheet

Teacher Preparation

Learning intentions:

Students understand that cartoons can be an effective art form for communicating messages.
Students know watercolour pencil techniques.
Students understand that art can portray a message or a meaning to be understood and interpreted by the audience.

Success criteria:

Students analyse and interpret meanings and messages portrayed in cartoon illustrations.
Students convey important messages on the topic of sustainability through their own cartoon illustration.
Students use watercolour drawing techniques.
Students evaluate the effectiveness of their artwork as a form of communication.

Teacher content information: Sustainability describes the ability to keep going at the same rate and in the same (or better) condition as before. In order for our world to be able to sustain us, as well as the generations to come, we need to change. It’s time to think differently – and more creatively – about sustainability and the future of o

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Student Worksheet

Thought starter: How can we share messages about sustainability through art?

Source: https://www.greenhumour.com/2012/07/the-coral-calamity.html

1. Looking at the cartoon illustration pictured above, what is the first thing you notice?

2. How would you describe the style the cartoon is drawn in?
(choose from the list below and write a sentence explaining why you chose those words)
Funny, shocking, realistic, exaggerated, ironic, sad.

3. Does the cartoon have a positive or negative feel and what art conventions support this? (e.g. use of colour palette, hard or soft lines and shapes, etc)

4. What is the message you understand from the cartoon?

5. How could the message have been more clear/emphasised? (what could you change or add?)

6. Consider an environmental sustainability issue that is important to you and write it below.
Some examples are:

The impact of single-use plastic bags on the environment
The effects of deforestation on native wildlife and commu

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Activity: Creative Sustainability: Illustrating an Issue – Visual Arts – Years 7 & 8