Creative Sustainability - Tuning In - Visual Arts - Year 7 & 8

Activity Introduction

Quick summary: In this activity, students will be introduced to the concept of sustainability and explore how ideas around sustainability can be conveyed through artwork. They will explore three artworks created by different artists from different times and cultures. Students will learn to analyse the artworks, comparing their materials, intended audience and use of visual conventions. Students will then create their own representation of sustainability in a ‘Colour-Symbol-Image’ visible thinking routine, and share their new understanding in a peer-to-peer discussion.

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 how artists from different times, working with different media, share a common message of sustainability through their artwork.
Students be able to analyse how artists use visual conventions to enhance the meanings and messages within their work.
Students understand how artists consider the display of their work in order to clearly communicate their ideas to the audience.

21st Century skills:

Australian Curriculum Mapping

Content descriptions
Year 7 & 8 Visual Arts

Develop planning skills for art-making by exploring techniques and processes used by different artists (ACAVAM120)
Analyse how artists use visual conventions in artworks (ACAVAR123)

Syllabus outcomes: VAS4.5

General capabilities: Literacy, Critical and Creative Thinking, Ethical Understanding, Intercultural 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. They evaluate how they and others are influenced by artworks from different cultures, times and places.

Topic: Sustainability.

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

Time required: 60 mins.

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

Resources required: Student Worksheets – one copy per student, device to show images and YouTube clips. Art Elements and Principles Factsheet, art tools such as coloured pencils and Connector Pens.

Keywords: Environmental art, sculpture, nature, activism, installation, street art, sustainability.

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 how artists from different times, working with different media, share a common message of sustainability through their artwork.
Students are able to analyse how artists use visual conventions to enhance the meanings and messages within their work.
Students understand how artists consider the display of their work in order to clearly communicate their ideas to the audience.

Success criteria:

Students critically analyse and compare artworks from different times and cultures.
Students interpret ways in which artists share the common message of sustainability in their work.
Students describe their ideas in a visual thinking routine.

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 differen

...

- or - to view worksheets

Student Worksheet

Thought starter: How can we share the message of sustainability through art?

1. In a ‘Think-Pair-Share’ visible thinking routine, explore the question: ‘What is sustainability?’

THINK	PAIR	SHARE

2. View the following three artworks and discuss as a class, filling in the table below:
Artwork 1 - Andy Goldsworthy: Rowan leaves laid around a hole

(https://flic.kr/p/fdf7fu)

Artwork 2

Banksy: I remember when all this was trees

(https://flic.kr/p/jFHhPp)

Artwork 3

Joshua Allan Harris: Air Bear

Air Bear (Seen On The Streets Of New York) (https://youtu.be/poi8klIN7A4)

	Andy Goldsworthy’s *Rowan leaves laid around a hole*	Banksy’s *I remember when all this was trees*	Joshua Allen Harris’ *Air Bear*
Art Form
Subject matter
Colour
Elements and principles
Meaning and messages

3. Creatively represent what you understand sustainability to mean by completing the ‘Colour-Sy

...

- or - to view worksheets

Activity: Creative Sustainability – Tuning In – Visual Arts – Year 7 & 8