Senior School Arts News
February 14, 2020
Year 12 HSC Summer Master Class
During the summer holidays, three of our Year 12 Visual Arts students attended the University of Wollongong, Year 12 HSC Summer Master Class: Introduction to the Visual Arts.
Honey Field, Elizabeth Westwood and Tahlia Collinge were selected from a competitive field to participate in the university subject, and by doing so, furthered their creative practice and developed additional skills for their HSC major work. During the three-week programme, they attended lectures and dynamic studio workshops taught by professional practicing artists and participated in a range of lectures and campus activities, gaining valuable university knowledge and experience. The students’ completed artwork was exhibited in the TAEM (School of the Arts) gallery at the end of the programme to give them exhibition experience.
Additionally, on completion of the Summer Master Class programme, Honey, Elizabeth and Tahlia are guaranteed Early Admission engagement activity at UOW, Credit towards a UOW degree and a chance to secure a scholarship in their first year at UOW.
Tertiary Level Accreditation in the Fashion Industry
Ella De Graaf-Clark in Year 12 has been studying the Certificate III in Fashion Design at the Whitehouse School of Design over the past two years. This course will not only give her credit for her HSC but also a tertiary level accreditation in the fashion industry. She was awarded a Certificate of Excellence, Top Designer Award for the student who ranked first over the two years. Ella was supported in her course by Mr Unwin, VET Coordinator, and Mrs Esposito, Visual Arts Teacher.
Ella told us: “I have been studying at Whitehouse Institute of Design. The “Certificate of Excellence, Top Designer Award” is presented to the student who ranked first over the two years. From this I was asked to create a garment to be displayed at The Australian Wearable Art Festival. I chose to tailor-make a Balenciaga Coat that matched our aesthetic but was still true to the brand. I made the entire jacket from scratch, sewing all of my pieces as well as all the embellishment. It was an incredible experience as we were fully integrated into the design world with guest speakers from different sectors in the fashion industry, fully qualified and well experienced teachers as well as career opportunities through the exhibitions.
My first garment (black and white) was made entirely out of paper and recycled bra cups, titled “Metamorphosis of the Banded Alder Borer” and the second was the coat which was an androgenous discovery of the denial of identity through fashion entitled “Heartless”.