FLORA & FAUNA

K-6 Virtual Art Show

Issue 5 - 16 Nov-22 Nov 20 - FINAL

Welcome back to...

“Creativity is as important as literacy.” - Sir Ken Robinson

Welcome to our K-6 Virtual Art Show!

The study of the creative arts enables young people to engage with and enjoy exploring expressive forms, ideas, and values. The creative arts provides opportunities to enchant, explore, investigate and respond to the world through making and performing.

    In Visual Arts, students develop their knowledge, skills and understanding in making artworks informed by their investigations of the world as subject matter, use of expressive forms, and consideration of the audience for their works. They also develop their knowledge, skills and understanding in appreciating their own artworks and those of others, recognising some relationships between artists, artworks, audiences and how the world is interpreted. (Creative Arts K-6 Syllabus)

    Our visual arts program is run over 2 days each week this year, with all classes K-6 having the opportunity to participate in 2 terms each of an exciting, theme-based visual arts program.

    Why 'Flora & Fauna'?

    The International Year of Plant Health is being celebrated around the world in 2020, and Australia (including Balmain PS) is joining in. Every year, our classes are named around the International Year of...

    The year was declared by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2018. The goal is to raise global awareness on the importance of protecting plant health. The theme of the International Year of Plant Health is ‘Protecting Plants, Protecting Life’.

    Our Visual Arts program is resourced and well-supported by our P&C who, over the past few years, has enabled us to showcase all students' artworks in a 'gallery' that could easily be mistaken for one in New York or Paris or...

    COVID-19 may have affected the way we enjoy the event this year, however, bears no mark on the quality of artworks that have been produced and are on display along our 'First Floor Gallery'.

    Flora & Fauna

    We invite you to take as much delight as we have, in appreciating the works of 3 classes each week, via our K-6 Virtual Art Show. Enjoy the experience!

    Maria Lambos - Curator

    “I dream of painting and then I paint my dream.” - Vincent van Gogh

    Video: a little about the International Year of Plant Health...

    Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.

    “Children are naturally creative. It is our job to give them freedom, materials and space to let their creativity blossom to its full potential.” - Jean Van't Hul

    Mrs Bowman, our visual arts specialist

    It has been an absolute pleasure and an exciting adventure delivering the visual art program at Balmain Public. The best thing about teaching visual arts is having the opportunity to tap into creativity at its most fundamental level; with children.

    I love going on the journey with them, watching their works unfold and imaginations ignite. By exposing the students to a variety of techniques and allowing them to have a first hand experience or appreciate the works of a variety of artists in line with the NSW curriculum, I have tried to provide an environment of inspiration and enjoyment.

    Throughout the year, even with the difficulties and challenges the students have faced, each class has produced a collection of magnificent artworks.

    In the year of plant health, each class has created a single work to be displayed in our Flora and Fauna exhibition. 

    For me personally, it has been an enriching and rewarding process, watching the students' skills develop. 

    Each one of our 380 students should be incredibly proud of their work. Van Gogh once wrote, "Paintings have a life of their own that derives from the painter's soul." I really hope you enjoy taking a tour through our gallery, which encapsulates lots of "little souls".  

    “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” - Edgar Degas

    Exhibition 5

    “Every child is an artist.” - Pablo Picasso

    Video: Our first walk through the First Floor Gallery...Round Five Display

    Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.

    “Art is a place for children to learn to trust their ideas, themselves, and to explore what is possible.” - MaryAnn Kohl

    EXHIBIT 13 - 'WASHI WATERCOLOUR PATTERS' by 5/6 WILLOW

    “Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” - Vincent van Gogh

    “Art is the child of imagination and gives life.” - Mirka Mora

    PHOTO GALLERY - 'Washi Watercolour Patterns' by 5/6 Willow

    “Art has the role in education of helping children become like themselves instead of more like everyone else.” - Sydney Gurewitz Clemens

    “The artist is not a special kind of person; rather each person is a special kind of artist.” - Ananda Coomaraswamy

    EXHIBIT 14 - 'MINI FOLK TREES' by 1/2 BANANA PALM

    “You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” - Maya Angelou

    “Every artist was first an amateur.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

    PHOTO GALLERY - 'Mini Folk Trees' by 1/2 Banana Palm

    “Creativity is contagious, pass it on.” - Albert Einstein

    "Art speaks where words are unable to explain." - Mathiole

    EXHIBIT 15 - 'RAINBOW BLOOMS' by 1/2 LAVENDER

    "Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time." - Thomas Merton

    “Our task, regarding creativity, is to help children climb their own mountains, as high as possible. No one can do more.” - Loris Malaguzzi

    PHOTO GALLERY - 'Rainbow Blooms' by 1/2 Lavender

    “Creativity takes courage.” - Henri Matisse

    “Art changes people and people change the world.” - John Butler

    Huge THANKS must go to our visual arts teacher extraordinaire, Mrs Felicity Bowman, for without her, the FLORA & FAUNA K-6 Virtual Art Show would not be possible! With a never-ending bubbly enthusiasm, Mrs Bowman has shared her love, appreciation and expertise of art with each and every student, tapping into their inner artist and encouraging creativity and sparking imaginations. Thank you, Mrs Bowman, for delivering such a top-class visual arts program at Balmain Public School, both in the physical classroom, as well as the Google Classroom during remote learning! Thanks so much for showcasing the 380 amazing artworks via the FLORA & FAUNA Virtual Art Show, as COVID-19 wouldn’t allow an actual show. We are all so appreciative and grateful!

    We adore you, Mrs Bowman!!!!