On Tuesday 7 May, the senior Photography class took a trip to the National Portrait Gallery and the National Gallery of Australia to inspire them for the upcoming final assessment tasks. Students were able to find at least 10 pieces each that sparked creativity and encouraged them to take notes of different visual conventions.

While the art that they were looking at was not specifically pieces of photographic work, the main goal was to look at compositional techniques within them, such as the contrast of colour, leading lines, focal point, repeated patterns, etc. The class enjoyed the experience of being thoroughly immersed in the varied range of artworks shown by the galleries and is very appreciative of such a fortunate opportunity.

This experience not only inspired us, but also educated us as we learned about the history of Australia’s connection to artworks such as “Blue Poles” by Jackson Pollock that is now valued at $500 million. Overall, the experience was enjoyed by all and was a great starting point for our assessment.

Miss Tori Dallas
Visual Arts & Photography Teacher
Maathai House