AUSTRALIAN STEINER CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK The … · AUSTRALIAN STEINER CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK The Arts: VISUAL ARTS CURRICULUM Kindergarten/Foundation to Year 10 April 2015 The Australian

© Steiner Education Australia VISUAL ARTS CURRICULUM K-10 www.steinereducation.edu.au Version: April 2015

STEINER EDUCATION AUSTRALIA

AUSTRALIAN STEINER CURRICULUM

FRAMEWORK

The Arts:

VISUAL ARTS CURRICULUM

Kindergarten/Foundation to Year 10

April 2015

The Australian Steiner Curriculum: Visual Arts was developed to meet the recognition and

equivalence given to alternate internationally recognised curricula by the Australian Curriculum

Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA, and follows their format and staging.

While this process is currently not available for the Arts, Steiner Education Australia has made

this curriculum available for Steiner Schools to use to meet state requirements based on the

Australian Curriculum.

http://www.steinereducation.edu.au/

©SEA:ASCF VISUAL ARTS Curriculum Years K-10 Page 2 of 37 www.steinereducation.edu.au Version: April 2015

Revisions included in this document:



Rationale

“When Nature begins to reveal her open secret to man, he feels an irresistible longing for her worthiest interpreter, Art”.1

One of the most important tasks for the teacher, must be to awaken in the child their sense for beauty.

For centuries art has held up the mirror to nature and taught us how to see. However, it hasn’t always

been that way, nor will remain so forever. Long before the wealthy began to have their portraits, estate

and family painted by artists, long before the deeds of kings and queens were memorialized through art,

art was in the service of God. Art was the means by which the great wisdom teachings of world religions

were taught, first esoterically in the temples and then exoterically in the churches. Art was sacred. In fact

the very architecture itself, its location, relationship to the four directions, its cosmological alignment to

the solstice and equinox were of significance, not just the symbols and images which decorated them. All

around the world, there are still sacred places and sanctuaries where art has been found, whose

meaning is still not known to us, such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art which is largely

inaccessible to us due to its sacred teachings. However, for those initiated, art points towards the

transcendence of normal consciousness and union with the divine. Rock engravings from Newgrange in

Ireland, stone circles from Britain, cave paintings from Altamira and Lascaux in Spain and France,

hieroglyphs from Egypt, runes from Scandinavia, all express meaning in symbolic form. It was the first

written language, yet it did not pertain to this world but another. Is it so surprising to see early children’s

drawings exhibit these same remarkable qualities?

Since the Renaissance times, art has increasingly moved away from its sacred function and become

secularized. Today in the 21st Century we see an exciting mix of art forms, each in their own way

reflecting the modern culture and our relationship to it. Existential issues of our place in the universe is

not so much about strict adherence to religious art canons, as in earlier times, or such as we might see in

Buddhist mandalas or religious icon painting, but more about a personal quest to find meaning. Art and

creativity have become for many the new religion, the way in which we get in touch with ourselves, to find

our authentic voice; what our personal mark or signature is and what it is, which makes us uniquely who

we are.

If we were just to talk about meaning as regards subject matter, meaning may well be hard to define,

especially in modern abstract art. However, meaning can also be found within the context of a universal

language of art, where relationships of colour, shape and line, if not obscured by too much attention to

photographic likeness, can be understood. How has the colour been applied, what is conveyed through

the speed and direction of brush strokes, how has the subtle infusion of light created mood? Thus the

central idea may not be the subject matter, i.e. not what the artist has painted, but the how. It is the how

which speaks most directly to us. The degree to which we understand how the individual artist achieved

unity, brought about harmony or created colour balance, the artist’s opus or work, like in music, has to be

relived, or recreated to know the spirit or essence behind a particular work of art. As the person who

appreciates the work of art, we can participate in spirit with the creative achievement of the artist.

So it is with children’s art. Of course we are interested when a child shows an early disposition to draw

realistically, but is that all? Beyond the accurate depiction of the subject we could equally take an interest

in how warmly yellow shines, how soothingly blue calms, how gracefully the line moves, or how lovingly

the boy strokes his dog. In such ways can we engage children in “meaningful” conversations about their

art and point to the universal language of art, which is not about how accurate the drawing is, but how the

child has expressed meaning. It is this layer of meaning, which is inherent to all colour, form and shape,

which the teacher would like the children to discover. In the discovery of such meaning, the children

begin to learn to read in the language of art. This has a profound effect in how they will be able to see the

world, how they will appreciate and approach their own art and how they will learn to see beauty in the

curve of a bird’s wing or the colour of an autumn leaf.

1 Goethe



Aims

Students will discover new ways of seeing and explore creative ways of interpreting the world

and their experiences.

Students will learn how ideas and feelings can be communicated through art. They will learn how

to acquire the means, such as various techniques, skills, processes, materials and technologies,

to represent them.

Students will learn how to make aesthetic judgements based on their knowledge of the language

of art and design and reflect upon their own and other artist’s art making.

Students will learn to appreciate the work of artists through different cultural, social and historical

perspectives and the diverse roles artists play in society, from past as well as from current times.

Learning in Visual Arts

Learning in Visual Arts involves students making and responding to art works.

Making Art

Students will gain confidence in expressing themselves in a variety of art materials and

techniques.

They will explore creatively a range of themes and ideas from their own personal

experiences as well as the world of ideas.

They will acquire skills, techniques and processes, learn about materials and new

technologies and understand the contemporary nature of the interdisciplinary practices of

artists, craft people and designers.

Students will experience working collaboratively as well as individually.

They will learn safe practices, how to display their art and store their work.

They will learn how art education is not necessarily about becoming “an artist,” but will feel its

effects in many fields of industry, such architectural and town planning, industrial and interior

design, fashion and jewellery design, theatrical and costume design, technological,

graphic/media design, garden and landscape design and so on.

Responding to Art

Students will learn to reflect critically and appraise their own and other artist’s art making.

Through the language of art they will learn to articulate what they see and like and give

informed reasons for them.

They will learn to recognize that meaning is not just about the subject matter, but is

embedded in the way artists execute their work and the cultural and social milieu in which the

work has or is being made.

They will recognize how the arts contribute to community and society values through the role

artists play as social commentators, historically, culturally and spiritually.

They will appreciate how the arts bridge social and cultural barriers and inspire dialogue in

their role as social advocates for innovative thinking and change.

They will learn that every culture, past and present, has their own unique canons or

aesthetics of beauty and that valuing and respecting those differences, contributes to the

richness of artistic expression and life.



Knowledge and Skills in Visual Arts

Age appropriate knowledge and skills are to be taught in accordance with the Australian

Steiner Curriculum Framework, Arts, which takes into account the developmental stages of

the student’s unfolding consciousness.

An artistic way of seeing is about recognizing the whole i.e. the unifying idea in a work of art,

which contextualizes and gives meaning to the individual parts. The skill to perceive the

“whole” is applicable in all fields of knowledge, whether it be a specific question or subject

area, such as history, geography or science.

Open ended or creative problem solving motivates and engage students at a more

fundamental level of learning.

A balanced Visual Arts curriculum entails both representational and imaginative themes and

exercises and should include a variety of materials, skills and techniques in 2D, 3D and 4D

(Media)

Knowledge of visual conventions historically as well as contemporary. The universal

Language of Art includes the language of art design elements and principles and how they

communicate meaning.

Skills, Techniques, Processes

In developing knowledge and practices in Visual Arts, students will learn to express ideas in a

number of disciplines and practices. Included below are some of the materials and techniques

students will become acquainted with, such as traditional methods and materials such as paint, inks,

graphite, charcoal, clay, stone or more contemporary practices, which include digital media and

installations such as sound, body, site specific works and those requiring audience participation.

Painting includes watercolour (wet and dry techniques), inks, plant pigments, gouache,

fresco, tempera, acrylic and oils

Drawing includes wax crayons (sticks and flats), coloured pencils, graphite, charcoal, scratch

board, conté, soft pastel, oil pastel, fine line pens, inks, brush, wax resist, mixed media

collage

Printmaking: mono, relief (stamp, collagraph, lino, wood) stencil, silkscreen, intaglio etching

Ceramic Sculpture and pottery: clay modelling, hand building and wheel

Sculpture: plaster, stone and wood carving, assemblage, mosaic, and paper construction

Photography

Interdisciplinary Contemporary Art practices



Glossary: The Language of Art

The Design Elements

Point A dot is a point which when enlarged, becomes a circle. Dots and circles represent centeredness and wholeness.(see mandalas and indigenous dot painting). Line Line expresses movement, direction, structure, and creates space. It can be used as contours to define shapes, or through shading to create tone and form. Line has expressive means to create mood e.g. curved, straight, irregular, branching, jagged, flowing. The weight of a line denotes character: sensitive or strong, smooth or rough. Shape and Form Shapes are flat and 2D; organic, geometric, regular or irregular, they express mood. e.g irregular shapes express movement, whilst regular shapes suggest stability and rest. A silhouette is a shape. Form implies 3D. In 2D, it is achieved through tone, perspective and colour, whilst in 3D it is achieved through modeling or carving. Volume and space, concave convex, inner and outer. Space and Form Space and form coexist as a unity. Sculptural form is expressed through the language of concave and convex, inner and outer movement, volume, mass and solidity. Symmetrical balance evokes feelings of stability and rest, whilst asymmetrical balance evokes dynamism and counter movement. Pictorial space is about achieving the illusion of depth on a 2D picture plane. Tone Tone is expressed in value. A tonal scale is an even graduation of tone from light to dark. A high tonal contrast and low tonal contrast is the difference between tonal values. High contrast creates interest or drama, low contrast, calm or monotony. Texture and Pattern Texture can be real (tactile) or simulated (illusion). Real texture can be created through impasto painting, collage, as well as relief/intaglio carving. Simulated effects can be achieved through drawing, photography, trompe d’oeuil, collage or pattern. 2D surface effects e.g. wood, wool, brick, metallic and reflective surfaces can be achieved through pattern, repetition and rhythm. Colour Colour creates mood, space and form. Hue (characteristic colour), intensity (strength of colour) and tone (colour value) make up the colour vocabulary. Complementary colours contrast and balance each other and are the opposite on the colour wheel; analogous colours are similar and are next to each other on the colour wheel; a colour-chord is a triad of three colours and is spaced 4 steps apart on the colour wheel.

Design Principles:

Movement and Rest Movement expresses direction and duration. Movement may be expressed through line, colour and repetition. The point or circle is movement which has come to rest. Gesture is inner movement or attitude. Colour movement is the interplay of colour perspective i.e. yellow radiates from center to periphery, green moves horizontally, vermillion advances and blue moves inwardly and recedes. Repeated or metamorphosed elements demonstrate duration and time.

Unity or wholeness is when there is a cohesive overarching idea or a unity of its parts. In the same way a conductor conducts an orchestra of single instruments to produce symphony (harmonious composition), unity in art is experienced when a single comprehensible idea unites the individual parts.

Harmony is resolution or balance. The opposite of harmony is discord or tension. Dynamic tension has an awakening effect or causes disquiet and chaos, if left unresolved.

Variety produces interest and movement or chaos and discord if in excess.



Balance and Counterbalance Balance is a principle of visual weighing so that all the elements are in balance. Symmetrical (or formal) balance mirrors around a central axis (left-right, above below or radially) whereas Counterbalance or dynamic balance is more complex and involves a higher degree of artistic sensing.

Similarity (Analogous) and Contrast Contrast creates visual dynamism; its signature awakens and focuses attention. Colour contrast is achieved through complementary opposites, tonal contrast through light and dark whilst shape contrast is achieved through variation of organic/geometric, curved straight, symmetrical and asymmetrical and size contrast. Similar or analogous colours, tones, shapes and size show least contrast and are dreamier and softer in signature.

Proportion Proportion is a principle of size/ ratio relative to the whole. Greek statues and temples and Renaissance paintings were based on the golden mean ratio 1: 1.618. Renaissance art developed laws of perspective, which mathematically correlated proportional size to pictorial space; disproportion and distortion have been used as tools to express emotionalism( see 20th Century art movements)

Pattern, Repetition and Rhythm Pattern and repetition are design principles, which bring strong cohesiveness (unity) to a work of art. The principle of metamorphosis expresses development through rhythmic time (cycle)



Foundation: Kindergarten to Year 2 Overview

Preschool children respond to life through an innocence of vision not filtered through intellectual

concepts. Their senses are open to the beauty and mystery of the world and are compelled to express it,

even if dreamily, through imaginative play and wholesome physical activities. They find “worthy means” to

interpret life through symbols of colour, form and gesture, naming and arranging their “world” according to

the meaning and importance they give it. They develop a repertoire of symbolic marks, universal in

character, which can be understood in the context of their growing physiology, their awakening cognitive,

emotional and physical faculties. Art at this age is essentially an experiential physical activity, the results

of which contribute to healthy physiological development, together with a level of relative understanding

and meaning. This confidence and resilience in their creative play, are hallmarks of a healthy

development; the product of which adults call art.

Around 7 years of age, when children start formal schooling, they enter a new phase: no longer primarily

a will-based and imitative phase, they begin to experience an inner soul awakening. They now engage

with the world through their imagination, or picture thinking, in a sympathetic feeling-understanding way,

living into the wisdom and great moral imaginations of the traditional fairy tales and nature stories. They

become acquainted and surrounded with what is true, beautiful and good. Through their art they

associate a qualitative range of feelings to which they assign colour and form. Through mood and gesture

they identify with kings and queens, heroes and villains. Art calibrates and enlivens children’s feeling life

with rich nuance of meaning.

Children’s need for beauty at this age is expressed through their art and no opportunity is spared as they

embellish their main lesson books with beautiful patterns, borders and drawings in an engaged and

purposeful way, giving vivid expression to the content of the main lesson themes. For children to be

immersed in and surrounded by beauty is an important factor contributing to their physical, emotional and

spiritual well-being.

Wet on Wet Painting awakens children to the fluid world of colour movement. Their early efforts are

primarily experiential in nature. However, guidance as to the how of painting is gently reinforced, so that

the truest expressions of colour can be had: that is pure colour and not muddied colour, neither too

diluted nor strong, neither too wet nor dry, images too diffuse nor overly hard-edged. Striving towards this

interweaving balance of colour is in itself an artistic practice, the result of which enriches the child and

develops his/her ability to appreciate colour harmony. Thus colour is brought in a living way and not

theoretically. Children will furthermore discover how colours affect each other in different ways: how

orange looks brighter next to blue but quieter next to red, yellow surrounded by blue is more harmonious

than yellow surrounded by green etc. Through imaginative stories the foundations for colour perspective

can be brought: how red likes to dominate and come forward whilst blue is quieter and likes to retire into

the distance. Hence the spatial dynamics of colour can be experienced in the younger classes before it is

understood in the older classes. Designating a personality to colour in imaginative “role play”, the mood

and gesture of each colour is more clearly identified so that giving the colour a form, is a natural

development; red, a colour full of life and courage, may take on the image of a brave knight; blue, a calm

and contemplative colour, may be suited to the gesture of a saint; yellow, radiant and giving, might

suggest a more ethereal, spiritual being, green will naturally take on the character of the plant world,

crimson, red or purple are the colours of kings.

Form Drawing2 benefits the school-aged child in inestimable ways. Developing the child’s coordination

and spatial awareness, it assists handwriting in the younger classes and Geometry commencing Class 5.

Artistically, the interweaving rhythms, which knot and dissolve in continuous formative movements,

develop all aspects of plastic imaginative thinking. Furthermore, the curved-straight-lemniscate lines in

form drawing, finds correspondences in 3D modelling of concave convex , where the ‘conversation’

between inner growth and outer formative forces, gives expression to the entire language of form.

2 Not dealt with specifically in this document



Wax and Clay Modelling enlivens the imagination and brings thinking into the will. Simple exercises in

coloured beeswax enable children to explore the different ways we can use our hands, how through

working harmoniously together, through the gentle coaxing of pinching and squeezing, plying and

compressing, cupping and rolling, our hands can bring about a myriad of imaginative forms: softly

spherical and rounded, solid or hollow, pointy or blunt etc. there are numerous possibilities to create birds

and nests, animals in their dens, as well as simple figures in a variety of poses. Clay, which is an earthier

medium, can best wait until Class 2, when with more variety and interest such as pottery.

It is essential for teachers to draw on the blackboard or model in front of the class how they wish the

children to go about their art. Through imitation, the children will see how the teacher captures in a few

simple strokes of colour or line, the essential gesture of the noble king, or the crafty witch. An entire

vocabulary of body gesture movement is needed to distil visually the essence or meaning of the story. A

gesture drawing is not a finished drawing, but the basis from which the child goes on, in freedom, to

develop his picture according to his own unique way.

Kindergarten

Content Description Content Elaborations

K.1. Painting: Colour Play: Experiencing colour through wet on wet painting.

Themes and motifs arise from children’s imagination inspired by stories, play activities, festivals and seasons. K.1. Wet on Wet Painting Exploring colour movement. Ensouling colour through colour stories The primary colours: citrus yellow, crimson red and ultramarine

blue produce the full spectrum of colours when mixed on damp paper.

K.2 Drawing Children express themselves freely in pictures, using a variety of art materials and techniques

K.2 Drawing K.2.1 Free Drawing exploring a variety of drawing materials and

techniques: wax crayons, wax resist, chalk

K.3 Modelling in Wax Children explore a variety of simple forms and movements

K3 Modelling in Wax K.3.1 Finger movements and modelling techniques in natural and coloured beeswax: pinching, stretching, rolling, coiling, K.3.2 Bread Dough As above but using bread dough: E.g. snails, stars, nests etc. K.3.3 Sand and mud play using modelling and moulding



Class 1 Content Description Content Elaborations

1.1 Painting Children continue to explore the soul qualities of each of the primary and secondary colours; learning how to modulate colour, learning how to smoothly blend colours; and learning how to paint forms which arise out of colour.

Themes and motifs derived from Fairy, Folk and Nature stories from the Main lessons, festivals and seasons. 1.1. Painting: Colour Mood through Colour Stories 1.1.1 Primary hues: citrus yellow/crimson red/ ultramarine blue are

introduced through colour stories to personify the unique soul qualities of each colour:

e.g. “shining yellow” “warming red” “inviting blue” 1.1.2 Modulating colour (strengthening and diluting)

e.g. Light rose to crimson red, pale blue to deep blue, pale yellow to intense yellow

1.1.3 Mixing Secondary Hues Orange, Green, and Purple (see 1.1.1) 1.1.4 Analogous Colour or Transitional colours Graduating yellow through to red E.g. (yellow/ orange/ red) Yellow through to blue (yellow/ green/ blue) Red through to blue (red/ purple/ blue) 1.1.5 Complementary Colours: (opposite or contrasting colour)

Complementary colours balance and harmonize each other when placed beside each other, not mixed together. eg. blue and orange, green and red, yellow and purple.

1.1.6 Form Arising out of Colour: Introducing form/motifs without outlines; painting from the inside

out (not outside in)3, allowing the colour to suggest the form.

1.2 Drawing Children continue to imaginatively create pictures of themselves and their environment using the language of gesture, form and colour.

1.2. Drawing: Creating Pictures

1.2.1 Exploring the language of curved and straight lines and the development of forms through simple “seed” shapes.4

1.2.2 Drawing techniques: Using flats and points wax crayons for background/detail, merging

or blending colour, veiling or overlaying colours.

1.3 3D Modelling Exploring forms and motifs from nature, employing a variety of modelling techniques, using the language of form: from spherical to linear and movement to rest.

1.3 3D Modelling 1.3.1 Spheres and Hollows: Concave and convex: forming spheres and pressing hollows. E.g. nest of eggs, bowl of fruit, pod of peas etc. 1.3.2 Kidney shapes: Elongating spheres through stretching and

squeezing to explore simple animal forms. E.g. rabbit, mouse, cat, dog, bird, bear, fox etc.

1.3.3 Movement (Elongating spheres by stretching, rolling and curling) to create expressive movement: writhing snakes, stretching and napping cats, pecking birds, inquisitive mice.

3 Each form develops from a simple kernel of colour and shape, from which it “grows” into its chosen form and dimension in gradual steps, instead of being outlined and then coloured in. 4 op cit



Class 2


*Themes and narratives derived from Celtic Myths and Legends, Animal Fables, Legends of Saints, Nature Stories and Indigenous Creation Myths 2.1 Painting Further developing the language of colour and colour harmony, contrast and complementary and analogous colours to express content and stories*.

2.1 Wet on Wet Watercolour Painting Introducing Golden Yellow, Vermillion Red and Prussian Blue

through imaginative colour stories. 2.1.1 Qualitative colour pairing: citrus/ golden yellow (sour and

ripe/spring and autumn), vermillion/crimson red (young and mature red), ultramarine/Prussian blue (sky and sea blue)2.1.2 Colour Perspective and Complementary opposites

Using counter change5 E.g. blue background/orange subject, then reversing orange background blue subject, exploring the effects of simple colour perspective.

2.1.3 Colour Chords: Colour Balance

Triads of 3-colour compositions explore dominance and Emphasis, colour balance and harmony. e.g. Yellow’s

Birthday6 2.1.4 The Colour Spectrum: The Rainbow or “colour continuum” Colour Transitions Merging Colour 2.1.5 Form Arising out of Colour: Simple motifs: trees, houses, animals, people, sun, moon etc. Colour perspective, red comes forward, blue recedes 2.1.6 Nature and the Four Elements: Colour mood and Gesture Fire : warmth, heat, sun, candle and fire,

Air: zephyr or light breeze, gust, wind, gale, storm Water: mist, rain and snow, waves and eddies Earth: caves, hills, valleys, mountains,

2.1.7 Warm and Cool Colours: Seasons and Festivals: 7 Developing imaginative colour-stories for Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn using warm and cool

colours and gesture E.g. The awakening seed, the trumpeting daffodil, the shy

violet, the sun loving sunflower, the sleepy Pussy Willow, the peeping gum nut etc

2.2 Drawing Children continue to narrate stories* in e.g. Main Lesson books through pictures, exploring compositions and relationships of individuals and groups

2.2. Gesture Drawing 2.2.1 Gesture Drawing Figures in movement Showing how figures and animals express actions of running,

sitting, standing, climbing, praying, horse riding, sword fighting etc. drawing from the “inside out” without outlines.

2.2.2 Narrative Drawing: Retelling the story through a sequence of pictures, emphasizing significant moments of the story and compositional placement of figures.

2.3 Wax and Clay Modelling Children create and display simple tableau/stories* in coloured wax or clay, using figures and animals in relationship.

2.3 Wax Modelling Narratives/Tableaux Relationship: The gestures of Human figures and animals to

show their relationship to one another. e.g. St Francis and the Birds/Wolf, St Brigid and the poor,

King of Ireland’s Son and the Dragon etc.

5 Counterchange is when the subject colour becomes the background colour and vice versa. 6 Placing the dominant colour in the central position and then balancing the other colours around it. Each colour has its own turn or “birthday” of being in the centre. 7 Mueller,B; Painting with Children Capter on Colour and the Seasons



Achievement Standard Year 2

By the end of Year 2

Students will informally share the content and meaning of their artwork. Students experience how artworks contribute to their festivals.

Students use a variety of art forms to express themselves: creating stories out of colour (colour stories), creating informal plays and colourful dress ups, arranging tableaux of stories modelled in 3D, exploring patterns drawn and made in geometrical forms and maths.

Class 1

Class 2

Class 2



Classes 3-4 Overview

Class 3

In Class 3, the child awakens from the dreamy consciousness of Class 1 and 2, to discover the reality of

the physical world and its laws around them. Known in Waldorf schools as the 9 year old crossing,

children make a transition from feeling at one with the world, to feeling separate from it. This shift,

frequently accompanied by a heightened sense of self and anxiety, is met through the curriculum, by

giving children opportunities to engage in the practical tasks of farming life: gardening, rearing animals,

milking, baking, sowing harvesting etc. Through this they learn to appreciate and understand human

beings’ interdependence and at oneness with nature and its seasonal cycles. The house building Main

Lesson continues in this vein, to develop the children’s skills by introducing them practically to all the

occupations associated with building, from the initial design through to its actual completion. All these

experiences are taken up artistically in their 2D and 3D work as they visually record their experiences

through their picture making: figures sawing, nailing, ploughing the fields and so forth, in strong figurative

gesture and colour. Afterwards these gestures can be combined thematically in simple and more complex

compositional narratives. In 2D this will include ways of combining groups of figures, by overlapping them

or making them smaller in scale the further away they are. A tableaux of modelled figures and animals

can also be developed thematically around seasonal farm activities, Houses of the World, and Hebrew

stories such as Noah and his animals. These activities will involve a variety of modelling skills,

construction techniques and mixed media approaches.

The Hebrew stories provide much of the background mood unfolding throughout the year. Beginning with

the creation stories of Genesis, stories then go on to retell of the Expulsion from Paradise and the travails

of great leaders of men such as Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Noah and Moses, who are delivered safely

from their enemies and harm, by listening to the word of God. Much of this story content can be taken up

artistically and distilled in a few simple gestures of colour shape and line. In painting the pure hues of

younger classes give way to a richer spectrum of colour light and darkness. From Genesis, the warm and

cool colour contrasts evoke the separation of light from darkness, heaven from earth and waters from

land in an imaginative interplay of colour, whilst in drawing, figures should now be rounded and

proportional and show expressive gesture and movement. The mixing of the earthier colours of warm and

cool browns, greys and greens (tertiary colours) can now express a greater range of experience.

Class 4

From a developmental perspective, Class 4 is the highpoint and at the same time, the beginning of the

end of childhood. What marks the beginning of the end of child hood is the capacity for abstract, or

conceptual thinking, which usually appears around Class 5 age children. With the appearance of

conceptual thought, the nature of imagination also changes, as does the child’s physiology and mood.

Class 4 could therefore be seen as the final “flowering” of childhood, with all its imaginative, rhythmic, and

musical associations.

The children’s pictures in Class 4 commonly show strong colours and contrasts. The juxtaposition of

bright, living colours on the warm spectrum and darker colours, dying away, on the other, make for an

unfolding drama of light and dark. The cultural theme of Class 4 is the Nordic myths, which not only

characterize a strong sense of vitality, but also a sense of foreboding. As much as the Nordic myths are

infused with a robust vigour and restless vitality of heroic deeds, they equally speak with a consciousness

that knows that the Old World must pass away and give way to a new one. The Twilight of the Gods is an

image of the waning imagination of childhood, which makes way for a more adult like and intellectually

focussed consciousness arising in Classes 5 and 6. The non-spatial imaginative pictures typical of

younger classes, become increasingly spatial and rational by the end of Class 4, with the appearance of

a middle ground space between the foreground and background sky, replaces the flat Earth and sky



pictures. Graduated colour washes, in accord with the rules of colour perspective, form the basis for

simple landscapes where mountains, rivers valleys, forests and plains can be gestured by vertical,

horizontal, curved and diagonal strokes, to artistic effect. Mixing the complementary colour opposites e.g.

blue and orange, green and red, yellow and purple, creates a new spectrum of tertiary colours, such as

olive greens, rust reds, cool browns and warm greys,8 creating more subtlety of expression.

The Local Geography main lesson lends itself to a study of local indigenous cultures and their art.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dot painting, with its strongly spiritual and symbolic depiction of song

lines or “maps” of special totemic significance, can be compared alongside the student’s own “map

making” and use of symbolic representations. There is also a wonderful selection of early Australian art

from artists such as McCubbin, Roberts and Streeton, which capture the mood of pioneering settlements,

inspiring students to see the valuable contribution artists make towards the understanding of our cultural

and social heritage.

The Class 4 Human Being and The Animal Kingdom Main Lesson has a strong artistic dimension,

whereby through clay modelling and painting, students live in their imaginations of the animal kingdom.

Imaginative insights are gained through a comparison of the animal’s physiology with that of the 3 fold

nature of the human being. The figure of the human being shows a unique balance of head, trunk and

limbs, which is no longer maintained in the animal. To adapt to their environment animals specialise in

their development and this study of animals in Class 4 is about capturing the essence or gesture of the

animal’s speciality. E.g. the “head” animals such as the octopus, molluscs etc., the incredible stomach

and metabolic system that characterized the cow, the mighty chest for the lion, the nimble limbs of the

horse and so on. The discussion and artistic work is more about developing an imaginative connection

with the animal kingdom and less about precise observational detail and proportion, which is more fully

gone into in Class 5. In painting it is more about seeing the animal as a unity with his environment; hence

the background colour has a similar colour to the animals and is less concerned with spatial depth or

scenery.9 Soul colour as distinct from realistic colour, speaks about the soul qualities of the animal and

less about appearance. The courage of the lion for example is conveyed not only through its gesture10

but also by the warmth of red, not applied in its pure hue, but by permeating or warming the other

colours. Blue not only creates the spatial expansion of airy realms in which the eagle lives, but also an

inner space, which alludes to the element of thinking.

8 Tints and tones using black and white are not used until the high school. Mixing is done on the page. 9 Franz Marc A painter poet from the German Blaue Reiter group

10 The gesture is captured in a few essential strokes.



Class 3


Themes and motifs derived from the Hebrew stories, Epic of Gilgamesh, Farming and House Building Main Lessons, Seasons and festivals 3.1 Painting: Exploring dominant colour moods; developing pictorial space through simple skills and techniques.

3.1 Wet on Wet Painting 3.1.1 Establishing Dominant Colour Mood ( example from the

Creation Story of Genesis) Day 1: Let there be Light. Day 2: And God created the sky. Day 3:Separation of the waters and the earth Day 4: Creation of Day and Night Day 5: Creation of fish/birds Day 6: Creation of animals and man 3.1.2 Colour Balance Colour exercises continue to explore colour balance through

complementary opposites continued. 3.1.3 Painting Techniques The foreground and background: how to create pictorial space

by graduated colour washes using 2 colours How to add detail Positive and Negative space. Scale (size denotes importance)

3.3 Drawing Introducing pictorial skills to show depth, such as atmospheric and colour perspective.

3.3 Drawing 3.3.1 Gesture Drawing: House Building and Farming: Bricklaying, hammering, sawing, building, ploughing, sowing

and reaping (fruit picking, hay making,) milking, churning butter, etc.

Frontal, three quarter and profile gestures 3.3.2 Drawing techniques include grading and mixing colour tone

through layering or veiling techniques (density not pressure) Using short and long overlapping strokes. 3.3.3 Depth, Compositional Space and Scale Depth through scale: Larger in the foreground (emphasis) Smaller in the distance. 3.3.4 Overlapping shapes and figures

3.4 Clay Modelling and Construction Introducing ceramic hand building techniques of pinch, coiling and slab methods to explore a variety of housing styles from around the world.

3.4 Clay Modelling and Construction 3.4.1 Houses around the World using a variety of mixed media materials and methods: including bark, clay, adobe, mud

brick, pise, stone, timber, bricks etc. 3.4.2 Figurative Modelling Narrative themes from the Hebrew stories are explored in wax

or clay. E.g. Noah’s Ark, Moses in the Bulrushes, David and Goliath, Joseph in Egypt etc. in group compositions or tableaux. Small group projects.



Class 4


* Themes and motifs taken from the Class 4 Norse Mythology, Man and Animal Main Lessons and Local Geography including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art forms. 4.1 Painting Exploring and understanding how in the world and in story content*, light and darkness are expressed in colour; colour’s relationship to time and mood i.e. “young” colour (ascending) and “old” colour (descending), warm and cool colours, and space creating quality of colour in their artworks (atmospheric perspective).

4.1. Painting 4.1.1 Colour Mood:11 Interweaving colour transitions from Ascending colour scale (Becoming) and Descending (Dying away) Colour scale using short brush strokes. Polarities of light (yellow) and darkness (blues) Exploring colour mood of Nordic Gods: Asgard, Midgard, Jotunheim etc. 4.1.2 Colour Mood and Gesture in the landscape see Local Geography Main Lesson Topic Mountains, hills valleys, forests, pastoral Mixing brown using complementary opposites 4.1.3 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Dot painting Symbolic

nature of indigenous art using acrylic on bark/canvas/ paper. 4,1.4 The Human Being and The Animal Kingdom:

Soul Colour /Gesture: Warm and Cool Colours (2 & 3 colour composition12 e.g. hibernating bear (cool colours) active foraging bear (warm colours) 4.1.5 Set and Mural painting skills and techniques include:

Colour Mood, Atmospheric perspective, Scale and Proportion

4.2 Drawing Drawing using gesture and the nature of symbolic art* such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and the Nordic runes

4.2 Drawing 4.2.1 Form Drawing motifs using symbolic Art forms E.g. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander,, Nordic Runes, 4.2.2 The Human Being and The Animal Kingdom Gesture Drawing 4.2.3 Gesture Drawing: Activities of pioneering days: Droving, gold fossicking and mining, forestry etc. Refer to early Colonial Australian Painting in relation to Local Area Topic and Camp

4.3 Modelling Identifying, modelling and presenting, the essential gestures of animal forms* and its relationship to the 3 fold human being in wax or clay.

4.3 Clay Modelling 4.3.1 The Human Being and The Animal Kingdoms Single and group compositions 4.3.2 Clay Tablets using Bas relief E.g. Nordic themes (runes)

interweaving knot and labyrinth motifs

11 Mueller Painting with children Moods of Nature 12 See German Expressionist painter C20th Paul Klee for examples of animals in their environment



Class 4 Achievement Standard

Students will be able to distinguish between symbolic and representational art; how symbolic conventions are used to convey meaning e.g. map making and aboriginal and runic art in their own and others’ artworks.

Students will be able to work collaboratively in group projects which require planning and communication such as stage sets and props. They use colour mood, colour transitions and scale, gesture, form motifs and atmospheric perspective in expressing artistic content.

Class 3 Class 4

Class 4 Animal Main Lesson



Classes 5-6 Overview

In Class 5 and 6 painting once again takes up the colour mood exercises of sunrise, sunset and the

seasonal moods.13

In Classes 5 and 6, as the student’s intellectual faculties awaken, it is common to see their natural

spontaneity and confidence in their art, wane. The teacher, by showing them first how to observe the

underlying gesture of the form, can then encourage them to develop their drawings in their own personal

way. Thus can there be a truthfulness to their observations, whilst at the same time, an artistic freedom.

No two works will be alike! For example, by knowing the gesture of wind-blown trees and grasses,

students can then decide what sort of trees and grasses they wish to represent as well as the prevailing

weather conditions, whether it be a light breeze or storm.

A diverse and culturally rich journey awaits the Class 5 and 6 student. Ancient civilisations of India,

Persia, Babylonian, Egypto-Chaldean, Greek and Roman Ages are brought in wonderful stories, out of

which students create their own imaginative pictures. The beauty, craftsmanship and engineering feats of

these cultures will astonish and inspire students to not only respect the role of artists, but to emulate

them. Greek Classical art and architecture reached heights of artistic beauty acknowledged even to this

day. Much can be learnt about the aesthetics of beauty even if in a simple way, not only about the living

inwardness of form (the soft swelling musculature and graceful S curve counterbalance), but also about

proportion and balance, which finds expression in the Greek sculptures of Gods and athletes, but Greek

temples as well. Modelling the human body, with its action in repose provides a challenging yet

worthwhile exercise.

In terms of beauty, the hardening realism of Roman art (Class 6) cannot compare with the soft idealized

forms of the Greeks. The emergence of the Roman portrait busts, unknown in Classical Greek times,

show all the idiosyncratic features of the individuals who sat for them, with no attempt to conceal their

flaws and eccentricities. Engineering and civil works characterize the Ancient Roman’s desire for

imperialist grandeur, their desire to conquer the material plane being less about beauty than getting their

practical tasks done. This practicality also characterises one aspect of Class 6 with its emphasis upon

understanding how things work, whether it be the physics Main Lesson making acoustic instruments,

constructing Roman armaments, discovering the effectiveness of the key stone in the arch, the

gravitational flow of water in aqueducts, how light falls on objects and casts shadows, or the effects of

light and colour.

Yet in painting a softer side to the Roman culture, is evident on the frescoed walls of the villas. Sensitive

representations of everyday items of villa life, such as banquets, fruit bowls, fountains and goddesses

such as Flora, with her ethereal beauty carrying the first spring bouquets, show a lyrical quality. Painting

in Class 6 tries to capture a more sensitive evocation of light and colour with themes taken from the

examples given in the training sketches of Steiner as a helpful starting point. Fresco painting may wait

until Year 7.

13 The Nine Training Sketches for Painting by Rudolf Steiner. These exercises can be repeated numerous times from

Class 6 onwards. They are archetypal colour gestures of becoming (ascending) and dying (descending) and are

pivotal in experiencing and understanding the soul nature of colour.



Class 5


5.0 Themes and Motifs taken from Ancient Myths & Legends: India, Persia, Egypt, Babylonia, Chaldea, Greece and also the Botany Topic 5.1 Colour and Painting Striving to create a more complex colour palette with interweaving colour, more subtle in variation and more balanced in colour harmony. 5.2 Drawings Exploring a variety of drawing and sketching methods and media to develop creative thinking and expression. 5.3 Modelling Sculpting and Hand building Exploring 3D through modelling, sculpting and hand building through themes such as such as temples, figurines, pinch and coil pottery using various materials and techniques, such as clay, soft stone carving and cardboard construction, paper maché, whilst striving for balance beauty and ideal proportion.

5.1 Painting 5.1.1 Archetypal Plant studies in colour (wet on wet) 5.1.2 Individual plant studies: E.g. Lily, Rose 5.1.3 Trees and their Gestures: For example: Eucalypt (airy, branching), Willow, (watery, weeping) Poplar (vertical, sentinel) Oak (expansive, protective) Birch (airy, weeping) 5.1.4 Botanical Notebook Studies: the sketch (plein air) Plants & Insects (Box watercolour) 5.1.5 Man and Animal studies in colour and gesture continued: 5.1.6 Interweaving colour exercises Using rhythmic short brushstrokes of similar colour tones to

modulate from light to dark 5.1.7 Plant pigments14 5.2 Drawings 5.2.1 Observational drawing and quick sketching from nature

exploring a variety of media and techniques using tonal shading, textural effects, mono and relief printing, brush, pen and ink line drawings, soft pastel, wax resist, stencils, etc.

5.2.2 Colour Veiling: Media include tissue paper, wax block crayon using themes of light and darkness and perspective such as trees and flowers

5.2.3 Silhouettes: Greek Circular and band motifs figures, animals and plants (Sgraffito technique) 5.3 Modelling, Sculpting, Hand Building 5.3.1. The Figure can be explored in a variety of ways: Relief

Sculpture, Block Sculpture, Seated and supported Standing Figures, with the aim to achieve a balanced free

standing figure such as that achieved in the Classical period of Greek sculpture with the “S-curve” or contrapposto. The Olympian ideal of the human figure as athlete can be seen in the Discus and Javelin Thrower.

5.3.2 Temple Architecture: Examples of the Indian Stupa, Persian Ziggurat, Egyptian pyramid, Greek temple with its 3 aspects of pediment, column and stylobate as well as the Doric Ionic and Corinthian order can be explored in a simple way through clay modelling or carving of poured plaster blocks.

5.3.3 Terracotta Hand built Pottery Pinch and coil methods are sufficient for a Greek urn to be

made and fired either by individuals or as group project. Balance, levity, proportion, function, form and beauty reaches its climax in Greek Vase art. Applying slip and using hand painted or sgraffito decorative geometric patterns and forms produce effective results.

14 Plant pigments (powder) are mixed with water and applied in washes. The colours are generally less vibrant but subtler in intensity.



Class 5 Ancient Egypt Main Lesson

Class 5 Botany Main Lesson



Class 6


6.0 *Themes and motifs taken from the Roman epoch/The Aeneid, Australian Explorers and Colonisation, Geology, Physics, Astronomy and Geometry. (including Australian Indigenous peoples and their representation of views through art) 6.1.Painting Exploring colour mood through becoming and dying away colour schemes, light and darkness through colour (veiling) and space (colour and atmospheric perspective), through a series of exercises and related themes*. Compare artistic style features used to communicate meaning including those of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artworks and those of early European painters in the colony. 6.2 Drawing Drawing from the years themes* and their different content and exploring how these are represented e.g. light falls upon objects and the shadows which are cast. Drawing forms and objects in 3D through the modelling effects of tonal light and dark.

6.1 Painting 6.1.1 Colour Mood 15(wet on wet) These can be done in pairs over the course of the year Sunrise/ sunset Moonrise/moonset Seasonal moods 6.1.2 Veil Painting I Preliminary Studies 16 Colour translucency and density from light to dark can be

undertaken as a series of small watercolour studies (A5) without subject matter, exploring colour tone monochromatically and polychromatically in warm and cool colours

6.1.3 The Australian Landscape: Atmospheric Perspective (wet on wet) See Australian Explorers Main Lesson also the Australian Desert Landscape painters such as

Albert Namitjira 6.1.4 Experience Indigenous art styles, painting on bark, rock

carvings 6.1.5 Understanding Colour (see Physics Main lesson) Goethe’s colour, colour wheel, primary, secondary and

tertiary colours, analogous and complementary colours. 6.1.6 Displays for Open day, parent teacher evenings. Class presentations and tutorials enable students to talk

about how they developed their artistic ideas to reach their final outcomes.

6.2 Drawing 3D Form 6.2.1 Simple Projection and Shadow Drawing17 A series of drawing exercises in graphite and/or

charcoal exploring the tonal effects of light falling upon different surfaces such as spherical, cylindrical, conical and cuboid and the various shadows they cast.

How the intensity of light determines the intensity of shadows (high and low tonal contrast)

How the angle of incidence of the light source determines the length of shadows

How shadows overlap and how shadows project onto various curved or planar surfaces.

Visualizing the interpenetration of two forms as well as the shapes created when objects are truncated at various angles.

Spatial arrangements of 3D objects on a 2D surface includes the skill of overlapping forms to create spatial depth.

7 Step Tonal scale Drawing methods include a variety of shading techniques

such as hatching, smudging, tonal washes and white conté on black paper.

6.2.2 The Human Figure Establishing proportions of head trunk and limbs of child and

adult Looking at various gestures: standing, seated and moving

figures working in softly shaded silhouettes

15 See Steiner’s training sketches 16 See year 7 for Veiling II 17 Done in conjunction with the physics main lesson




6.3 Modelling/Construction Continuing to develop greater realism and expression in figures and facial features. Modelling from the years themes* including Architectural modelling of Roman buildings and civic works to explore representation of content themes and planning meaningful display.

Exploring costume and props Mixed media: graphite, wax crayon, charcoal, brush, pen/ink

wash etc. 6.2.3 The Face: Frontal and Profile Relationship of facial proportions to chronological age Profile and frontal proportion and expression The silhouette profile. 6.3 Modelling, Ceramic Hand building, Cardboard Construction, Mosaic 6.3.1 Towards Realism Proportion and Expression (see 6.2.2) Figurative themes from Roman epoch in single or group

compositions may include gods/goddesses, the Caesars, centurions, or individuals such as Hannibal, Cleopatra, Romulus and Remus, with attention to Roman features and dress etc. and/or contrast European explorers with Australian Indigenous peoples etc.,

6.3.2 Ceramic Hand building and Cardboard Construction: e.g. arch, aqueduct, barrel arch, triumphal arch, cupola, Pantheon, Tuscan and Composite capitals,

Bas relief (Trajan’s Column), Caryatids, Colosseum, catacombs etc.

6.3.3 Mosaic Pictures Reference to Roman/Early Christian/Byzantine mosaics such

as Roman geometric form motifs and Early Christian symbols

6.3.4 Construction for Class Displays or Class Play sets / production- created to portray content themes e.g Roman History.



Achievement Standard


Students will be able to identify artworks made from various cultural epochs and comment upon their artistic style and conventions. They will learn how to express themselves using similar conventions in their own artwork and discuss their work using the appropriate art language. They will develop a variety of ways to express their feelings and ideas about various cultures such as Roman, European and Indigenous cultures.

Students will learn how to create their own works of art and develop the skills to express particular moods and meanings. They will continue to develop their skills as well as learning new ones in both 2D and 3D. Through Class Plays students will learn about the effects of sets, props and lighting to communicate mood and meaning through artworks.

Class 6 Rome Main Lesson



Years 7-8 Overview

Year 7 offers a wealth of stories and imagery to inspire students artistically. The timeless legends of

Arthurian knights and their Grail quests, stories of courtly love and troubadours, monks illuminating

manuscripts in their isolated cells, crusades to the Holy Lands, the rise of Islam etc. provide a rich palette

of examples of art and architecture, many of which were inspired by a religious devotion and giving

expression to a timeless beauty, enduring to this day. Students will come to appreciate the painstaking

efforts of icon painters, the intricately carved sculptures of stonemasons, the master artisans responsible

for the coloured stained glass windows through which the transient light bathes the soaring interiors of

cathedrals with the wisdom teachings of the Church. When engaged with artistic tasks of their own, such

as veil painting and intricate design work of stained glass windows, students will gain a sense of the

same degree of concentration and mood needed to bring about something artistic and worthwhile.

Year 7 and 8 students show an increasing desire to draw naturalistically, to make objects appear solid

and conform to the relative scale and perspective of the picture space. To understand how figures appear

lifelike and facial features expressive, is to learn how tonal shading, models the musculature in soft

transitions of light and dark. The Year 7 year corresponds to the late Middle Ages when the painter

Giotto, broke with the traditional flat linearism of Byzantine icons (with their gold backgrounds and

otherworldly piety) introducing the first blue sky, solid figures and an interest in nature and worldly things

and as teachers we can follow this cue. The more adventurous spirit of Year 8 demands greater

challenges in drawing. Reflective surfaces, optical illusions, complex machinery and inventions meet their

new found confidence and curiosity.

During the Renaissance, the expression of rational order and harmony of proportion was considered to

be the ultimate ideal of beauty. Replicating Nature was not enough. It had to be improved upon by

imposing order and ideal proportion. The Sistine Ceiling, School of Athens and the Last Supper, lift

humankind to new heights of a moral imagination, where the conception and attainment of these lofty

ideals is, with artistic genius, made possible.

The teaching of the Visual Design elements in Year 7 and Design principles in Year 8, introduces

students to the universal Language of Art through a number of short exercises and projects. This is

followed up in the Study of Art Main Lessons in Year 9 where students will be able to view works of art

and participate in discussions as to what makes a particular painting or sculpture beautiful or good.

During Year 8, the interest in and depiction of the outer world reaches a new level, as drawing becomes

the means by which ideas are visualized and recorded. Artist’s notebooks such as Leonardo’s, show

analytical sketches of human anatomy, inventions, water vortices and clouds etc. not only what things

look like, but how things work. Year 8 students engage with drawing as an extension of their thinking and

quest for knowledge. The structural components of modern age machinery (see the Industrial Revolution

Main Lesson), tools, bones, seed pods, shells are a source of fascination as they seek to grasp the

complexity of forms with their intellect. Drawing is their tool and the means to knowledge and

understanding. In addition, plein air sketching, freehand perspective, portrait and figure sketching enliven

student’s capacity to see and record the passing moment, forcing them to sharpen their eye to the

essential details and not get overwhelmed by detail. A diversity of styles and approaches is needed at

this age to keep students engaged and thinking creatively.

Note: There is an emphasis on traditional themes in Visual Arts 7-10 but the teacher can bring modern and contextualised examples for the time and place of their class.



Year 7


7.0 Themes and motifs taken from Arthurian tales, the monastic and court culture of the Medieval Ages, the Crusades and Islam, Voyages of Discovery, Wish Wonder Surprise and Indigenous Societies Main Lessons 7.1 Painting Continuing to master the veiling technique, as well as introducing icon painting of the medieval Ages and early Renaissance. 7.2 Drawing Consolidating and extending observational and imaginative drawing skills including design elements and principles. 7.3 Clay Modelling and Ceramics Developing 3D ceramics using hand building and clay modelling techniques.

7.1 Painting 7.1.1 Veil Painting Colour and Light Exercises include simple abstract studies in colour light and

darkness (transparent washes), colour mood (warm and cool colour spectrum) atmospheric perspective (soft and hard edges), introducing simple form motifs such as light shafts through windows,18 dappled forest moods etc.

7.2 Drawing See the birth of Naturalism in painting and the development of

pictorial space during the Early Renaissance period 7.2.1 Linear Perspective I Exterior Buildings 19

Discovery of the laws of perspective in the Early Renaissance see Giotto, et al, Leonardo’s Last Supper, Raphael’s School of Athens

1,2,3 pt perspective Skyscrapers, gables, churches, spires, castles, turrets, steps,

equal distances apart 7.2.2 Linear perspective II Interiors and Furniture How to draw in perspective interior space, both traditional and

modern E.g. churches, rooms, including windows, doors, balconies, verandas, stairs, as well as furniture: tables, chairs, dressers, wardrobes, etc.

Oblique perspective and Freehand Perspective 7.2.3 Observational and Experimental Drawing II New ways of seeing: themes from Nature and man-made

including figurative drawing using mixed media techniques 7.2.4 Graphic Design I: Introducing the Design Elements of dot, line, shape, tone,

colour form, texture through creative design exercises using a variety of media and techniques, including print-making, (stamp, stencil, lino) and paper craft.

7.3 Clay Modelling and Pottery 7.3.1 Bas relief Sculpture Raised or Intaglio Bas relief on tiles, plaques, or columns (see Romanesque & Medieval motifs such as Chartres cathedral on

stone masonry) labyrinth designs(church floors), Celtic knot and interlacing plant motifs from Islam, Nordic

Stave churches etc. 7.3.2 Figures in the Round Active and receptive gesture (convex and concave) How to express qualities such as: Poverty (pauper/begging figure), Protectiveness (see artist Kathe Kollwitz) Maternal Love (Madonna and Child), Tranquility (Buddha) Piety, Courage (St George)

18 Refer to stained glass windows of Chartres Cathedral 19 See Herman von Baravalle



Year 7 Stained Glass – Medieval Main Lesson

Class 7 Perspective



Year 8


8.0 * Themes and motifs may be taken from Renaissance, World Geography, Anatomy, Meteorology, Biographies, Solid Geometry, Age of Revolutions. Students mount and display their artworks, considering selection, location, labelling and audience. 8.1 Painting Extending painting skills of watercolour, painting frescos, using acrylic/gouache- applied to new themes and projects. 8.2 Drawing Students experiment with a range of visual art and graphic design conventions and techniques, including analysing those from other artists, to find effective ways to enhance representation their ideas and observations (e.g. observational drawing skills begun in Classes 6 and 7, introducing the concepts of design principles and aesthetic beauty). 8.3 Clay Modelling and Pottery Exploring principles of 3D form through sculpture and pottery referring to other artists when planning and making their artworks Responding to visual artworks through a variety of cultural and historical perspectives, comparing and contrasting the visual conventions and canons of beauty.

8.1 Painting 8.1.1 Veil Painting II Watercolour: Developing themes in conjunction with Main Lessons. E.g. Landscapes (World Geography) Clouds (see Meteorology), Tree groupings 8.1.2 Mural or Theatre Set Painting Techniques include enlarging pictures for a mural or theatre set

using grid method, applying knowledge and skills to achieve depth (foreshortening. Scale, linear, colour and atmospheric perspective)

Medium: Acrylic Refer to Renaissance Painting, Sistine ceiling, last Supper Sistine ceiling 8.2 Drawing Tonal Drawing III 8.2.1 Observational Drawing: Special effects Angles of illumination, reflective surfaces, optical illusions, 8.2.2 Anatomical Drawing: see Anatomy Main Lesson The Skeletal form Exploring concave convex forms See Leonardo’s anatomical drawings 8.2.3.The Portrait Face: Biographical Studies Tonal value, proportion, expression

Studying the Renaissance Masters and/or photo images of outstanding individuals: e.g. Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Mother Theresa, Mandela, Shackleton etc.

Techniques include: sfumato shading, line hatching, ink wash, conté (sepia/black/white), soft pastel

8.2.4 Graphic Design Part II Design Principles Exploring Design Principles of composition, balance, contrast,

rhythm, unity, etc. through a series of creative design exercises using mixed media applied to various topics and projects such as book and poster design.

Refer to traditional and modern design ideas. 8.3 Clay Modelling and Pottery 8.3.1 Anatomical modelling20 See Anatomy Main lesson Applying form principles of concave, convex and lemniscate

movement 8.3.2 Character Studies in Expressive Movement: “Heroic and Dramatic Gesture” see Age of Revolutions: Delacroix’s painting Liberty Leading the

People, Shakespeare, Rodin, Ernst Barlach for examples of expressive gesture

8.3.3 Ceramics: Decorative Pots Finding balance between function(purpose), form (proportion) and

beauty (aesthetics) Hand building /wheel techniques of pinch, coil, Refer to Asian ceramics, tribal pottery etc.

20 Mees Secrets of the Skeleton





Students will be able to compare and contrast artistic conventions and practices used to communicate content and meaning by artists of various periods such as Medieval and Renaissance with modern practices of the 19th and 20th Century.

Students gain an understanding of and demonstrate the artistic process from the idea through to the finished work of art and how various materials and techniques they and other artists use, affect its message and meaning.

Observational drawing

Veil painting

Year 8 Anatomy Main Lesson

Year 8 Industrial Revolution Main Lesson



Years 9-10 Overview

Classes 9 and 10 continue to develop and strengthen those observational skills, which began in Class 6,

i.e. seeking to draw objectively what is perceived through tone, form and space. In addition, however,

students learn an artistic way of seeing, which simplifies and reduces the visual information down to its

essential gesture, the difference between replicating “exactly what is seen” and “interpreting imaginatively

the spirit of the form”. This imaginative or artistic way of seeing penetrates through the surface

appearance to apprehend the underlying idea. Thus is the spirit liberated from appearance and reveals

its meaning, through the simplest language of colour and movement. The imagination, now freed up from

having to reproduce what is perceived, can now rearrange and compose according to an inner necessity,

rather than outer conventions.

Year 9 students are in the midst of puberty. This is a time of strong physicality and intense emotions. For

a time the world appears to present in emotional shades of black and white. It is in this context that the

Year 9 art curriculum explores atmospheric mood through black and white tonal shaded drawing,

printmaking and photography. The students experience how form condenses and then dissolves out of

the subtle or dramatic shifts of atmospheric light and darkness. The difference between the light that falls

on objects from the outside and light that illuminates from within, can be compared in Durer’s Melancholia

to Durer’s St Jerome, as well as comparing Rembrandt chiaroscuro to Caravaggio’s.

By Year 10 the students usually have moved beyond the emotional “black and white phase” and are

again able to appreciate the world through a wider and less dramatic spectrum of feelings. It is time now

to re-introduce a focus on colour. The art of developing a painterly approach to colour, through the

understanding and practice of colour transitions of hue, tone and intensity, the Year 10 student is directed

towards a harmonious interweaving of colour not bound by too much delineation of form.

The 3D experience for Year 9 is about clay modelling a life size head. Steiner’s indications suggest, what

experienced teachers have subsequently corroborated, that is the intrinsic value of students modelling

the plastic formative shaping forces and inner growth forces of the head, as expressed through the

concave - convex, the curved and angular, the masculine and feminine, youthful and mature proportions,

at this particular age. From this experience students will also recognize the language of form of the soft,

youthful idealism of Greek Classicism, the delineated individualized forms of Roman pragmatism, the flat,

linear other-worldliness of the Christian Romanesque and Medieval sculptures, the worldly naturalism of

Renaissance sculpture and the soft transcendence of Buddhist heads. This language of form can then be

further extended in Year 10 in the realm of figurative, organic and geometric form movement in both

modelling and carving mediums.

Finally, by looking at representative works of art from early to modern civilisation in a chronological

sequence, students will appreciate the pendulous swing of the canons of beauty over the centuries; how

the motifs of bud, flower and over flower, can be discussed in relation to the ascendency and demise of

civilisations. The study of art cultivates a refined sensibility and appreciation of beauty, the aesthetics of

which is dependent upon a rich vocabulary of art language.

Note: There is an emphasis on traditional themes in Visual Arts 7-10 but the teacher can bring modern and contextualised examples for the time and place of their class.



Year 9


9.0 At Year 9 the emphasis is on the practice and understanding of tonal value (light and dark) firstly in black and white and then in Year 10, colour and colour tone. Printmaking, Photography, Modelling Clay Heads. Study of Art I and II 21 9.1 Black and White Tonal Drawing Exploring tonal values and relationships to express atmospheric mood and form. 9.2. Printmaking Exploring new and experimental approaches to image making through various printmaking processes.

9.3 Photography I Introducing the SLR camera emphasising black and white photography 9.4 Modelling: Exploring the language of form

principles: concave and

convex, through the clay

modelling of a life sized head.

9.1 Black and White Tonal Drawing 9.1.1 Studies in Black and White Atmospheric Shading Tonal transitions (high and low tonal contrast ) Illumination from the front, behind, (silhouette), side (charcoal

sticks and pencils) diagonal shading, hatching, white and black conté, fine liners)

9.1.2 How the Interplay of Light and Dark creates Form Comparing illumination from outside (outer light) e.g. Durer’s Melancholia with illumination from within (inner light)

e.g. Durer’s St Jerome in his Study, also Rembrandt and Caravaggio

Media: graphite, fine liners, white conté on black, charcoal 9.1.3 Exploring Special Effects Reflective surfaces e.g. metallic, mirror, water, Opaque and transparent surfaces e.g. cloth, glass, Textural surfaces e.g. rough, smooth and faceted 9.2 Printmaking: Develops out Black and White Tonal Drawing skills (9.1) 9.2.1 Mono printing 9.2.2 Scratchboard (White lines on black background) 9.2.3 Collagraph (includes cardboard, string, glue prints) 9.2.4 Relief printing: Lino and Woodcut Monochromatic reduction print 9.2.5 Intaglio Etching (celluloid) Themes include abstract designs elements, natural and manmade etc. Refer to e.g. Durer, Rembrandt, Goya, Gauguin, German Expressionists: Franz Marc, Kollwitz and Barlach, Japanese woodcuts and Australian Margaret Preston 9.3 Photography I Black and White Photography is a basic introduction to the camera and the phenomena of light and image. Further development on digital and colour photography will continue in Years 10 and beyond. 9.3.1 Light and image 9.3.2 Intro to the SLR camera and film developing and printing 9.3.3 Photo editing/post-production / manipulating images to create

artworks 9.4 Modelling Clay Heads Finding the balance between the inner expanding-forces and

the formative im-pressing forces. 9.4.1 Preparatory Drawing: Proportion and age (front and profile) The language of form principles: convex and concave Expression 9.4.2 Terracotta Clay Heads Construction and Firing: Introduction to hand building methods Language of form principles: convex/ concave Facial features and expression Hair and head coverings Refer to idealized Classical Greek heads, realistic Hellenistic/Roman portrait busts, Donatello, Michelangelo, Bernini, Rodin, Asian Buddhist heads et al.

21 Gerbert and Richter “Art and Human Consciousness”




9.5 Study of Art I Appreciating examples of fine art, which best show the development of human consciousness from Palaeolithic to Roman times. 9.6 Study of Art II Appreciating fine works of art, which best exemplify the development of human consciousness from early Christian to Renaissance times.

9.5 A Study of Art I Palaeolithic to Roman Representative examples of Art, which best exemplify the development of man’s consciousness throughout the Ages.22

9.5.1 Palaeolithic/ Stone Age Paintings and Sculpture The nature and meaning of Symbolic Art Pre writing ideograms and petroglyphs Fertility figurines Cave paintings e.g. Lascaux, Altamira, the Kimberley Ranges 9.5.2 Egyptian Painting and Sculpture: Religious/ Funerary Art Stylised artistic canons Hieroglyphic picture writing Bas relief and block sculpture 9.5.3 Sumerian, Assyrian, Babylonia, Painting and sculpture 9.5.4 Ancient Persia Picture symbols Painting: coloured glazed tiles Sculpture Influence on Byzantine and Islamic Art 9.5.5 Minoan (Crete), Mycenaean and Aegean The characteristic differences Fresco wall and vase painting Sculpture 9.5.6 Greek Art: Greek Vase painting: (Black figure ware) Sculpture: The Classical ideal of beauty of the human figure 9.5.7 Roman Art: Fresco Wall Painting: naturalistic landscape and portraiture Sculpture: Realism, heroic movement and commemorative Relief sculpture

9.6 Study of Art II Early Christian to Renaissance 9.6.1 Early Christian /Byzantine: The symbolic, spiritual and religious nature of Christian and Byzantine art Catacomb paintings and Church mosaics Russian and Greek icons 9.6.2 Islamic Art 9.6.3 Romanesque Gothic: Illuminated manuscripts Influences of Celtic Art Sculpture 9.6.4 Gothic art Gothic cathedrals and stained glass windows Portal sculpture Bayeux tapestry 9.6.5 Renaissance Painting and Sculpture: Naturalism and pictorial space Discovery of the mathematical laws of perspective Sculptural realism reaches harmonious proportion Renaissance in the South (Italy) Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo; Renaissance North of the Alps (Germany) Grunewald, Van Eyck and Durer

22 The history of World Architecture can be taken as a separate study in the Year12 Steiner Curriculum.



Class 9 study of the human head

Class 9 print-making

Year 9 photography



Year 10


10.0 One of the main focus areas of Year 10 art is learning about colour i.e. transposing black and white tonal images into harmonious colour schemes.in addition, how students generate ideas for their art should be seen as a process to be engaged in, exploring a variety of approaches and finding a direction which best suits them. 10.1 Painting Exploring and interpreting colour through various approaches and media. 10.2 The Design Process Following a visual design process from idea to resolution in painting, photography print-making and/or sculpture: Develop subject matter, plan, and design and create artworks which use materials, techniques, technologies and processes to develop and represent their own developing personal style and artistic intentions to portray themes and content. Plan and evaluate displays of art. 10.3 Sculpture Exploring the language of 3D form: volume, space and movement through a variety of sculptural media and processes such as modelling, carving and mixed media.

10.1 Painting Understanding and Applying Colour 10.1.1 From Monochromatic to Polychromatic: A review of colour principles: Hue, Tone and Intensity Colour

wheel, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary colours, Analogous and complementary, split complementary, Simultaneous contrast, warm and cool colours, aerial perspective, symbolism and colour, emotion and colour

Painting techniques and media: underpainting, impasto, colour wash and glazing, gouache, acrylic, inks, pastel

Topics may include: 10.1.2 Still Life Genre: Still Life painting gives a personal, cultural and social insight

into value, meaning and relationship to the world not only from what is painted but how it is painted.

See Dutch and Flemish still life artists: Zurburan, William Kalf (opulence and status), Chardin (transient beauty), Herman Steenwjick (symbolic), Cezanne, Juan Gris (towards Abstraction), Van Gogh, Matisse and Margaret Olley (colour), Morandi (monumentality and light )etc.

10.1.3 The Australian Landscape Genre: A range of artists and styles can be referred to including

Colonial painting, The Heidelberg School: Streeton, McCubbin, Conder, Jane Sutherland, Heyson, Namatjira, Williams, Boyd, Nolan, Pugh, Lloyd Rees, Margaret Preston and others. Compare Australian Indigenous painting styles and meanings such as aerial “country” landscape art, PupunyahTula dot paintings, of Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri, Emily Kngwarreye etc.

10.1.4 Art as Identity: Social, Cultural and Environmental Themes may include: identity, multiculturalism, indigenous

culture, urbanization, technology, conservation issues Mixed media: collage, painting, colour reduction print Refer to Australian artists past, modern and post-modern to

examples of how artists express meaning. 10.2 The Design Process Maybe combined with 10.1.2-4 and/or 10.4 10.2.1 Individual project Using the Graphic design elements and principles, an idea is

explored and recorded visually through a number of design steps from formative beginnings to final work of art and its display

An art journal of drawings/ photos/ images is presented along with a folio of work.

10.3 Sculpture: Modelling, Carving, Assemblage Exploring the language of form through a number of related

themes and methods such as: 10.3.1 The Figure- Expressive Movement: Clay Modelling: Form Arising out of Gesture i.e. inner movement: Single or group compositions. Refer to Rodin, Degas, Barlach, Kollwitz, Asian art etc. 10.3.2 Organic Form: Sculpture Wood, Soft Stone Carving, Wire armature plaster Exploring and interpreting nature’s organic shapes and forms

through design principles of volume, space, light, gesture/movement, balance, concave and convex

Refer to: Stone Age and Totemic art, Romanesque and




10.4 Study of Art III Appreciating how human consciousness is reflected through great works of art. Analysing a range of visual artworks from contemporary and past times to explore how artistic intention and differing viewpoints are communicated thus enriching their visual art-making. (starting with Australian artworks, including those of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, and also considering international artworks)

Medieval stone Sculpture, Modern20th Century Art e.g. Arp, Brancusi, Moore, Akio Makigawa(AUS) etc. 10.3.3 Mixed Media Sculpture and Assemblage New ways of interpreting and creating through art. This includes papier maché, wire, mosaics, kinetic art See 20th Century Modern and Australian artists, Barbara

Halpern, Rosalie Gascoigne, Inge King, Ron Robertson Swann; etc.

10.4 Study of Art III. A survey of representative works of art to show the development of human consciousness from Late Renaissance to the dawn of the Modern Era. 10.4.1 Titian, Tintoretto, El Greco, 10.4.2 Caravaggio, Velasquez, Bernini 10.4.3 Baroque: Rembrandt, Rubens, Hals, Vermeer, 10.4.4 Neo Classicism: Poussin, Claude Lorrain, J.L David, Ingres, 10.4.5 French and German Romanticism: Delacroix, Goya, Caspar

Friedrich. 10.4.6 English Romanticism: J.W Turner, Constable, Blake 10.4.7 Realism: Manet, Courbet, Daumier 10.4.8 Monet, Pissaro, Degas, Lautrec, Gauguin, 10.4.8 Art in the East


Students will make informed choices how to plan explore and execute works of art. They will research artists who share similar interests and methods as theirs and identify influences on their own artworks by analysing what artistic conventions they have used, through which historical, cultural or social perspective they have communicated and how effectively they achieved their aims.

Students will develop the confidence and motivation to explore, experiment, develop and refine a number of ideas and subject matter to express personal meaning through various materials, techniques and processes



Year 10 Art works

Study of Art III - student work

Tonal drawing Mixed media

Photography and post-production



Annotated Bibliography

Secondary Steiner Educators

Clausen and Riedel Sehen, Zeichnen, Lernen, Plastiches Gestalten, Plastisches Gestalten im Holz,

Schoepferishes Gestalten in Farben J. Ch. Mellinger Verlag GmbH Stuttgart 1968

This compendium of 4 books are an excellent resource for Classes 1-12. The illustrations tell the whole

story. Not translated in English.

Childs, Gilbert; Steiner Education in Theory and Practice Floris 1995 See Index for relevant chapters

Gerbert, H Education through Art trans. from German by Frohlich and Pusch

Freies Geistesleben Verlag Stuttgart 1989. First published 1965

Harwood, A.C; Recovery of Child in Manhood A study in the educational works of Steiner Hodder and

Stoughton 1958 P.68, 101 121

Howard, Michael Art as Spiritual Activity: Rudolf Steiner’s Contribution to the Visual Arts Selected

Lectures on the Visual Arts by Rudolf Steiner Vista Series Anthroposophical Press 1998

A valuable resource with interesting background reading

Hoffmann, Nigel Goethe’s Science of Living Form: The Artistic Stages Adonis Press NY 2007

Helpful background reading

James, Van Drawing with Head Heart and Hands: A Natural Approach to Learning the Art of Drawing

Steiner Books 2013 A comprehensive resource for teachers at all levels

James, Van Spirit and Art: Pictures of the Transformation of Consciousness; Anthroposophic Press 2001

Excellent background reading; comprehensive including Western and Eastern spiritual streams.

James, Van The Secret Language of Form: The Visual Meaning in Art and Nature

Rudolf Steiner College Press 2007

Junemann and Weitmann Drawing and Painting in Rudolf Steiner Schools

Hawthorn Press Trans. from German 1994 Helpful indications

Nobel, Agnes Educating through Art: the Steiner School Approach Floris Books 1991

Martin, Michael (ed.) An integrated approach to Craftwork in Steiner Waldorf Schools

Steiner Schools Fellowship Publications 2008

See Part 4 The Formative Artistic lessons in the High School: Tasks of the Arts in the High School;

Reports from lessons in modelling and shaded drawing

Mueller, Brunhild Painting with Children’ Floris Books Edinburgh 1986

A small but very helpful book for Kindergarten and Early Primary years.

Rawson and Richter (Edited by): The Educational Tasks and Content of the Steiner Waldorf Curriculum

Steiner Schools Fellowship Publications 2010

Steiner, R The Nine Training Sketches for the Painter: Nature’s Moods text by Hilde Boos Hamburger

Rudolf Steiner Press London 1982

Stockmeyer, K; Rudolf Steiner’s Curriculum for Waldorf Schools Rudolf Steiner Press 1969

See relevant chapters



Strauss Michaela; Understanding Children’s Drawings, the Path to Manhood Rudolf Steiner Press

London 1978

Chronicles the development of early children’s drawings from symbolic to illustrative stages

Wildgruber, Thomas; Painting and Drawing in Waldorf Schools Classes 1-8

Floris Books. An overview of Painting and Drawing for Classes 1-8

Von Baravalle, H Perspective Drawing Waldorf School Monographs USA 1968

Winwood, Verena The Secret Rose Teaching Art in a Steiner High School 2006 Self-published .

One teacher’s journey forging a High School art curriculum Lorien Novalis

Background Reading:

Steiner, R; Discussions with Teachers Rudolf Steiner Press

Kingdom of Childhood R.S Press

Practical Advice to Teachers R.S Press

Colour Trans by Salter and Wehrle R.S.Press 2005

The Nine Training Sketches for the Painter R.S Press 1982


Documents

AUSTRALIAN STEINER CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK The … · AUSTRALIAN STEINER CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK The Arts: VISUAL ARTS CURRICULUM Kindergarten/Foundation to Year 10 April 2015 The Australian