It was a riot of colour at Elsternwick Campus last month as Prep to Year 6 students came together to create a series of truly collaborative artworks for the Wesley Parents Mother’s Day auction.
Working with Melbourne-based contemporary artist Anna Blatman – a professional artist whose vibrant, tactile works are driven by a passionate love of colour – students each contributed to different stages of the paintings, learning about the importance of layering and collaboration.
It was a fitting partnership, as texture and layering sit at the heart of Anna’s practice, and her belief that art should spark joy translated beautifully into the classroom. As Anna explained to the students, ‘Everything is better together.’
Kaira and Milo from Year 4 were impressed with what can be expressed through painting.
‘I felt free to create, without it being about making things look like real life. You could be yourself,’ Milo said.
‘I loved that it was not all about real-life colours,’ said Kaira. ‘Grass does not have to be green.’
The striking final works capture the energy and joy of our school community and helped to raise more than $5,000 for Wesley Parents Elsternwick to support student graduation gifts and the end-of year celebrations.
