Creative Writing and the Collection

The F-10 Australian curriculum for English develops students’ understanding of how to read, view and interpret texts - understanding how visual elements create meaning as well as create their own texts.

The suggested activities in this resource respond to works of art in the collection and have links to the following English Sub-strands:

Texts in contexts
Interacting with others
Interpreting, analysing, evaluating
Creating Text

Curiosity Cards

Curiosity Cards promote critical and creative thinking and encourage ‘long looking’, resulting in students actively engaging with works of art, with ideas and with each other. The questions provide students with an alternative ‘way in’ to a work of art, sparking their curiosity and developing their confidence in responding to visual information. We have found the suggested activities provide ways in which literacy can be woven into an art lesson, or for art to be used as stimuli in English.

Outcomes

Provide alternative ways in to a work of art.
Experience long looking to develop visual literacy.
Improve critical and creative thinking skills.
Increase confidence when talking about works of art and suggesting ideas.

Below are some Curiosity Cards we have selected with links to the the English sub strands.

Select your least favourite work of art. Now imagine you are a sales person. Write a paragraph promoting this work of art.
Imagine your Principal has asked you to select a work of art to be purchased for the school. Identify a work of art in the Gallery and write a short paragraph explaining why you think it is a good choice. Where would it be displayed?
'Images are more powerful than words. Discuss this statement using a work of art to support your argument.
Art has always sparked controversy and debate. Find a work of art that you think is controversial. Give three reasons why it might be considered so.
To understand a work of art, or learn more about the artist who made it, we need to look for clues. Make a list of all the things you can see. What do these items tell you about the artist? Based on your list write a profile on this artist.
Contemporary artists often challenge our assumptions about culture, society and politics. Find a work of art that engages with social, cultural or political issues and explain how effective that artist is in conveying their message.
Artists are keen storytellers. Find a work of art that tells a story. How has the artist told their story? What is their message? Write or draw your thoughts and ideas.
If an artist conceives an idea, but employs a specialist to create a work of art, whose work is it? What is more important, idea or product?
Matchmaker! Locate two figurative or sculptural works of art that are similar. Explain your selection. Perhaps consider the artist's intention as well as surface, texture, material, pose, size or proportions.
Find a work of art that is both beautiful and unappealing. How is it simultaneously beautiful and unappealing?
Pair two works of art together. Why did you make this selection?

With a partner discuss. what is happening in this work of art. List some questions. you may have about. the subject matter or questions you would ask the artist.
Contemporary artists encourage us to ask questions and see the world from alternative perspectives. As a group, select a work of art. What is your first impression? Take turns sharing words that best describe the work. Explain why you selected your word. Listen to other responses, does your opinion differ? If so, how?
Discuss the statement "Contemporary art is about contemporary life. Use three works of art to support your argument.
Make a list of as many words you can think of that are associated with art. Play a 'round robin' game with each person sharing a different word.
With a partner, complete a back-to-back drawing. One person describes a work of art, while the second person has their back to the work of art, drawing an image based on the verbal description given. (This is an activity about communication, rather than drawing ability)
Make a list of as many opposing items you can think of, for example, hot and cold, dog and cat, war and peace, sweet and savoury. Select a pair of opposing words and illustrate these in your design in an interesting way and without using the words. Can your classmates guess which two opposing words you selected?
Run a class debate with the topic: Art should be on display everywhere.

Curate a new exhibition for the Gallery using one of the following themes and write a review for your exhibition:
- Yellow
- A rainy day
- Texture
- My favourite things
- Women
- Pattern
- Mathematics
- Science
- Paper, scissors, rock
- Humour
- Light and shadow
Assign a soundtrack to a work of art. What type of music would you select and why?
Document the titles of works of art you see during your visit. Put them together to create a story or poem. Based on your observations and before looking at the wall label, invent a title for a work of art.
Write a story about a person depicted in a portrait. Use your imagination!
Select a work of art. Consider each of the five senses and design a sensory experience. What sound, taste, touch and smell elements would you select to accompany this work of art?
Write a short poem in response to a work of art. You may choose to create an acrostic poem or write a haiku.
Select a work of art. Imagine you are the artist who has created this work of art. Write a new wall label for the work of art.
Create a scavenger hunt. Write descriptions and clues for someone else to find the works of art you have selected.
Write a narrative poem about the life of your favourite colour.
Find a work of art that depicts a landscape. Write a letter to a friend about what you can see, hear and smell.
Select a poem and read it out loud. Choose one or two of the words that stood out for you. Write the word down. Use this word as inspiration for a work of art.

Automatic Writing

Surrealism is an art-historical, literary and intellectual movement originating in Europe during the inter-war years of the twentieth century. With a focus on freeing the subconscious mind and championing chance and irrationality, surrealists such as Andre Breton, Salvador Dali, Rene Magritte, Max Ernst, Meret Oppenheim and Dorothea Tanning used art as a means for uncovering the workings of the mind. These artists blurred the lines between dream and reality and explored repressed desires to expose deeper realms of the human psyche.

Surrealism adopted a number of the art-making methods established earlier by the dadaists, a generation of artists who revolted against the horrors of the First World War. These included opening up the artistic process to chance, using games to create art, and producing art in groups or collectives. They also developed a number of new artistic techniques, including automatic drawing and writing, rubbings taken from uneven surfaces (known as frottage) and decalcomania – the impression of paint onto a surface to create abstract and uncanny effects. These methods helped the surrealists to explore hidden dream worlds and unlock the mysteries of the mind.

Activities for the classroom

Play the Surrealist exquisite corpse game, this time using words. This can be done as a whole class activity or in small groups. Cut an A4 sheet of paper in half so that you have a long narrow piece of paper to circulate. Taking it in turns, each person in the class must write a word; either 1. an article (a/an/the etc.), 2. an adjective or verb and 3. a noun – repeating the sequence until the page is full. Before passing the paper to the next person conceal the word by folding over the paper. Once complete read the passage aloud to the class.
Browse through magazines or newspapers. Skim through the text selecting words at random or those you are drawn to. You can either highlight words, block out others in one article to make a new piece of writing, or cut out words and assemble them in the order you have found them to make a text collage.
Place an interesting object in the centre of the room. Using this object as stimulus write automatically for a timed period. Relax your mind and allow your writing to flow spontaneously. Use this writing to create a short story about this object and compare your writing with that of others. Tip: Try to use only blue biro so that you aren’t tempted to edit your work – let your imagination run free!
With the same object, or a different one, answer the following questions. (This is akin to word association so write whatever first comes to mind – no wrong answers):
- What era is it from?
- What historical or pop culture figure can it be associated with?
- Where in the world does it live?
- How does it travel?
- What place does it occupy in the family?
- Is it happy, sad, angry or friendly?
- What food is it related to?
  You might think of some more questions to add to this list. Share the responses with the class.

Works of art in focus

N Marawili, Madarrpa clan, Yolŋu people, Northern Territory, born Darrpirra, Northern Territory c.1938, died Yirrkala, Northern Territory 2023, *Baratjala*, 2019, Yirrkala, northeast Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, earth pigments, recycled print toner pigment on stringybark (Eucalyptus tetrodonta), 202.0 x 96.0 cm (work); Gift of Susan Armitage, Mary Choate, Jason Karas and Anna Baillie-Karas, Leo Mahar, Nicholas Sampson and Zena Winser through the Art Gallery of South Australia Foundation Collectors Club 2019, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, © N Marawili/Buku-Larrŋgay Mulka Centre.

Noŋgirrŋa Marawili

Marawili’s Country is known for its lightning strikes during the wet season, from November to April. The artist captures the essence and energy of this natural phenomenon. Each painting, with its gestural line work and pulsating organic patterns, is rendered in different coloured natural earth pigments, allowing for a graduation of colour that creates a sense of movement.

Imagine you are one of the elements. Write a story or poem from the perspective of a natural phenomenon.
Marawili uses magenta pigment from discarded printer cartridges. Magenta dye was developed in 1856 and is named after a bloody battle in the Italian town of Magenta. Today the pigment is made using the organic molecule Quinacridone and is found in outdoor paints, inkjet printer ink and laser printer toners.
Investigate the history of pigments. What surprising or unusual stories can you discover? Write a narrative poem about the life of your favourite colour.

Australian Curriculum (CCP & GC):

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures
Literacy – Visual & Word Knowledge (Composing texts)

Sub-strands

Creating texts

See full Noŋgirrŋa Marawili Education Resource >>

Dorrit Black

The Bridge captures the energy of work in progress. Compare The Bridge to other representations of the same or similar subjects by Grace Cossington Smith, Max Dupain and Harold Cazneaux.

What elements and design principles have been used to capture the energy of modern Australia?

Sub-strands

Interpreting, analysing, evaluating

See full Dorrit Black Education Resource >>

Christian Thompson

Songlines are an important way Aboriginal people preserve their history and pass down knowledge to younger generations. Combined with dance and objects, Songlines become a significant memory technique to recall information.

What are some techniques you use to remember important information?

Devise your own strategy for remembering something important to you – perhaps a series of special dates or the journey to an unfamiliar destination. Use a combination of song, rhymes, objects or movement to build your strategy.

Australian Curriculum (CCP & GC):

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures
Literacy – Visual & Word Knowledge (Composing texts)

Sub-strands

Text in context (language features)

See full Christian Thompson Education Resource >>

Richard Lewer

The History of Australia, 2018 is a nine-panel work of art, painted on steel, copper and brass. It explores a national narrative. Travelling through time this work references moments in Australian history including pre- colonisation, the First Fleet, war, the Great Depression, the gold rushes, bush rangers, Black Friday bush fires, the Stolen Generation, asylum seekers and the Cronulla riots.

Brainstorm what it means to be Australian. Make a list of things which are iconic to Australia. What features in Lewer’s painting are typically Australian?
Label each panel with a different word you think best summarises what you see. Write your nine words in a single line. Share your words with the class.
Identify the major events in each of Lewer’s panels. Research one of these significant events. What changes occurred during this time? How did these changes impact people, including Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people and the natural environment?
‘Australia’ is just over 200 years old but scientific evidence tells us that Aboriginal people have been here for at least 50,000 years. Why do you think the majority of events depicted in The History of Australia are from the last 200 years?

Sub-strands

Interpreting, analysing, evaluating

See full Richard Lewer Education Resource >>

Tamara Dean

Select your favourite painting by Tamara Dean and write a story to accompany it.
Imagine removing your shoes and stepping inside one of Dean’s photographs. What would this environment feel like underfoot? What might this place smell like? What sounds would you hear? Share your responses with the class.

Australian Curriculum Links (GC):

Literacy – Visual & Word Knowledge (Composing texts)

Sub-strands

Interacting with others
Creating texts

See full Tamara Dean Education Resource >>

Ben Quilty, born Sydney 1973, *The lot*, 2006, Southern Highlands, New South Wales, oil on canvas, 150.0 x 160.0 cm; Gift of Ben Quilty through the Art Gallery of South Australia Contemporary Collectors 2016. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, Courtesy the artist.

For Primary Students

Find a glossary of words used to describe food. Using words from this glossary, write a story or poem that describes Quilty’s paintings.

Australian Curriculum Links (GC):

Literacy – Visual & Word Knowledge (Composing texts)

Sub-strands

Creating texts

For Secondary Students

Official war artists are commissioned by the Australian War Memorial and play a significant role in Australia’s interpretation of wartime history. Investigate Australian war artists who have been commissioned under this scheme since the First World War to today. How has their role and style changed over time?
Images of war flood our television, newspapers and social media feeds. Why is the role of war artists still relevant? Divide the class and conduct a debate with the topic ‘The Australian War Memorial needs to continue funding for official war artists’. Use a variety of artists to support your arguments for and against.
Discuss the following statement: ‘Artists have the power to portray the chaos, calamity and reality of war’. Use works of art by Quilty and other war artists to support your argument.

Sub-strands

Interpreting, analysing, evaluating
Text in Context
Interacting with others

See full Ben Quilty Education Resource >>