30 Apr 2014
On Tuesday 8th April the Year 9 Visual Arts class at Nambucca Heads High School brought together a project they had been working hard on all term. The work was a life size appropriation of Renoir's painting "Luncheon of the Boating Party" a painting many people would be familiar with. Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) was a French Impressionist painter. In this painting he uses costume, colour and setting to convey the pleasures of a sunny afternoon among friends. Renoir set The Luncheon of the Boating Party at an establishment he knew well -- the upper terrace of the Restaurant. The students painted the back drop, the clothes, hats and accessories for the table taking great care with their attention to detail. They then dressed in the outfits and set themselves up in the quadrangle of the school. The hard work of the students and Ms Lyndee Thomas certainly made for an uncanny resemblance to the original painting, with some parents hardly able to recognise their child. It was also pleasing to have a number of parents come along and enjoy the "painting" and a light luncheon. On the same day Ms Holiday's Year 11 Art students, created an amazing installation in the style of contemporary Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. Three garden beds in the Quad were transformed into spots and stripes, reminiscent of Kusama's public installation in Singapore (2006). The students successfully negotiated the challenge of working in a collaborative manner, making collective, creative decisions and directing the installation themselves. Many thanks to Mrs Holiday for her organisation and design concept, Lynne Neal and Ms Stride for their supervision and to the students Jesse Brislane, Keely Stapleton, Savanah and Mercedes Peterkin, Leah Warwick, Jacinta Thiry and Indira Stone for their creative efforts and Anna Daley, Lucy Bush, Courtney Jarrett and Ms Zanderiggo for photographing the work. Congratulations to everyone involved in these projects.