Student 1

This portfolio has been verified in the Excellence grade range. It presents sufficient evidence to meet the criteria consistent with The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media, Ministry of Education, 2007. Criteria relate to the following strands in Visual Arts, Level 6: Understanding the Arts in Context; Developing Practical Knowledge; Developing Ideas; Communicating and Interpreting.

This candidate has demonstrated fluency across all media used, with confident gestural use of paint. Selection and ordering of works strongly supports the development and clarification of ideas, with subsequent works building on and refining the ideas in earlier ones. The ordering of works appears to have been well supported by the programme of teaching and learning, but it is clear that the candidate has been able to introduce elements of their own and take ownership of what is produced.

A range of established practice, including Expressionism, and probably the work of Darcy Nicholas, Davide Salle, and Pablo Picasso appears to be well understood by the candidate, and has been used to advance their own ideas about place and self-identity.

Student 2

This portfolio has been verified at the lower end of the Excellence grade range. It presents sufficient evidence to meet the criteria consistent with The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media, Ministry of Education, 2007. Criteria relate to the following strands in Visual Arts, Level 6: Understanding the Arts in Context; Developing Practical Knowledge; Developing Ideas; Communicating and Interpreting.

This candidate has shown a good understanding of compositional devices such as pattern, scale, repetition, viewpoint and depth. They demonstrate fluency in the use of media, although this is not sustained throughout the submission. Clarification is evident in more than one work, with elements, such as line and pattern, explored on panel one and then revisited and extended on panel two.

To sit more comfortably within the Excellence grade range this candidate would need to present more sustained evidence of fluency across both panels. This would include more carefully delineated shapes for the silhouettes, handling of perspective, and finer details in rendering of three dimensional forms.

Established practice, including the work of artists like Shane Cotton and Seraphine Pick, along with surrealist approaches, is evident in this submission. The candidate has used these influences to successfully advance their own ideas, rather than just emulating the work of the artist models.

Student 3

This portfolio has been verified at the top end of the Merit grade range. It presents sufficient evidence to meet the criteria consistent with The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media, Ministry of Education, 2007. Criteria relate to the following strands in Visual Arts, Level 6: Understanding the Arts in Context; Developing Practical Knowledge; Developing Ideas; Communicating and Interpreting.

This candidate has shown a high level of control of photography and design processes, procedures and techniques. Photographic conventions including viewpoint, depth of field, and photo montage are handled successfully. A variety of occurrences of line have been documented photographically at the top of panel one and these serve as a basis for much of the design work on the second panel. This, along with a unifying colour palette, contributes to the systematic reading of the submission.

This portfolio remains in the Merit grade range because of a lack of clarification of ideas, particularly in the design component. Selection, sizing and arrangement of works to more clearly show development in response to each of the briefs would have aided this. As the submission is currently presented there are a wide range of ideas shown, but the candidate’s thinking in terms of which elements in these works are worthy of further refinement is not evident.

This submission is a good example of two fields of practice being well integrated in an NCEA Level 1 programme of teaching and learning. The candidate has been able to develop skills in both fields, and the design work extends on the learning that took place when making the first, photography, panel. 

Student 4

This portfolio has been verified at the lower end of the Merit grade range. It presents sufficient evidence to meet the criteria consistent with The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media, Ministry of Education, 2007. Criteria relate to the following strands in Visual Arts, Level 6: Understanding the Arts in Context; Developing Practical Knowledge; Developing Ideas; Communicating and Interpreting.

This candidate has created a systematic body of work based on a surreal still life proposition. Palette selection and mixing of colours, use of tone and scale to create the illusion of space, and layering of paint all demonstrate the control of media necessary to achieve with Merit. This control is also evident in the initial recording of imagery with dry media.

This portfolio remains at the lower end of the Merit grade range due to the lack of control demonstrated on some works, particularly the two prints, and an apparent lack of finishing of works, notably the final work on the second panel.

While a still life programme like this provides excellent opportunities for teaching and learning in terms of developing students’ drawing and painting skills, teachers are encouraged to consider how elements of the individual student’s identity and personality could also be introduced into the work. This might take the form of some personally selected still life objects, for example.  

Student 5

This portfolio has been verified at the top end of the Achieved grade range. It presents sufficient evidence to meet the criteria consistent with The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media, Ministry of Education, 2007. Criteria relate to the following strands in Visual Arts, Level 6: Understanding the Arts in Context; Developing Practical Knowledge; Developing Ideas; Communicating and Interpreting.

This candidate has worked from a clear proposition and used a wide range of media. Ideas have been developed systematically, with strong links from one work to the next. The well planned and shot photos at the bottom of panel two, which make good use of natural lighting, cropping, scale, depth of field and viewpoint help move submission to the high end of the Achieved range.

In order to move into the Merit grade range the level of control of photograph media previously mentioned would have needed to be evident in other works on the folio. The use of media in the initial character drawings, while sufficient for purpose, does not show the control expected at Merit. This is also true of the lighting and colour balance shown in the photographs of the models on panel one. There has only been a basic investigation of composition or layout conventions for the poster on the second panel, coupled with limited explorations of type.

This submission has blended media approaches and established practice from the film making traditions of anime and claymation, and perhaps Roger Deakins’ cinematography for The Village, along with puppetry and poster design. While the opportunity to explore a wide range of media and approaches can be helpful for exposing students to potential senior art subjects, it could be argued that this sometimes comes at the cost of enabling them to develop a depth of control of media and understanding of conventions and established practice in each field they work in. It is important that teachers work to facilitate an appropriate balance of breadth versus depth of learning.

Student 6

This portfolio has been verified at the lower end of the Achieved grade range. It presents sufficient evidence to meet the criteria consistent with The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media, Ministry of Education, 2007. Criteria relate to the following strands in Visual Arts, Level 6: Understanding the Arts in Context; Developing Practical Knowledge; Developing Ideas; Communicating and Interpreting.

This submission presents a development of ideas around personal and cultural identity, with subsequent works building on earlier ones. In the initial recordings from subject matter this candidate demonstrates an ability to use line and tone to describe form in a manner that is appropriate at the low end of Curriculum Level 6.

For this submission to sit more comfortably in the Achieved grade range the candidate would need to show better management of media and conventions. Greater consideration of the selection and use of type in the poster images, and attention to ensuring that digital imagers were at a resolution sufficient for printing would assist in this area. The screen-printing of the tote bag shows an appropriate level of media management.

It is pleasing to see the integration of many media and techniques in this programme of teaching and learning, which have allowed the candidate to experiment and develop a variety of skills. However, when a candidate struggles with a particular media or approach, such a media-diverse programme can limit their success. In such cases it is recommended that specified outcomes are varied to accommodate the candidate’s strengths.