Stage 3 (Year 5 and 6 ) Creative Arts
Painting offers opportunities to explore the qualities of imaginary, naturalistic and realistic images, illusions and decorations. Different visual
qualities of subject matter and things in the world can be investigated and explored in painting in different compositions and from different
viewpoints.
Topic:
Make a Painting
Focus Artwork:
Pyrmont Expressway 1984 by Margaret Ackland 1984 and
East side of Circular Quay showing wool stores and warehouses - photograph by Ted Hood – c.1930’s
Content:
MAKING: Students learn to:
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interpret subject matter which is of local interest in particular ways in the making of artworks
APPRECIATING: Students learn about:
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how concepts and materials are thought about, organized and assembled, and serve different ends in
artworks that they and others make
Background Notes for Teachers:
Pyrmont Bridge 1984 – Margaret Ackland
The painting shows the newly constructed Western Distributor which is the big road on stilts that leads traffic into the city past Darling
Harbour and out of the city onto the Anzac Bridge. The snaking lines of new roadways were so dynamic that Sydney-based artist Margaret
Ackland was inspired to create this high-energy painting. The lines draw your eyes into the image and then encourage them to move around
the entire surface, giving the impression of the movement and activity of traffic and noise that is evident in the city environment.
Strong lines have been used for the bridge with high contrast between the white of the roads and the black of the outlines. It is very loosely
painted – sweeping brush strokes and bold colours that dance together on the canvas.
This is quite an abstract and modern painting and the details have been painted in very simply and probably quite quickly.
1 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
So why is it here? It shows the changing face of Sydney in a very modern way, and as such, it is a record of the history of Sydney. Even
though it doesn’t show the smaller details of the buildings and roadways as photographs do, it is certainly giving a lively picture of the area
and the development of this urban space in the 1980s.
In her preparations for creating Pyrmont Expressway 1984 Margaret Ackland would have researched the area perhaps by visiting the site,
making sketches of the scene, taking note of the shapes, lines and colours of the area and most certainly taking photographs.
All of these recording methods help artists to identify with and understand their subject better. They are a great reference when the artist has
moved away from the site. They give a feel for the place and provide ideas for the artist to work with and make into a new creation that
represents the sights, sounds and energy of the place.
This painting was purchased by the State Library from Wagner Art Gallery, May 1985.
East side of Circular Quay showing wool stores and warehouses – Ted Hood – photograph from 1930’s
This photograph shows the eastern end of Circular Quay in the mid 1930’s. The northern pylon of the newly opened Sydney Harbour Bridge
can be seen on the left, and to the right, the snaking tram tracks down the middle of the road past numerous multi-storey warehouses. This
photograph captures a bygone era and a snap shot of an area that has undergone a great deal of change over the years.
The construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge attracted great interest from photographers and the resulting pictorial record of the process
captured by them is a rich source of imagery to use for making art. Strong elements of shape and line are evident in these images and can
be used as a focus for artistic response of many different types.
The photographer Ted Hood captured many views of 1930’s Sydney and there are many fine examples in the collection of the State Library
of NSW collection.
2 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
Activity notes for teachers
Students will be assisted in:
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discovering ways to create images from their own personal stories
exploring the dynamics of line and shape using painting materials and techniques
applying this knowledge to begin an artwork inspired by Pyrmont Expressway 1984 by Margaret Ackland
Make a painting:
The State Library has many images of Sydney Harbour through its changing history. Photographer Ted Hood’s image of Circular Quay in the
1930s is the reference point for the artmaking activity outlined in the above guide.
Materials needed for this art activity:
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Cartridge paper - heavy quality for painting
Lead pencils and erasers
Paint brushes - A variety of sizes - large, medium and small
Paints - primary and secondary colours and white
Charcoal sticks - to define the lines and shapes
A copy of Pyrmont Expressway 1984 Margaret Ackland to work from - IWB image OR printed copy
A rectangular viewfinder - cut out from cardboard (recycled is fine)
Multiple copies of the image provided from the State Library collection - East side of Circular Quay showing wool stores and
warehouses Ted Hood
…OR you could use aerial images of the local area instead. Look your area up on Google Maps!
3 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
Choose a section of the image, like
this, to focus on when designing your
painting.
This section is the view used in the
following example, but any number of
images could be used as stimulus.
Choose the most interesting section
with lines and shapes that have
dynamism and energise, much like the
scene that Margaret Ackland would
have seen at Pyrmont Bridge in 1984.
4 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
Student Activity 1: Analyse the artwork
Questions:
What lines can you see in this painting?
Where do the lines start and where do they end?
Imagine you are painting them – move your arms in the
direction you would need to create these lines. Can you see
how the artist would have had to move to create this artwork?
Pyrmont Expressway 1984 – Margaret Ackland – acrylic on canvas
- State Library of NSW collection
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Student Activity 2: Analyse the photograph
Questions:
What lines can you see in this
photograph?
Where do the lines start and where
do they end?
What shapes can you see in the
image?
East side of Circular Quay showing wool stores and warehouses - photograph by Ted Hood – about 1930 - State Library of NSW collection
6 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
Student activity 3: Make the painting
Step 1
Step 2
Look back at the Ted Hood photograph section - begin with basic
lines and shapes—draw using light lead lines.
Add blocks of colour for the background.
Observe the lines and shapes in the image and try to ignore the
details at this stage.
The main idea is to keep the shapes very simple and only draw in
what is needed to show the basic curved lines and different sections
of the image. This will be covered with paint for the background.
Paint each space and completely fill all areas - leave no white
spaces.
Use a large brush and smooth movements - remember to add a little
water to the brush (a very small amount) to help the paint move on
the page.
Use brushstrokes that follow the line of the tram tracks.
7 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
Step 3
Step 4
Add a little white paint to the colour used for the middle section and it
will create texture and emphasise the movement in the lines.
Add darker lines for details - the curving lines of the tram tracks and
shadowed areas of the buildings and the tram.
Add some details of the buildings, including windows and features of
the roof lines.
8 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
Step 5
Step 6
Add lighter lines for highlights and to add texture and tone to the
painting.
Add finer light lines for small detail highlights.
Go back and look more closely at where the lighter parts of the
image are.
This is where you can add interest in various places, but remember
to look back often at the photograph for ideas - the original source.
Ideas for displaying your artwork:
Be loose in your line painting - hold your brush loosely and use your
whole arm to make the movement to make the lines - experiment
with your own style.
9 | State Library of New South Wales: Stage 3 - Creative Arts – Making a painting
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Attach the finished artwork to a dark coloured card to frame it.
Display a copy of the photograph you have worked from next
to the painting.
Additional Resources:
More photographs from the State Library Collections:
Sam Hood photographic examples of Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney from the State Library of NSW collection:
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A 1923 Chevrolet, one of three lonely early vehicles to cross the Bridge
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First cars and trains across Sydney Harbour Bridge
NSW Syllabus for Visual Art
Outcomes
Skills
Concepts
VAS3.1 Investigates subject matter in an
attempt to represent likenesses of things in
the world.
• analyse and interpret the qualities and
details of selected subject matter
• consider how artworks are made as
representations
VAS3.2 Makes artworks for different
audiences, assembling materials in a variety
of ways.
VAS3.3 Acknowledges that audiences
respond in different ways to artworks and
that there are different opinions about the
value of artworks.
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VAS3.4 Communicates about the ways in
which subject matter is represented in
artworks.
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