Justin currently teaches art at Redcliffe State High School. Justin formerly taught at North Lakes State College and Dakabin State High School. While at Dakabin, he won two regional art competitions with a huge prize pool that has supported an on going artist-in-residence program. Students also walked away with first prize awards. They were also successful in a $15,000 grant for an artist in residence program to build a sculpture with electronics in it out front of the school. Students had their first public exhibition in a regional gallery in 2006. An artist contacted Justin that year and worked with students for an exhibition. Below are works from North Lakes College.
Click images for larger views
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Hair Drawings - Year 8
Justin came across this lesson "Hair Today" by Sandra Campbell at UIC Spiral Education. He modified the lesson to use oil pastel and lead pencil instead of the scratch board. The students had the back of their heads photographed and developed their drawings using these as a reference image. Students then developed a background for them to be looking at. For the most part students selected landscapes. Students enjoyed this lesson and it was successful to reinforce observational drawing and avoid using symbols systems, i.e. concentrating on the strands of hair, their length and direction. Students were instructed to select a colour scheme that communicates and informs the environment that they drew them selves in.
Resource: "Hair Today" by Sandra Campbell - University Illinois at Chicago Spiral Art Education
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"Lined Persona" - Grade 9 Lino Printing Unit
This unit focuses on examining the elderly face and representing it as a linoleum print. Students worked with the elder portrait and simplified to a lino-cut design. Students researched different lino cutting styles when developing their own images. One of the student even entered her preliminary sketch into a competition and won second prize in a open division competing against much older students. The prize was $150 plus art materials. She even then went on to sell it for $300. This was brilliant for a Year 9 student. (Award winning drawing was done for print top row - far right). This is an end of year unit for Justin. He finds that it focuses students during a very hectic time of year.
Welcome to the Art Room of Justin Kramer
North Lakes State College, Queensland, Australia
"There is no must in art because art is free." ~ Wassily Kandinsky
Exciting news! Justin has moved to North Lakes State College, a P-12 school. He teaches grades 6 and up. Work on these pages was done by students in Justin's former school, Dakabin State High School. Justin moved on to North Lakes State College in 2005 - it was the first year that it opened its doors to middle school. Last year was very successful in that they won two regional art competitions with a huge prize pool that has supported an on going artist-in-residence program. Students also walked away with first prize awards. They were also successful in a $15000 grant for an artist in residence program to build a sculpture with electronics in it out front of the school. Students are also having their first public exhibition in a regional gallery this year. An artist contacted Justin last year and has worked with students for an exhibition that goes for the whole month of June (2006).
From Judy: I have been watching the list for posts where I can connect to Dale Chilhuly's glass installations. The majority of high school teacher's do not have access to glass -- but they do have clay. Justin Kramer's Shells Lesson fit the bill. Justin has also seen Chilhuly's installations and has always been overwhelmed by them. See also Gregg Luginbuhl (fish and Creation Series).
Resource:
Justin's students looked at several ceramic sculptors who are inspired by nature. He selected shells as the source of inspiration for his students since they are readily available to him. Students made sketches and planned their construction process.
Using pinch and draped slab techniques - the shells took shape. Surface decoration/textures was important. The pieces are larger than life - in some cases 40 to 50 cm in length.
Adapt Lesson Plan by Maria Lengauer: Organic Form in Clay
They experimented with glazing techniques and sandblasting to mimic the shells colour. Justin was quite surprised how well they handled the concepts of layering glaze colours to achieve an effect. Justin has entered the installation into a collaborative art competition for secondary students.
Resources for 2-D images throughout history:
Select any of these wonderful examples of Shells in Art. Page by Juan Carlos M. Coll and Alfonso Pina. See the English translation of the page.
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