DALIA SABLE

ART, visual communication and design are increasingly becoming available at Jewish schools, as demand increases each year.

At The King David School, six year 12 students are currently completing the final units of art, and seven are undertaking visual communication.

Senior school visual art coordinator Maya Huxley said that today, visual art is about more than just creating an attractive image.

“It is about providing students with the visual literacy skills essential for success in the image-driven world in which they live. [Our] program places a strong emphasis on conceptual development and the integration of technology into the students’ work. This is reflected in both the ideas that underpin, and the physical manifestation of, their creative work.”

Five students at Beth Rivkah Ladies College are undertaking art this year and, while the subject is offered at a VCE level at brother school Yeshivah College, there were no takers there this year.

Beth Rivkah VCE art teacher Carol Webb said the small class size at Beth Rivkah gives students the opportunity to make the most of the learning experience.

“Each year the girls bring their own individual signature to their creative work,” she said.

At Mount Scopus Memorial College, art is offered across three categories in year 12. Art, which is currently being undertaken by two year 12 students enables students to nurture and express their artistic ideas in reference to other artists, and involves art theory.

Studio art, with seven students enrolled this year, focuses on the student as a young practising artist within the industry. The final category, visual communication and design, which is being undertaken by five students at the school, involves applying the design process of the professional design industry.

“The year of study for each of these exciting subjects is punctuated with visits to galleries and art and design spaces that have inspired and enriched students’ individual artistic journeys,” Mount Scopus visual art teacher Yvonne Lewis said.

Leibler Yavneh College this year has two students enrolled in art and six in design. According to the head of art at Yavneh Pam Denton the set-up of the art room at the school gives the students a sense of ownership of the space.

Bialik College is planning to implement visual communication and design at a year 11 level next year and currently has two students completing art at a year 12 level.

Drama and theatre studies are popular study subjects throughout secondary school and VCE is no exception. Students at most of the Jewish schools undertake performing arts subjects at year 12 levels.

Drama has long been a favourite subject for VCE students at Leibler Yavneh College and this year is no exception, with 13 students undertaking the final units of the subject.

At Beth Rivkah Ladies College, one year 12 student is completing drama but her studies will be assessed externally, and while Yeshivah College offers the subject, no student is undertaking it this year.

Six year 12 students at Bialik College are completing drama this year, all of them having been involved in the school’s musical The Wizard of Oz, as well as in the recent house plays.

In addition to the wider school productions, VCE students are required to present a group performance and a solo performance.

“The VCE drama students have gained significant experience in using stimulus material to develop their performance-making,” principal Joseph Gerassi said. “They have developed skills in analysing and evaluating performances and were exposed to a range of performance styles.”

At The King David School, three year 12 students are currently undertaking theatre studies, all also having performed in school productions throughout the year, including Metamorphosis.

“The students rose to the challenge of an obscure and expressionistic play with great talent and focus,” senior school performing arts coordinator Valentine Peterson said.

Similarly, at Mount Scopus College, the group of seven year 12 drama students has been involved with the school production. They have also been a part of the first-ever senior school play, a production of The Crucible.

“Drama at Scopus is growing stronger by the day. This is evident by the brilliant quality of theatre they are producing and the numbers of students who are choosing to be involved in both drama at a curricular level, and also all of the co-curricular performing arts opportunities that Scopus has to offer,” head of drama Evie Gwenda said.