Connections Showcase 2023
McCallums Hill Public School – Changing History
McCallums Hill Public School is located in Roselands, south-west Sydney, on traditional Bidjigal land.
Students at McCallums Hill Public School have been exploring the impact that people have on Australia’s natural environment. Students created this collaborative artwork to represent the forever-changing Australian coastline both before and after European arrival. In these artworks, students explore the changing features of place and depict the people that have lived in Australia throughout its history.
These artworks were also included in the ‘Connections Showcase Submission Exhibition’ at McCallums Hill Public School, where students, teachers and parents were invited to view and celebrate the 4 bodies of work submitted by the school in this year’s digital showcase.
Changing History
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Changing History – long text description
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Three collages depict the changing coastline of eastern Australia from the 1700s to now. Each is in portrait style, where the coastline is outlined in black with a wide yellow border against a deep blue ocean. Each uses a combination of cut out images to reflect the time period and has a sign underneath indicating the century with explanatory text.
The collage on the left depicts the 1700s, with the arrival of the First Fleet and the abundance of existing wildlife at the time. On the far left is the red earth of central Australia. The land toward the coast is green, with a crocodile in the north and a koala in the south. Three black and white images show colonial life on the land, while 2 cutouts of sailing ships are shown moving towards the coastline.
The collage in the middle depicts the 1800s. The land toward the coast is a darker green, with images of farm animals, family life, roads and small buildings. Fish and other sea life are shown in the ocean.
The collage on the right depicts the 1900s to the present. The land toward the coast is losing its green, with images of residential and city buildings, theme parks and landmarks such as the Sydney Opera House. Modern forms of transport, such as cars, planes, cruise liners and jet skis, are shown on the land and in the ocean.
What did the students and teachers have to say?
- ‘The students enjoyed using different painting techniques with a variety of brushes and stamps to create the backgrounds of their artworks. They worked really well together to come up with ideas that differentiated each era and represented this through a collage of photos found in magazines.’ – Ms Bhradmeung (teacher)
- ‘Before the ships arrived, there were lots of native trees and animals.’ – Layth (student, 9 years old)
Participating students
Congratulations to the following students from Years 3 to 6 at McCallums Hill Public School for their wonderful submissions:
Ibrahim Darwiche, Layth El-Hamawi and Ezio Kwarteng.
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Third-party content attributions
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- All student artworks and images courtesy of the respective schools, student artworks © the student artists, 2023, reproduced and communicated with permission.
- Congratulations banner, created using Canva, 2021.
