Not Just a Brush

Region: Metro South and West Regional South Metro | Gymea

Primary students and teachers

Program Visual arts

Tags: Teacher professional development (PD)

Not Just a Brush (NJAB) is a visual arts program for NSW public schools. The program includes teacher professional learning workshops and culminates in an art exhibition for Kindergarten to Year 6 students in a professional gallery at the end of the year.

The NJAB program provides teachers with skills they can take back to school and use in their classrooms with their students to create artworks over a period of time, incorporating a variety of forms and media.

Students then have the opportunity to exhibit their artworks in a professional gallery exhibition.

This program aims to enhance the status and value of visual arts in schools and local communities. It enables students to develop skills in critiquing art and to see themselves and their peers as young artists.

Professional learning

2025 dates

Term 2 at Hazelhurst Regional Gallery and Arts Centre

Time

9:00 am – 4:00 pm

Cost

$185.00 per person

To register

Go to MyPL and search course name Not Just a Brush or course code NR43278.

Registration for this professional learning event has closed.

Aim

This teacher PL will enable teachers to:

update their knowledge and practice by working with their colleagues and professional artists
learn about the properties of various natural and man-made materials and ways in which they can alter the state of these to make marks on paper or create sculptures
view and discuss artworks and examine the forms and objects within, looking specifically at each artist's unique styles and creativity
develop their ability to use artworks as a starting point for supporting their students to create their own 2D and 3D art
use the knowledge acquired to build sequential visual arts lessons, which will assist their students to develop artworks sequentially and understand that an artwork may not necessarily be finished in one sitting.

The workshop makes a point of addressing the use of readily available and inexpensive, found and recycled materials, incorporating these into lesson planning. The delivery of feedback that encourages students to take risks in their creative application is embedded in lesson planning.

2026 exhibition

Nominations

Nominations for schools to participate in the 2026 Not Just A Brush Exhibition will open in Term 3 2026.

Artworks may be individual, small group, class or created by the whole school. Artworks can be any medium and must be for inside the gallery and comply with the gallery's WHS requirements.

To submit works, schools are asked to complete the Not Just a Brush participation form and deliver their artworks to a designated school by the end of Term 3 ready for curation.