Exploring Nature Through Art

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🖌️ Curriculum Area: Creative Arts – Visual Arts

Level: Year 1 (Stage 1)
Duration: 60 minutes
Class Size: 14 students
Artist Focus: Vicki Corser

NSW Syllabus Outcomes:

• VAS1.1: Makes artworks in a particular way about experiences of real and imaginary things
• VAS1.2: Uses the forms to make artworks according to varying requirements
• VAS1.3: Acknowledges that artists make artworks for different reasons and that various interpretations are possible
• VAS1.4: Begins to interpret the meanings of artworks

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🎯 Learning Intentions

By the end of this lesson, students will:

• Understand how Vicki Corser uses nature in her artworks
• Explore line, texture and colour inspired by native Australian landscapes and flora
• Create their own mixed-media nature-inspired artwork using found objects and materials
• Begin to express feelings and ideas through visual forms

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🧠 Success Criteria

Students will:

• Describe what they see and feel in Corser’s artwork using their own words
• Experiment with different materials to reflect elements of the natural environment
• Share their artwork and explain choices of materials and subject matter
• Respect and respond to peers' artworks using visual art language

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🧰 Materials Required

• Printed or projected images of Vicki Corser’s artworks
• Natural materials (gum leaves, bark, twigs, small stones, flowers)
• A3 paper
• Oil pastels
• Watercolour paint palettes and brushes
• PVA glue
• Sponges and textured brushes
• Clipboards or boards (for outdoor sketching - optional)
• Smocks or old shirts

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🪷 Lesson Breakdown

⏱️ Warm-Up / Introduction – 10 Minutes

Tuning In – Artist Introduction:

• Gather students in a circle. Display 2–3 large prints of Vicki Corser’s work focusing on her bushland series.
• Teacher guides class discussion:
  • “What do you notice?”
  • “What colours has she used?”
  • “What does this remind you of?”
  • “How do you think she made this?”
• Introduce new terms: texture, layering, collage, organic lines
• Encourage wonder: “What part of the environment do you think she’s showing us?”

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🎨 Main Activity – 40 Minutes

Part 1: Observation & Inspiration (10 minutes)

• Teacher distributes natural materials collected from the school grounds.
• Students touch, observe, and sketch quick line drawings using oil pastels—focusing on texture, shape, and lines.
• Use descriptive prompts: “Draw the bumps on the bark” or “Show me how soft the leaf feels.”

Part 2: Mixed-Media Artwork (25 minutes)

• Students move to tables with art materials.
• Task: Create a nature-inspired artwork using drawing, painting, and collage techniques like Vicki Corser.
• They arrange their natural materials and choose to draw parts, glue them, or use them for printing and texture.
• Emphasis on imaginative representation—encourage students to visualise a place in nature they love or imagine.

🎯 Focus on layering, colour choice, and texture just like Vicki Corser.

Part 3: Drying & Art Walk Setup (5 minutes)

• Students place artworks in a drying area.
• Teacher helps students prop up or lay artworks flat with name cards for display.

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🗣️ Reflection / Sharing – 10 Minutes

• Return to the circle with one artwork (or multiple on a mini “gallery walk”).

• Ask students to walk around the room once silently observing the artworks.

• Open floor discussion:

  • “Which artwork reminds you of home, bushwalks, or gardens?”
  • “What materials worked best?”
  • "Which part are you most proud of?"

• Teacher guides a closing conversation on how artists are inspired by environment and how Corser’s love of local Australian landscapes is shown in her work.

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✨ Differentiation Strategies

• Support: Pre-drawn templates for students needing motor skill support; verbal prompts to guide process
• Extension: Students may add written “artist statements” or include imaginative elements from local Dreaming stories (with cultural sensitivity)

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💭 Teacher Reflection Prompts (Post-lesson)

• Were students able to see connections between natural elements and Corser’s work?
• How confidently did students use visual language terms?
• What surprised me about students’ experimentation with texture and form?
• How can I build a series of lessons around this artist or theme?

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🌿 Follow-Up Activities

• Take a nature walk and create a class Vicki Corser-inspired collaborative mural
• Introduce another artist who explores the environment from a different perspective (e.g., John Wolseley or Bronwyn Bancroft)
• Integrate with Science & HSIE by studying local plant life and Aboriginal connections to Country

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🧡 Why This Artist?

Vicki Corser’s work beautifully captures the textures, mood, and colours of Australian bushland—making her the perfect inspiration for young learners. Her use of layering, natural shapes, and abstract forms invites young children to interpret the environment creatively and confidently.

This lesson embeds environmental appreciation, sensory exploration, and creativity—while aligning directly with Stage 1 Visual Arts Outcomes.

It’s not just a lesson; it’s a window into seeing Australian nature through the eyes of an artist.