Teachers’ Resources
Here, you can download packs that include information on what will take place during a workshop, specific curriculum links, optional preparatory and follow-up activities and instructions for sending us your work.
Hints and tips for producing artwork
If you want to win you've got to please the judges. These are guidelines that will give you some top tips for artworks that will wow the panel.
Gallery
If you're searching for inspiration for your pupils' entries take a look at the images below.
The images and information give you a taste of the collections, help you prepare your entries and inspire ideas for activities in the classroom. They can be used in conjunction with the Resource Packs above.
Objects that use light
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1. The Gregorian Reflecting Telescope
The reflecting telescope was invented by James Gregory (1638-75) in 1663. Telescopes already existed before this, but the picture of the sky that you saw through it was blurry. These telescopes were also very long, sometimes up to 30m! Gregory wanted to put mirrors inside his new telescope to make the picture clearer and the telescope shorter. He couldn't find anyone with the skills to build his design of telescope and died before one could be made. This one was made in 1736.
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2. Sundial
This sundial used to sit in St Mary's Quad in St Andrews. It was made between 1660 and 1680. James Gregory bought it when he was an astronomer at the University of St Andrews. As the earth turns the sun appears to move in the sky. As it "moves" throughout the day the shadows that it casts also move. The bit that sticks up on the sundial is called a style and sits in the middle of a clock face. The sun causes the style's shadow to move so that it always points at the correct time. You need to put the sundial in exactly the right place for this to happen. This sundial was blown off its column by a bomb during the Second World War. You can see it on display in MUSA.
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Artworks that use light
Sometimes artworks use light itself to create fantastic pictures and patterns. Here you can see three examples.
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3. Chalmers Window
This stained glass window shows three scenes from the life of Jesus; the Sermon on the Mount, the Last Supper and the raising of Lazarus. It was put into St Salvator's Chapel in 1863 and is now in MUSA. The colourful glass means that the window appears to light up when the sun shines through it. Daylight is made up of all the colours of the rainbow, but the coloured glass only allows light that is the same colour as it is to pass through, so red glass only lets red light through, green glass only allows green light through. This creates patterns of different colours on the floor as the light shines through it.
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4. Aves III by Kit Martin (2015)
When you look at this picture you're actually seeing a picture of shadow. This is a cyanotype, or sun print. To create a cyanotype a special kind of paper is used that changes colour when the sun hits it. The white paper turns blue, or cyan, in sunlight. To create images and patterns an artist lays something, like a bird wing, onto the paper and places it in the sun. The picture that you can see in white is the shadow.
© Kit Martin
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5. Asio Otus by Kit Martin
Like the image above, this is also a cyanotype, or sun print. In this picture Kit Martin (born 1971) has laid a photographic negative on top of the special paper. A negative is like the film from an old-fashioned camera on which the light parts of a picture come out dark and the dark parts come out see-through. In this picture, the bones are dark on the negative so the sunlight cannot pass through onto the cyanotype paper. This means that the skeleton of the bird stays white while the rest of the paper turns blue.
© Kit Martin
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Light and dark in artworks
The use of light and darkness is very important to artists. It can help them create tension, show warmth and cold or show what the world looks like at sunrise or sunset.
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6. Inishkeas by Barbara Rae (2013)
Is this a picture of the daytime or the night time? Is it a picture of a warm place or a cold place? Barbara Rae (born 1943) has used warm colours to help us see the time and place that this picture might show.
© Barbara Rae CBE RA
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7. South of Granada by Barbara Rae (2006)
Is this daytime or night time? Does the picture make you feel warm or cold? Think about how light colours and dark colours can make you feel different.
© Barbara Rae CBE RA
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8. Sunset, St Andrews by Sam Bough (1800s)
Sam Bough (1822-78) has used light and dark very skilfully in this picture. This picture looks directly at the sun. Where have the shadows fallen? Think about how the artist has contrasted the light, warm colours of the sky with the dark, cold colours of the buildings and boats at the front of the picture. Younger pupils can consider how things always appear darker than they are when a strong light source, like the sun, is behind them. Older pupils can consider the hints of light reflected on the waves or on the sides of the boats. They may also consider whether the shadows are black or whether they are darker shades of other colours.
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9. The Rock (The Radical Road) by Alexander Moffat (1989)
This is another sunset painting, with the bright red of the sky contrasting once again with the silhouettes of Arthur's Seat and Edinburgh Castle in the background. Where is the sun on this image? Note how Alexander Moffat (born 1943) has not been exact with his colouring. Although the sun must be in the background, parts of the front of the rock also reflect light. You can also see the green on the top of Arthur's Seat.
© Alexander Moffat
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10. The Death of Archbishop Sharpe by John Opie (1797)
This painting shows the murder of the Archbishop of St Andrews by supporters of the Presbyterian Church in 1679. The Archbishop is shown with his daughter. Note how John Opie (1761-1807) has shone a light on the main action of the image, drawing your eye towards it. The Archbishop's carriage and some of the Presbyterians are mostly in darkness. John Opie has also used light to show the innocence of James Sharp and his daughter; both are dressed in white and look almost like angels against the darkness where the "evil" murderers hide.
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Black and white artworks
The most obvious use of light and dark in artworks is using purely black and white, which artists have been doing for centuries.
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11. Death the Leech by William Strang (1901)
William Strang (1859-1921) depicts Death in a surprising way. Here he is not harsh and foreboding, but caring. He is dressed as a monk ministering to a lady in the last hours of her life. He holds the empty bottle of a comforting potion which he has just given to his patient. He lays her gently on the bed while outside there is a gentle, peaceful rural scene. The etching comes from a series of twelve called The Doings of Death.
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12. Tree Trunk Composition by William McCance (1920-28)
William McCance (1894-1970) has used black ink to print onto white paper for this picture. He's created a woodland scene, but it is confusing. The colour contrast is stark and there is no shading. It isn't immediately obvious what is happening in the picture. You can't always tell what is a tree and what is a shadow straight away. The sun is clearly low in the sky, casting long shadows along the ground.
© Estate of William McCance
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 | 13. The Age of Uncertainty by Ken Currie (1992)
This etching by Ken Currie (born 1960) is one of a series called The Age of Uncertainty. The works in the series were influenced by social and political injustice. Events such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Gulf War and ethnic cleansing inspired the works, which are thematically very dark. This image shows men with bandaged heads holding books in a library. The use of black and white, and particularly the use of shadow on the faces, gives a haunting appearance and demonstrates the suffering of the subjects. It is an excellent example of how black on white can be used to show different expressions and to convey atmosphere. The works in this series are heavily influenced by the so-called "black paintings" of the Spanish artist Francisco de Goya.
© Ken Currie
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14. Reprisal by Ken Currie (1992)
Warning: This artwork depicts a thematically dark scene and deals with a difficult subject.
This extremely dark work shows an execution, an act of ethnic cleansing, in an undisclosed location. It is part of a series entitled The Age of Uncertainty. Few details of the environment in which the action takes place are shown, Ken Currie (born 1960) has left the landscape bleak and empty. His use of black and white, light and dark, creates a tense, threatening atmosphere. The white of the executioner's torso stands out against this darkness. Note that the victim's head is in a dark bag, which melts away into the dark background, giving the impression that there is no head there at all and suggesting that the execution has already happened.
© Ken Currie
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15. Story from Glasgow by Ken Currie (1989) - 1
This is the first of a set of 97 lino prints that tell a story in comic book format. It is the story of a man that Ken Currie (born 1960) met on the streets of Glasgow. The man had previously been a skilled worker in the Glasgow factories before turning to drink and living on the streets after the death of his wife. Each work took around an hour to create, as Currie wanted a raw feel to them. Consider how Currie has used darkness to create a haunting face, much like in The Age of Uncertainty, and his use of black to create scenes with minimal detail.
© Ken Currie
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16. Story from Glasgow by Ken Currie (1989) – 2
This is a scene from Currie's Story from Glasgow. Consider how he has used blackness and minimal areas of light to create atmosphere. What kind of an district is the man walking through? How is he feeling? What time of day is it? Despite the simple shapes and little detail, the scene is easily identifiable.
© Ken Currie
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 | 17. Image in a Bell Jar by Elaine Shemilt (1994)
This print by Elaine Shemilt (born 1954) shows the artist's face as though trapped by a bell jar. The shadows, especially when contrasted with the central strip of white, create an atmosphere of sadness. The work is a reference to Sylvia Plath's semi-autobiographical novel The Bell Jar, which charts a young woman's depression. How does the use of light and dark mirror this sense of despair?
© Elaine Shemilt
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 | 18. Dialogue by Margaret Hunter (1993)
This print by Margaret Hunter (born 1948) deals with the false appearances that we often show to the world. The subject is split in two to show the two sides of our characters, that which we show to the world and that which we keep private. How does the contrast of light and dark make the image look troubling?
© Margaret Hunter, www.margaret-hunter.com
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All images © Museum Collections, University of St Andrews unless otherwise stated.
Images may be downloaded and printed for educational purposes only.
