Key Stage 3 art and design · Techniques, media and materials

KS3 art: print, collage and mixed media, a guide for parents

The Key Stage 3 curriculum asks that pupils use a range of techniques and media, including painting, so that they become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques. Print, collage, digital work and mixed media are the kinds of “other” media many schools choose. Beyond painting, the curriculum names none of them, so what your child tries depends on the school’s resources and teachers.

Print, collage and mixed media, explained

It helps to be clear about what is required and what is chosen. The only medium the national curriculum names is painting; the rest is “a range of techniques and media”. Print, collage, digital and mixed media are typical choices rather than requirements, and a school may add textiles, photography or clay. What matters is that over Years 7 to 9 pupils meet several kinds of making, practise each enough to control it, and begin to choose the right one for an idea.

Printmaking is about making marks by transferring ink or paint from one surface to another. In a monoprint, a design is drawn or pressed into a thin layer of ink and printed once. In a relief print, a raised surface is inked and pressed on paper, using a cut block such as lino or a simpler foam sheet. In a collagraph, a plate is built up from card, string and textured scraps. Screen printing pushes ink through a stencil. Pupils learn that a print is reversed, that thin even ink gives the best result, and that colours can be layered if the paper is lined up each time, which is called registration.

A collage is a picture made by arranging and sticking materials such as paper, fabric, photographs or found objects. At Key Stage 3 it is about composition, colour, texture and layering as much as cutting and sticking. Mixed media goes further and combines more than one medium in the same piece, perhaps ink, collage and wax resist, or a painted background with a printed layer on top. The skill is choosing combinations for a reason. A rough, torn edge against a smooth painted area is a decision; a pile of everything in the cupboard is not.

Many schools also include digital work: editing photographs, drawing with a tablet or on screen, making a digital collage or a short animation. The same art ideas apply, such as composition, tone, colour and cropping, and digital tools do not make decisions for the pupil. Schools often combine digital and handmade work, such as scanning a print and layering it. Pupils learn through small tests and samples first, then apply what they have found to a theme. Equipment and materials vary, so some of this may happen only in school.

Words your child will hear

Monoprint: A print made so that only one copy exists, for example by drawing on paper laid over a thin layer of ink.
Relief print: A print made from a raised surface that has been inked and pressed onto paper, such as a lino block.
Collagraph: A print made from a plate built up with glued card, string and textured materials.
Registration: Lining up each layer of a print exactly so the colours sit in the right place.
Collage: An artwork made by sticking pieces of paper, fabric or other materials onto a surface.
Mixed media: An artwork that combines two or more different materials or techniques.
Resist: A material such as wax that stops paint or ink soaking in, leaving a pale pattern behind.

What the National Curriculum says

The programme of study for Key Stage 3 says:

Pupils should be taught to use a range of techniques and media, including painting
Aim: pupils become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques.

Objectives from the National Curriculum in England, © Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Try it: making a monoprint

A pupil is asked to make a monoprint with a drawn line and a textured background. How might they do it?

Prepare the ink. Spread a thin, even layer of water-based ink or paint on a smooth tray or sheet of plastic, using a roller if there is one. A thick layer makes blobs and smears, so less is better.
Lay the paper on gently. For a textured background, first lay a leaf, a scrap of lace or some torn paper on the ink: it blocks the ink and leaves a pale shape. Then place a clean sheet on top without sliding it, because any movement will smudge the print. Rest your hand on a spare piece of paper so that it doesn’t leave marks.
Draw on the back. Press with a pencil or the end of a brush, drawing your design. Where you press, the paper picks up the ink and makes a soft, dark line. Rubbing lightly with a fingertip picks up softer areas of tone.
Peel and look. Lift the paper slowly from one corner. The print is a one-off, with a line that looks unlike a drawing and a mottled background. Remember that writing will come out reversed.
Build it up. Once the print is dry, add a second colour in a new layer, lining up the corners of the paper each time, or finish with ink, torn paper or pastel on top to turn it into mixed media.

The result is a unique print with a soft, textured line. A good annotation in the sketchbook records what was done and what to change: “The first layer was too thick and blotchy, so on the second I used less ink and the drawn lines were much clearer.”

Common mistakes and how to help

More ink, paint or glue always gives a better result

Heavy application seems more confident, and with thick ink a print looks strong at first glance. But it smears, blobs and soaks paper, and glue seeps through collage.

What helps: Aim for a thin, even coverage and test a small area first. For glue, a thin layer spread with a card scraper holds better than a blob.

Expecting a print to look the same way round as the design

When a surface is pressed onto paper, the image is flipped like a mirror. Pupils who draw words or a face on a block are surprised when it comes out reversed.

What helps: Test with a few letters on scrap paper. Plan any text or asymmetric design as a mirror image, and hold it up to a mirror to check before cutting or printing.

Mixed media means using as many materials as possible

A cupboard full of choices is tempting, and pupils worry that fewer materials will look unfinished.

What helps: Limit a piece to two or three media and ask what each adds. If you can’t say, take it out. The best mixed media pieces have a clear reason for each layer.

Digital work is the easy option, or the software does the art

Filters and effects can give quick results, so pupils may think editing needs no skill, while others expect the software to make the picture.

What helps: Treat the tools like any medium. Ask the same questions of a digital piece as of a painting: what is the composition, where is the focus, and what did you choose? A decision made with a mouse is still a decision.

How to help at home

Make a monoprint with a tray and paint. Spread a thin layer of washable paint on a plastic tray, lay paper on top and draw on the back with a pencil. Work quickly before the paint dries, and cover the table.
Build a simple collagraph. Glue string, torn card and scraps of corrugated cardboard onto a piece of thick card and let it dry. Brush paint over the surface, press paper on top, and peel off to show a textured pattern.
Collage from what is already in the house. Junk mail, old magazines, wrapping paper and packaging are all free material. Choose a limited colour range, tear instead of cutting for soft edges, and think about overlapping layers before sticking anything down.
Try a wax resist. Draw a design on paper with the end of an unlit white candle or a white wax crayon, then brush thin, watery paint over the top. The wax repels the paint and the design appears. No flame is needed at any point.
Edit a photograph with a purpose. Take a photograph of an object, then use the editing tools on any device to crop it, change the contrast and try black and white. Write down which version works best and why. Agree screen time in advance.

Builds on

Key Stage 2: Pencil and charcoal drawing
Key Stage 2: Painting techniques
Key Stage 2: Sculpture with clay