🎓 Grade 9 – Outstanding, imaginative and fully realised
You have developed your ideas through several creative cycles — coming back to improve and rework your thinking in a clear journey. You used a wide range of artists and cultural influences in thoughtful ways — not just copying, but using their approaches to shape your own unique direction. Your sketchbook shows clear and evolving links to the title throughout, with high-level visual and written reflection. Your final piece feels like a true “grand finale” — personal, bold, and deeply connected to everything that came before.
🖼️ We saw layered photography, expressive observational drawing, references to African textiles and digital collage artists, and a stunning final piece using screenprint and painting to express identity.
⭐ Grade 8 – Excellent, confident and deeply personal
You explored your idea confidently across several sketchbook cycles, using your chosen title to guide meaningful research into artists and cultures. You refined your ideas by returning to your experiments with new thinking, and you were selective with materials and techniques. Your sketchbook is detailed, with clear reasons for your choices. The final piece shows your visual voice and brings everything together with real clarity.
🖼️ We saw repeated observational studies of natural forms, cultural research into Japanese design and Art Nouveau, and a final textile piece combining lino print and stitched elements.
✅ Grade 7 – Strong, reflective and coherent
You showed a thoughtful creative journey, returning to earlier ideas and improving them across several sketchbook pages. Your artist and cultural influences are clearly connected to your chosen theme, and you used them to help you make decisions. Your sketchbook tells the story of your thinking well — visually and with annotation. Your final piece brings together your ideas clearly, with care and understanding.
🖼️ Your research into Mexican folk art and Picasso helped you create a series of colourful, abstract faces developed through collage and paint.
🙂 Grade 6 – Purposeful and connected
You worked through your project step by step, with some clear changes and developments along the way. Your artist and culture research links to the title, and you tried out ideas more than once, even if not always refined. Your sketchbook shows a journey — with some revisits to earlier work to improve or rethink. Your final piece links to your process and shows a personal response.
🖼️ You used Aboriginal dot painting and contemporary street art to inspire pattern work, developing your idea through stencil and marker before finishing with a detailed canvas.
🙂 Grade 5 – Developing ideas and making links
You showed you could follow the theme and look at artists and cultures to get ideas. You started to try out materials and revisit things, and your sketchbook has useful parts that show your thinking. Some artist research helped you make choices, and your final piece shows effort and some personality.
🖼️ Your sketchbook explored graffiti and manga, tested out colour schemes with markers, and led to a poster-style piece with expressive line work.
🙂 Grade 4 – Basic development, with some influence
You followed the theme and used one or two artists or cultural references to shape your work. You had a few ideas and tried to develop them — maybe repeating or refining once or twice. Your sketchbook shows the journey in a basic way, with some recording and research. Your final piece connects to the project, but feels safe.
🖼️ We saw your research into Van Gogh and Aboriginal symbols, some watercolour practice, and a simple but neat final piece with repeated patterns.
😐 Grade 3 – Simple ideas, some development
You followed the project in a simple way, using an artist or style to get started. You didn’t revisit or rethink ideas much, but you tried out a few techniques. Your sketchbook includes some recording and research, though it may not clearly link to the title throughout. Your final outcome is finished but needs more connection to the journey.
🖼️ We saw your pencil drawings based on pop art, a few colour tests, and a poster design that didn’t clearly show how it came from earlier work.
😕 Grade 2 – Limited response, but a clear attempt
You made a basic response to the title, but your work doesn’t show much development or influence. You may have looked at one artist and tried one or two materials, but didn’t really change or grow your idea through the project. The sketchbook is very simple, and your final piece may feel rushed or disconnected.
🖼️ You made one page on Keith Haring, did some colouring, and created a final piece with little link to that research.
😞 Grade 1 – Very limited work
You struggled to follow the title and didn’t show a clear journey in your work. There’s very little research, recording or development, and your final piece may not be finished or clearly linked to an idea.
🖼️ We saw some drawing, maybe with colour, but the sketchbook didn’t show how the idea grew, and no artists or cultures were explored.