Photography and Print
Photography
Jiayi Xu
Lauriston Girls' School, Armadale
Wurundjeri Country
Joyce Xu
Inkjet print
My self-portrait photography series explores my journey as a Chinese immigrant, delving into the emotional layers of assimilation and heritage rejection. Inspired by my dual upbringing, I peel back emotional veneers, offering a unique perspective on the intersections of Gen Z, contemporary society, and entrenched traditions. The series captures internal conflicts, leading to a poignant reconciliation with my true identity and a profound love for Chinese culture. This journey is ongoing.
Tayla Ahmed
Korowa Anglican Girls’ School, Glen Iris
Wurundjeri Country
The Society
Comic
The Society is a dystopian comic which highlights our mindless consumption of media in the modern day. The comic follows a young woman, Dawn, as she recognises the media's manipulation of her thoughts and attempts to escape its control. My inspiration came from the COVID-19 pandemic, when the majority of young people's lives were spent online with pervasive manipulative media. The Society addresses a young adult audience, encouraging them to use critical thinking when consuming media and advertising.
Hayley Archer
Loreto Mandeville Hall, Toorak
Wurundjeri Country
Undercurrent
Magazine
Undercurrent explores the music scene in Melbourne, especially the alt-rock genre, through the perspectives of musicians, industry professionals, and local music fans. My main sources of inspiration for both the photography and content were magazines such as Rolling Stone and Frankie, as these publications explore the music scene from a diverse range of perspectives and exhibit unique approaches to the photographic portrayal of live music.
Ella Campbell
Our Lady of Mercy College, Heidelberg
Wurundjeri Country
The Zen Zone
Magazine
The Zen Zone is a magazine that provides entertainment, inspiration and motivation about healthy habits, aimed at an adolescent audience. Interactive elements have been implemented throughout the product, so that the act of engaging with the magazine will simultaneously allow consumers to take time for themselves and practice mindfulness. Using a playful and contemporary style, I created original graphics, photography and text to align with the wellbeing genre.
Alyssa Cunanan
Williamstown High School, Williamstown
Bunurong Boonwurrung Country
That Time I Got Transported Into The Real World
Graphic novel
This graphic novel presents a spin on the 'isekai' genre—the idea of travelling between a real world to a fantasy one. In 2140, people have now established their new lives in Shylven, an immersive video game. Two girls, who have lived there all their life, suddenly get disconnected from Shylven. Together, they explore the remains of humanity and the sensations of simple things in life.
Charlotte Cumming
Our Lady of Mercy College, Heidelberg
Wurundjeri Country
Atlas Magazine
Magazine
Atlas Magazine tours Melbourne, highlighting all the best places to visit, eat, drink and shop to experience the city like a local. With a particular focus on inner-Melbourne suburbs, Atlas Magazine delves into the melting pot of cultures, characters, and experiences that all contribute to the unique and dynamic atmosphere Melbourne is known and loved for.
Andre Nguyen
St Francis Catholic College, Melton West
Wurundjeri Country
God’s Will Volume #1: Grave Danger
Comic
God’s Will was conceived from a combined interest in dramatic Wild Western themed media and indie animation, such as the series Helluva Boss, which inspired the comic’s campy and stylistic approach, hot colour palettes and occult themes. The style of God’s Will takes cues from many artists, from the campy style of Paru Itagaki, to the dreamy and striking colour palettes of Wes Anderson. This project challenged me on all fronts, from the punchy storytelling down to the striking visuals that accompany the narrative.
Daniel Noonan
Northcote High School, Northcote
Wurundjeri Country
The Celestial's Key
Graphic novel
The Celestial’s Key is a story about a young woman meeting her long-lost rockstar uncle, set within a mysterious hotel that bends reality to accommodate the desires of its residents. I love the ability comic books have to play with surreal concepts and abstract visuals. The book’s premise was a conscious effort to use such surrealism as a method of reframing a small-scale narrative about two people dealing with loneliness, the passage of time, and the process of healing.
Abigale Quin
Wurun Senior Campus, Fitzroy North
Wurundjeri Country
Undergrowth
Graphic novel
When creating Undergrowth, I wanted to combine several mediums to reflect my love of creating visual art in many forms, and to appeal to a younger audience through pops of colour. The narrative follows two tween girls, because a lot of my artistic style and interest in illustration developed around that age. I wanted to root my year-long passion project of illustrating a graphic novel in something that was comforting and familiar.
Jasmine Sandaver
Point Cook Senior Secondary College, Point Cook
Bunurong Boonwurrung Country
The Ferryman
Digital graphic novel
The Ferryman was a passion project to explore my perspectives on complex subjects like memory and mortality through the lens of a world that is very dear to me. Inspired by fantasy media like Lord of the Rings and tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, the story is set in the fantasy world of Kaitera, a fictional realm which I created. The narrative follows the undead protagonist Thana Akuji, focusing on her struggles with moving on from the past and how she learns to confide in those around her. I chose to create a digital novel so it could be easily shared and reach a wider audience.
Isobel Spanos
Loreto Mandeville Hall, Toorak
Wurundjeri Country
From the Heart
Cookbook
In producing my cookbook From the Heart, I wanted to convey my personal relationship with Greek cuisine through my connection with my grandmas and our shared enjoyment for cooking. I produced an assortment of images that capture a variety of traditional dishes, as well as snippets from my grandmas’ homes. I gained inspiration from a collection of pre-existing cookbooks in producing a sleek and polished product, with cohesive colours of deep blue and muted cream hues to enrich the visual qualities.
Lily Tran
The Mac.Robertson Girls' High School, Melbourne
Bunurong Boonwurrung Country
Shooting for Rabbits
Gamebook
Shooting for Rabbits is a whodunit story with a twist. In this half book, half board game, choose-your-own-adventure narrative inspired by the work of Agatha Christie and Rian Johnson’s Knives Out (2019), readers work to determine the sequence of events that have led up to the death of an unpopular patriarch—before the killer strikes again. The printed book is supplemented by additional materials, including tactile clues, maps, and handwritten notes directly from the story, all stored in a purpose-made box.
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