Aboriginal X-Ray Art

X-Ray art is a style or art that was developed many years ago in Australia. Cave paintings of this type have been found in Arnhem Rock, in northern Australia (east of Darwin). These paintings seem to show the outline of the animal, plus diagrams of the bones and some internal organs. There are solid colours, as well as patterns which can be layered over light colours. Earth colours such as orange, brown, yellow, red, black, and white are used. Backgrounds can include patterned borders and details, and there is often more than one animal sharing the space.

You will need: a picture of a reptile, brown paper, earth coloured pastels

1. Look at a picture of your chosen animal – an anatomical drawing would be most helpful.
2. Sketch the outline of silhouette using pencil or white pastel.
3. Add lines showing the bone structure (eg. skull, spine, ribs) and any known organs (eg. heart, lungs) OR simply divide the inside of your animal into sections.
4. Fill each section with a simple shape or pattern that repeats. Fine cross hatching called ‘rarrk’ is traditional to Arnhem land.
5. Consider adding simple details to the background such as rows of dots or lines echoing the outline of your animal.

Creative Arts

About Ms Salmon

I am a teacher in NSW, Australia. I use this blog for my students each year, and for collecting games, videos, images etc. for use with those classes.

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