Claude Cahun, Self-Portrait, 1920
Claude Cahun, Self-Portrait, 1920

Lesson 14: A3 — The Final Collage

Pre A Level Art & Design · Unit 3 · U3·L5 · ← L13 | next unit: U4 Graphic Design & the Poster

At a glance

SessionW15, one Wednesday double (~90 min) — Unit 3 closes
DateWed 2026-12-09
FocusA3 sat: the final collage finished under assessment conditions, plus the written reflection
DeliverableThe final collage + reflection, submitted at close; process trail (drafts, dry-fit photos, scraps) in the sketchbook
FeedsA3 is the semester’s third attainment; U4 opens next week
HomeworkNone new — weekly MB posting continues; U4 Graphic Design / Printmaking opens Wed 12-16

Goal

The final layer goes down and the collage starts speaking for itself. Ask the test from L10 one last time before you submit: cover any one element — does the collage lose part of its sentence? If a piece is only decoration, take it off. A3 is a made-in-class attainment: the mark rewards decisions you can point to, in the work and in the reflection.

How it runs

  • Set-up (5 min) — work out, finishing lists out, criteria on the board: juxtaposition · layering · composition · meaning. From here: your board, your scraps, your reasons.
  • Studio (55 min) — the finishing list, in order: place and glue the speaker; set text last; resolve edges (every torn edge on purpose, every cut edge clean); sign the back with title and date. If you are working digitally, export your final and print or submit the file with the layered working version.
  • Reflection (15 min) — one page, full sentences. Frames you can use: “My collage is about … ” / “The juxtaposition of … and … says … ” / “My layering decision that works best is … because … ” / “I placed … at … so that … ” / “If I made it again I would ….”
  • Submit and close (15 min) — submit collage + reflection; put the process trail into your sketchbook: both drafts, the dry-fit photographs, and the best rejected scraps, annotated. Next Wednesday the course turns to communicating to an audience: graphic design and the poster, or the linocut route. The A4 route will be confirmed in class then.

Assessment

A3 — final collage + reflection, sat and submitted in class. Marking focus: juxtaposition, layering, composition, meaning — meaning is judged on the work and the reasons in your reflection. Returned with feedback within five working days. Register: PAL S1 Assessments.