How to Build an NCEA Visual Arts Portfolio Kit (NZ-Specific)

If you're a parent of an NCEA Visual Arts student — or the student yourself — you've probably been handed a supply list that reads like a foreign language. Bristol board, lightfast pens, gesso, sketchbooks at 130gsm minimum. This guide cuts through it. We'll walk through exactly what's needed at each NCEA level, what teachers actually recommend, and how to build a kit on a tight budget.

A note from the shop floor — last term I helped three Year 11 parents put together NCEA kits in-store. The single most repeated question: 'do they really need an A3 visual diary?' Yes. Always yes. The visual diary is the workhorse of the whole programme.

What NCEA Visual Arts requires

NZQA's published guidelines for Visual Arts at Levels 1, 2 and 3 require students to demonstrate competence across drawing, design, painting, and printmaking — but the specific media depend on which "field" the school chooses (Painting, Photography, Design, Printmaking, or Sculpture).

For most NZ schools, the default is the Painting field, which means students will need supplies for graphite drawing, ink/marker work, acrylic painting, and surface preparation. This guide focuses on that.

The 12 essentials (every NCEA painting student needs these)

Drawing

• Graphite pencil set — 2H, HB, 2B, 4B, 6B at minimum (see our Pencil Grades Guide)
• Black fineliner — for ink work, line weight studies. 0.3mm and 0.7mm minimum
• Charcoal pencils — 2 grades (medium + dark) for value studies
• Kneaded eraser + plastic eraser — different jobs

Surfaces

• A3 visual diary — 130gsm+ for acrylic-friendly pages. This is THE most important purchase. Cheap diaries buckle and tear under wet media.
• Canvas pad for portfolio painting work (10–15 sheets)
• Bristol or marker paper for fineliner work

Painting

• Acrylic paint set — minimum 12 colours including titanium white (the most-used colour, by far)
• Brush set — 4–6 brushes covering flat, round, filbert in various sizes
• Palette — wooden, plastic, or disposable paper palette pad

Tools & bits

• Sharpener for graphite + charcoal pencils
• Tape — masking tape for clean edges

Build your own kit — budget tiers

Under $80 (bare-bones starter)

Mont Marte Signature student kit (12 paints + brushes + canvas pad), Mont Marte 12-piece pencil set, A3 visual diary, kneaded eraser. Will get a Year 11 student through Term 1. Top up the visual diary as it fills.

$80–150 (recommended)

Add: A3 marker paper, fineliners (Pigma Micron or equivalent), charcoal pencils, dedicated canvas pad, plus a wider brush range. This is what most NCEA Year 11–12 students should have on day one.

$150+ (full Levels 2–3)

Add: Premium-grade acrylics (Mont Marte Premium Dimension or Reeves), wider colour range, gesso for surface prep, primary palette set in larger sizes for portfolio work, additional A3 books for refinement boards.

Or buy the bundle

Our NCEA Art Student Kit is built specifically for NZ Visual Arts students and includes:

• 12-colour Mont Marte Signature acrylic set
• 11pc taklon brush set
• A3 visual diary
• Drawing pencils (2H, 2B, 4B, 6B) + eraser
• Canvas pad for portfolio work
• Black fineliner

It's matched to the official NCEA Level 1–3 art supply checklist, packs into one A3 portfolio sleeve, and saves $20+ versus buying everything separately. Free NZ shipping included.

Tips from NZ art teachers

"The biggest mistake students make is buying a beautiful sketchbook they're afraid to use. Get a working visual diary you'll cover in scribbles. Save the nice book for the final portfolio." — Anon. Auckland Year 12 art teacher

"Buy more white paint than you think you need. You'll mix it into nearly every colour."

"Keep an old shoebox of 'finished' work and bits — you'll thank yourself in November when you're assembling the portfolio."

The shopping calendar

If you're buying for a Year 11 starter, aim to have everything by mid-January (before the school year starts). For Year 12+, top up at the start of each term as supplies run down — particularly white paint and visual diary pages.

Browse our Back 2 School collection in the lead-up to the academic year, or grab the NCEA Art Student Kit directly any time. Same-day dispatch before 11am NZT, free shipping over $75.

About the author — Namra Shah is the owner of Handy Mandy Craft Store in Morningside, Auckland. We stock Mont Marte across NZ with same-day dispatch before 11am NZT and free shipping over $75. Questions? Email info@handymandy.co.nz or DM us on Instagram @handy_mandy_stores_.