Key Stage 3
Students enjoy working collaboratively and individually with a challenging range of two and three-dimensional media. The department is very well equipped with materials and specialist equipment, enabling students to complete ambitious projects in drawing, painting, photography, textiles, ceramics, printmaking and sculpture. At each stage of the creative process, students review and refine their work through teacher feedback and peer critiques. All students learn to analyse their own artwork and that of other artists, craftspeople and designers, from diverse cultures and historical periods. They learn to apply this knowledge to their own work, making connections between other contexts and their personal responses, to become both critics and practitioners.
Key Stage 4
GCSE Art appeals to students who are keen to hone both their practical and conceptual skills to a high level in order to produce independent and innovative work.
The department follows the Edexcel Unendorsed Assessment which comprises two units: the first is teacher-directed to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the four GCSE objectives. Students will engage with a wide variety of techniques and approaches, and need to be open-minded and ready to challenge their existing preconceptions of art, whilst refining their core skills. The second unit requires investigation and research into a given title set by the exam board. Individual choice of media and personal responses to each topic are required in connection with detailed deconstruction of artists and art movements. Students are encouraged to research contemporary artists and practice from a wide variety of multicultural sources. ICT and new media including photography and film are used extensively.
Key stage 5
At A level, students are encouraged to take risks and develop as artists. They are given the opportunity to specialise in a range of media and processes that are relevant to their interests whether they be Architecture, fashion, sculpture, darkroom photography, installation or film. Their work culminates in an end of year show at both the first and second year of the A level, and students are responsible for the curation and set up of these exhibitions. Edexcel places theory alongside the practical elements of the course at A2, enabling students to further refine their written analysis and essay writing skills in preparation for higher education. We hope that by the end of this course, students will have gained a rich understanding of visual language and a passion for Art that goes beyond their school career.