ART AND DESIGN/PHOTOGRAPHY
Art does matter!
Art and Design gives fulfilment and pleasure, fires the imagination, develops confidence and puts you in the centre of the learning process.
It builds on your strengths and stimulates the best possible progress. The subject provides a rich and varied context for you to develop and apply a broad range of knowledge, understanding and skills. Art and Design enables you to think creatively and critically, to solve problems, be innovative and enterprising and to make a difference for the better.
The Courses
The GCSE courses in Art and Design and Photography are two-year option subjects in years 10 and 11 and are designed to cater for pupils who have an interest, enthusiasm and aptitude for creative work. They offer opportunities for developing and expressing practical work through observation, imagination and memory. Numerous skills are taught, practised, developed and refined throughthe use of new media and processes.
Subject Content
In year 10 a variety of experiences are encouraged and a range of media, processes and techniques employed. As the courses progress you are encouraged to follow individually devised assignments to promote creative development of personal interests. Year 11 assignments reflect maturity, confidence and refined workmanship, culminating in a summer exhibition.
What is examined?
Both courses promote personal, adventurous and innovative study and encourage you to:
Show a personal and authentic response;
Record from direct observation and experience in forms that are appropriate to your intentions;
Sustain a chosen study from conception to realisation;
Work independently in realising your intentions;
Analyse a theme, subject or concept, to select, research and communicate relevant information and evaluate it;
Select and control materials, resources and processes in a systematic and disciplined way;
Use and compose visual elements for example: line, tone, colour, pattern, texture, shape, form and space;
Make informed responses to contemporary and historical art, architecture, photography and design and make connections with the work of others, modifying your work as it progresses.
How are the courses examined?
Both Photography and Art and Design comprise two components:
Coursework –60% of the total mark;
Controlled Test — 10 hours — 40% of the total mark.
Three units of coursework are produced over the two years. A coursework unit includes research, sketchbook work and preliminary experimentation leading to a final piece of work.
The exam board sets the Controlled Test in the spring of year 11. You are required to respond to a starting point and given a four-week preparatory period, followed by 10 hours of supervised examination time. You will be expected to develop and resolve investigations independently, skilfully and with flair. The finale to the course is your personal exhibition
Do I have the necessary skills?
Above all you should be genuinely interested and wanting to develop many art forms and of course work hard.
Assessment and Moderation
Homework and classwork are continually assessed and the process is designed to provide ‘feedback’ and ‘feedforward .’ You will be involved in self assessment and encouraged to set targets which enable you to make relevant progress.
The department is keen to monitor progress, we operate an open door policy and extra assistance is available whenever required. Should you need further information, please feel welcome to visit the Art Studios, enjoy the art work and speak to the teachers.