Visual Arts

Courses

• Artbeat An excellent foundation for all the other art electives, this course focuses on what art is and why people create it. Students work with a variety of media and techniques, including drawing, painting, sculpting, and working with clay. Weekly lessons in art history help students appreciate a wide variety of art and artists.
• Drawing Emphasis is on learning to see. Basic drawing skills are developed along with experiments utilizing many techniques (contour, gesture, value) and media (pen and ink, brush, conte', charcoal, scratch board). Daily sketchbook assignments focus on development of specific drawing skills.
• Painting This studio course provides experience in acrylic and watercolor painting. Emphasis is on color theory and the elements and principles of design. Students will experiment with unusual 23 materials (sand, salt, rice paper), colors, and textures to enhance their paintings.
• Two-Dimensional Design Learn to use the elements and principles of design to create exciting two-dimensional art work. Students will experiment with many techniques and media (pen and ink, colored pencils, acrylic paints, pastels, and more). Units in basic design, printmaking, and commercial art (typography and lay-out) are included in this studio course.
• Three-Dimensional Design Learning to use the elements and principles of design in their projects, students create three-dimensional forms in a variety of media, including foam board, wire, plaster, stone, clay and found objects. Weekly studies in art history focus on the prehistoric to modern art periods.
• Art in Action Students put their artistic skills to active use beyond the classroom. Students will produce art with practical applications such as murals, illustration for publication, program covers, arts in chapel, public art and others. Group and individual projects may integrate art with skills from other disciplines. Emphasis on good design, excellent craftsmanship, communicating positive values, exploring career options and service to school and community.
• Ceramics Hand-building techniques and wheel-throwing skills are the focus of this course. Works by master potters and crafts persons are studied in conjunction with student projects. Both functional and sculptural/design assignments provide a wide range of experience in clay.


• Advanced Studio Students will study their choice of drawing, painting, or three-dimensional design by following Advanced Placement Portfolio Guidelines. Course work combines art theory (self-paced study), sketchbook assignments, discussions, and independent projects. This course is available either semester but both semesters are required for Advanced Placement credit. This class is weighted when taking both semesters for Advanced Placement credit.
• Photography I Students learn to use their cameras, take good pictures, develop black and white film, and make prints. Principles of design and careers in photography are studied. Students must have access to a 35mm (or 2 1/4 x 2 1/4) camera capable of being used manually.
• Photography II Emphasis is on broadening and deepening photographic skills. Students explore creative use of camera controls, existing and studio lighting, flash techniques, the history of photography and principles of good composition. Class members make portraits, learn special darkroom techniques and become “master printers.” The class also chooses from a variety of projects, 24 which often include shooting infrared film, hand coloring photographs, doing pinhole photography, completing a color photography project and more. $150 lab fee. Highly recommended for student publication photographers.
• Digital Photography Students gain hands-on experience doing digital photography using digital cameras, scanners, Photoshop, desktop printers and other output methods. Emphasis is on learning to use these new tools for doing photography as well as continuing to develop a “a photographic eye.” Ethical issues relating to digital imagery are explored. Students tackle shooting assignments in addition to Photoshop assignments learning to crop, resize, correct colors, retouch, control contrast, dodge and burn, prepare for output and otherwise manipulate images in “the digital darkroom.” The course affords students the opportunity to do color photography, and helps students get started in photojournalism, commercial photography and fine art photography directions.

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