Visual Arts

Art Foundations allows students to explore a wide variety of 2- and 3-Dimensional media while learning the foundations of composition and art history. This course will be an introductory course for students wanting to meet the art requirement as well as for those wanting to discover studio classes offered.

Drawing & Painting I offers students a survey of drawing and painting techniques. Skills of emphasis include the elements/principles of art, color theory, color mixing, contour line, still life/realism painting, chiaroscuro, linear perspective, and wet into wet blending. Students will be introduced to a wide range of artistic formats including abstract art, cartooning, optical illusions, fine art, arts & crafts, portraiture, architecture, and landscapes.

Drawing & Painting II is the second part of a student’s Drawing & Painting adventure to gain more experience in a course that will introduce a variety of tools, techniques, and media including pencil, colored pencil, acrylic painting, and watercolor painting. Students will use materials as a medium for visual communication and as a means for creating their own personal aesthetic. Emphasis will be placed on the elements and principles of art and design as tools for demonstrating meaning within works of art.

The Mixed Media course covers a variety of 2D and 3D media. Students will study various modern and contemporary art periods by analyzing and critiquing works from specific artists and developing art-making skills based on those works. This is an advanced course where students will build their drawing, painting, printing, and multimedia sculpture skills along with learning new techniques. Students will practice art for social change along with real-world art applications.

Ceramics I offers the opportunity for students to work with clay and experiment with functional and sculptural concepts. A variety of techniques will be used including hand-building methods (coil pot, pinch pot, and slab construction) and glazing techniques. Students will also focus on compositional elements when creating an aesthetic work of art.  

Ceramics II is a continuation of the techniques practiced in Ceramics I. In this course, more emphasis is placed on advanced skills for wheel throwing, hand-building, mold making, and glazing. Students should have a more fluent command of the medium and should be working towards opportunities for gallery showings and competitions.

Digital Photography explores the relation of photography to fine art.  Students will be asked to participate in class discussion to better understand the physical, conceptual, and theoretical characteristics of the electronic media as it pertains to art and art making. Students will be introduced to the basic technology necessary for the production of their art work, learning about the visual arts, how to look at and critique photography, photographic vocabulary, using tools such as framing, composition, "rule of thirds", light, texture, pattern, lines, symmetry, depth of field, distance, perspective, culture, space, balance, color and black and white photography, and be introduced to many works by well-known photographers. Students will be expected to demonstrate an ability to use the tools competently in the production of their art work. However, the production and analysis of expressive and thoughtful art work is the main objective of this course.