Art

 

ART AND DESIGN – FINE ART (GCSE)

If students enjoy being creative and want to increase their practical skills, improve their analytical, communication and research abilities as well as exploring new ideas, then Fine art is a great choice. The skills students gain also make it a great complement to other curriculum areas. Art is a way of seeing things and making sense of the world. It can help with further study and prepare students for the world of work, where there are many opportunities working within the creative industries.

Students will look at many different approaches and disciplines within Fine art. They will get to explore lots of different media, techniques and materials, including having the opportunity to work with clay, digital art, sculpture, photography, print making as well as drawing and painting.

EXAMINATION BOARD – AQA Art and Design – Fine art 

SPECIFICATION CODE – 8201 – 8206 

 

CURRICULUM CONTENT 

Unit 1 Workshop Project

Students learn about the 4 assessment objectives used for GCSE assessment. A series of creative tasks are undertaken where students work through these assessment objectives. Students learn how to create distressed surfaces, working on top of these with mixed media and different drawing principles. They learn about photography techniques before visiting the west Yorkshire sculpture park and respond to this experience with artist analysis, block printing methods, and ceramic work.

Component 1 – Organic Versus Mechanic (NEA)

Students respond to the starting point - organic verses mechanic by developing an in-depth portfolio of work leading to a final piece. Students show evidence of the 4 assessment objectives throughout this body of work.

Component 2 – External Set Task and examination              

Students select from a range of externally set questions, responding in line with the 4 assessment objectives. They produce a full portfolio of work developing ideas in preparation for a final piece. Students are taken off timetable for 2 days (10 lessons) to create their final piece in controlled conditions.

 

ASSESSMENT

 Component 1: Portfolio/Coursework = 60% 

  • Students will complete 2/3 projects showing evidence of working in areas of study drawn from two or more of the different disciplines. 

Component 2: Externally set assignment = 40% 

  • The final part of the course is responding to a choice of 8 starting points given by the exam board, where students will demonstrate their ability of producing a sustained response of their chosen theme. This will be completed over a fixed period of time with a final piece at the end showing evidence of working in areas of study drawn from one or more of the different disciplines.  

EXTRA-CURRICULAR OPPORTUNITIES 

Students will be able to visit art galleries and share their work as part of the Summer Arts Festival which is an art exhibition inviting family and friends in to view classwork. 

PROGRESSION 

The areas of study are very broad and cover drawing, painting, sculpture, photography installation and mixed media. This gives the students the skills required to continue after KS4 with a range of A Level choices such as Fine Art, Art and Design, Textiles, Photography or Graphics. BTEC Art and Design is also another option. These qualifications can lead to university degrees and possible careers such as, Art Director, Art Curator, architecture, advertising, Illustrator and Digital artist.