This is one of the largest Art Departments in Northern Ireland, we have a full time technician and four experienced teachers with skills in Design, Applied Art, Fine Art and Multi –Disciplinary Arts.
This year again we have 3 students at GCSE (Matthew Spence and Gareth Sweeney) and A-Level(Rory Mullan)selected for the 'True Colours' exhibition representing the top art work in Northern Ireland.
Art and design is an essential and important element in the total curriculum experience for all pupils at Key Stage 3 and for quite a number of pupils at GCSE and A-Level. History of Art and Design is also offered at AS and 'A' Level.
The policy of this department is to be involved in the on-going specification reviews and development in order to offer a broad, balanced and relevant course of study for all pupils. We offer a wide range of creative and expressive experiences to enable our pupils to develop knowledge skills and understanding, which make essential contributions to school aims, especially to creative and aesthetic development.
These experiences provide pupils with unique opportunities for observing and appraising. They use and experiment with a wide variety of media, material and processes to realise their ideas, thoughts and feelings in two and three-dimensions. Techniques range from drawing, painting, sculpture and ceramics to printmaking, digital photography, computer image manipulation and animation. The cultural, historical and critical contexts are integrated into schemes of work. This contextual dimension of art and design activities understanding of their own work by viewing and evaluating the work of other artists and designers within a variety of contexts and cultures including their own.
Art and Design activities involve the creative and imaginative combination of practical and intellectual skills leading, primarily, to visual and tactile outcomes. The study of Art and Design provides students with opportunities to enrich their sensory experiences and develop aesthetic sensitivity and awareness by making personal, visual and tactile responses to feelings, ideas and environments.
Students develop intellectual and practical abilities, appreciate the relationship between their work and that of artists, designers and craft workers in their own and other cultures and become aware of the history and social aspects of the European Community. In their use and exploration of materials, processes and technologies in both two- and three-dimensions students learn to be selective and discriminating.
Students learn that the artist usually determines the parameters within which art activities take place whereas the designers activities are usually constrained by external factors. Craft activities involve the exercise of manipulative skills in the production of art and design artifacts. The craftsperson is generally in control of processes from initial idea through to the point of sale of the craft product.
In particular it supports the emphasis upon investigating and realising activities, and the recording of first hand observations, ideas, imagination and expressing these in both two- and three-dimensions.