ADVANCED Studio ART
Grades 11,12

Year-long course

Division:  Upper School

Department: Fine and Performing Arts:  Visual Arts

Course Title/Code:  Advanced Studio Art                Art 950           

Overview: This course is designed for the self-motivated student who wishes to explore visual art in depth, develop a unique artistic voice and demonstrate proficiency in a wide variety of artistic techniques and processes. Students working in the Advanced Art class will produce a portfolio of high quality works that will eventually comprise of a completed AP Studio Art Portfolio. The AP Studio Art Portfolio will be submitted for evaluation; the exam is performance-based rather than a traditional written exam.

A complete course description of the AP Studio Art course is available in PDF form on the College Board website.

Goals: The goal of this class is for students to develop a sophisticated portfolio of work suitable for submission for the AP Studio Art exam. Students complete a portfolio of approximately 24 college-level works displaying quality, breadth, and a personalized concentration.

Skills:

• Students will develop a sophisticated portfolio of college-level artwork.
• Students will hone their technical skills with a variety of art media.
• Students will develop an appreciation of their role as disciplined artists.
• Students will maintain a sketchbook of exercises related to class projects.
• Students will hone the ability to express themselves creatively through the artistic process.
• Students will learn to understand and appreciate paintings by various artists produced throughout art history.

Assessment Methods:

·        In class projects

·        Sketchbook assignments and research

·        Participation

Grading:

90%: In-Class projects, sketchbooks, research

10%  Class participation. You will be assigned a participation grade twice this trimester. Be on time, clean up well, be polite, try your best to get an “A”

Sections: The completed portfolio will consist of three sections. Works from sections 2 & 3 may be used for section 1, but works in sections 2 & 3 may not be duplicated. Therefore, students will need to complete a total of approximately 24 works of art of the highest quality.

Section 1/Quality:     5 actual works of art are submitted for evaluation. These works reflect a student's commitment to excellence in her work.

Section 2/Concentration:  12 slides of student work demonstrating an in-depth commitment to a particular artistic idea.

Section 3/Breadth: 12 slides of student work demonstrating a variety of media, techniques, and forms of expression.

Students will also be required to complete a short written section prior to the exam date. 

Student Expectations: Students should have a strong sense of composition and design as well as a solid foundation of drawing skills before entering the course. Students should expect to spend more time on Advanced Art projects than they've spent in other art electives in the past.  Due dates are predetermined and must be met in order for students to complete the amount of work necessary for AP Portfolio submission. Students must also recognize that the quality of the work is important, and simply "trying hard" isn't going to guarantee success in the course.

Students are encouraged to seek regular feedback from Ms. Steele and their peers. Students are also encouraged to regularly study and view works from other artists for inspiration.

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