Fine Arts

K-12 Art program at TCS gives students opportunities for creative self-expression and develops a lifelong appreciation for art.

It is the aim of the Art Department to offer opportunities to students that they may understand and develop facility with the techniques and processes of the arts as a means of expressing emotions and concepts. Opportunities will be provided to: encourage skill development and develop artistic appreciation along with self-expression. This curriculum will be based on observational, and expressive drawing, Art History color theory, the elements and principles of design, painting, printmaking, sculpture, design problems, ceramics, photography, computer graphics, studio art, metals and printmaking, a vocabulary of art terms, and critiquing of artwork. Students will work towards refinement of sketchbooks, portfolios, and creation of independent projects.

We will concentrate on three basic components:

Visual Language

To provide a resource of visual terms, concepts, artists and functions of art both past and present.

Aesthetic Process

To develop ideas, refine perceptions, and understand visual elements.

Productive Skills

Requires an understanding of the properties of a medium, knowledge of a variety of techniques, and a concern for craftsmanship and quality.

Throughout the year we will be working on art that is reflective of the various units taught in the curriculum of the core classrooms. These might include: World Cultures: Aboriginal, African arts, artists of Spain, Egyptian relics, Medieval art and manuscripts, the Renaissance period, and Romanticism. Throughout the year we will consider how we are influenced by the natural world and past artists. We will also observe how we influence other people by our decisions, actions, and words.

Objectives

  • Establish an environment that promotes creativity and encourages risk- taking, provide the opportunity for students to experience success, enjoy the processes of art, and develop an appreciation of the result.
  • To provide opportunities for students to use a variety of media, and to develop the technical skills required with both the tools & the medium.
  • To develop perceptual sensitivity, visual discrimination, and design facility.
  • To understand the function of art in society by providing exposure to the achievements of artists past and present.

An arts program should cause students:

  • To gain confidence in their opinions.
  • To ask questions, challenge assumptions, and seek clarification.
  • To participate in ongoing evaluation.
  • To develop imaginative exploration techniques.
  • To appreciate the value of contributing to a group effort.
  • To accept the existence of divergent points of view.
  • To appreciate the unconscious or accidental elements within the structure of their work.
  • To develop their aural, visual, and kinesthetic sensitivities.
  • To learn to transfer knowledge and skills from one discipline to another.
  • To develop high standards of craftsmanship.
  • To assess and discuss their work and that of others in critique.
  • To gain an understanding of the arts of different cultures.
  • To acquire an awareness of the role of arts in society.
  • To attain a working knowledge of the vocabulary, media, & techniques of the arts.

"Art is a human activity consisting in this, that one man consciously by means of certain external signs, hands on to others feelings he has lived through, and that others are infected by these feelings and also experiences them."

Leo Tolstoy