Visual Arts

Course summary

The IB Diploma course offers students an ideal opportunity to discover Art. We follow a Fine Art programme which allows students to develop their work in a number of areas – especially focusing on current fine art practice. There is, of course, an international awareness that should be developed through such a programme of study. The IB Visual Arts Programme consists of three distinct areas of study: Exhibition 40%, Process Portfolio 40%, Comparative Study 20% The Art Department boasts a variety of media, large spaces to work in and excess of inspiration. Students can fully embrace their topics, with a library and computers within the department. All lessons are taught in the Art school, which houses four professional working studios, an art library, facilities for printmaking and sculpture, photography and lens-based media. There are a number of career options if you choose to study Art and Design. The normal route is, on completion of your IB Diploma, to complete a foundation course at Art School. Then you specialise in your chosen area, be it fashion, photography, graphic design, animation, games design etc. You can also go on to study History of Art. You could be a painter. You could work in television or web design. You could work within the fashion industry. You could work within advertising or the film industry. There is also architecture and interior design. The department offers opportunities to visit galleries abroad, with a biennial visit to New York and trips in the UK to events like the Frieze Fair and other major galleries. As teaching staff, we are all practising artists who believe very strongly in the value of Art in our society and how it can enrich one’s life. We endeavour to develop a working environment where students feel secure enough to develop their own ideas, where they can be brave in their experimentation.