Art Curriculum Brochure

ART GCSE AND A LEVEL AT HARROW SCHOOL

ART GCSE AND A LEVEL AT HARROW SCHOOL

‘If you want to develop flexible thinking, learn the habits of creativity, imagination, patience, perserverance and confidence, you should study art.

These skills are fundamental tools for 21st century life. Studying art is not necessarily about becoming an artist - studying art will help you generate ideas and curiosity, strengthen your ability for cross-curriculum research and develop a strong sense of self’.

Jenny Saville

INTRODUCTION Think Oscar-winning film directors, internationally acclaimed and successful fashion designers, awardwinning architects and some of the best creative minds on the planet: all these movers and shakers began with regular art lessons at school. This is why Art at Harrow is a dynamic, imaginative and thorough course in which boys work in a range of media including painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography and digital media. Boys are given a solid grounding in observational drawing, which provides the academic scaffold for everything they experience in the subject. We aim to foster a lifelong love of art through discussion, debate, experimentation and exploration All Art beaks realise it is important that boys learn through the excitement of discovery, underpinned by an excellent grounding in the history of art. Boys who study GCSE Art and then opt for the A level will find themselves equipped not only with the ability to work creatively, laterally and imaginatively, but there is research that demonstrates how art enhances cognitive function and how it facilitates approaches to an array of subjects including mathematics and science; after all, it worked for Leonardo!

There is a strong emphasis on foundation skills such as understanding formal elements of colour, form, texture, composition, line and tone. There is an annual Shell trip to a London gallery or museum, as well as a yearly exhibition that includes at least one piece of work from every Shell boy. The department boasts an exemplary record of GCSE results and every boy who opts for Art is expected to achieve a top grade in the subject. Boys studying Art at Harrow also have a strong track record of gaining places at Oxford and Cambridge to study Architecture, English, PPE and Fine Art. Art at Harrow is a vibrant and exciting subject with an outstanding reputation for diverse and mature work. The nature of Art is such that no two years are ever the same. The department keeps in step with the shifting themes and ideas of contemporary art through visits to galleries and museums in London.

Boys at Harrow also have regular opportunities to see the type of work produced at A level by the constant flow of exhibitions in the Pasmore Gallery and Shepherd Churchill Hall. We also have a rich tradition of attracting professional artists to exhibit their work, undertake residences, run workshops and work one on one with boys. Recent artists include Tessa Farmer, Anthony Whishaw, Alison Lambert, Peter Randall Page, Jane McAdam Freud (daughter of Lucien Freud), Jenny Saville, Chris Orr, BP Portrait award winner Susanne Du Toit and Turner Prize-winning artists Gilbert & George.

Some boys choose Art because they need it for a career (such as Architecture), some because they have a passion for it, and many because it complements their other subjects so well. All boys who opt for Art at Harrow are guaranteed a first-rate visual education and the department celebrates consistently outstanding A level results, with the vast majority of boys achieving the coveted A* grade.

We have an excellent reputation for placing boys at Oxford and Cambridge universities and the Slade School of Fine Art as well as the University of Arts, London, and Glasgow School of Art. Art can also be studied at most American Ivy League universities including Harvard, and an increasing number of boys are submitting art portfolios to these universities to strengthen their applications.

Laurence Hedges Director of Art

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HARROW SCHOOL 5 High Street Harrow on the Hill Middlesex HA1 3HP +44 (0)20 8872 8000 harrow@harrowschool.org.uk