44
Campaign 2015 – 2020
Performing and Visual Arts An Overview
Art & Design
Culinary Arts
Art teaches you the skill of innovation. Cognitive thinking, problem solving and blue-sky thinking are its very definition. Art is to try and foresee the future, to create a solution, identify its faults, and continually improve that process.
Life is all about food; we don’t just eat to live, we live to eat! Culturally, food teaches us so much about ourselves and others, in terms of geography, national identity, religion and communication.
Artists reflect themselves when they create a painting or a sculpture, and this practice is eye-opening for our pupils. As children grow up everything is defined in terms of black and white, good or bad, and Art lends itself to the idea that not everything is as easily explained as that. It forces us to examine ourselves and others, and in so doing promotes empathy. This is the biggest year in education in the last 25 years: there’s the new Higher, the new Advanced Higher, and in Art there is also the new L4 and L5 curriculum. The new qualifications require a great deal of 3D work; currently, if we have 15 pupils in a class it’s very difficult to get them all working in different areas, as we simply don’t have enough space. With the new centre will come far greater autonomy for our pupils to choose how to express themselves on a daily basis, from fine art to ceramics and everything in between. They will also benefit hugely from the cross-disciplinary opportunities of the new building, particularly in fashion and textiles, which is an area of crossover Art shares with Home Economics. With the new space and resources of the centre of excellence, we will be able to fully facilitate our pupils in their artistic endeavours, giving them the opportunity to explore niche specialisms suited to their particular creative requirements.
Mr. Adam Kerr Head of Art & Design
Our Health and Food Technology pupils are given the opportunity to gain practical, life-long learning skills which they will benefit from enormously in the future. Culinary Arts give them a wonderful opportunity to embrace their creativity, as well as to advance their own technological capabilities. In this day and age, it is especially necessary that pupils learn the benefits of a healthy, nutritious lifestyle, along with the valuable transferable skills that our discipline provides. Learning to cook for themselves and others is a skill which will prove vital throughout their lives. Career opportunities are bright within the hospitality industry, for those who have the talent and dedication to thrive. One of our former pupils, Katie Brown, is currently running one of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants in America, after achieving the position of head pastry chef at The Savoy Hotel in London. At the moment, however, there is a real lack of workspace at the School. Our facilities are stretched to capacity by even a reasonably-sized class of pupils; for example, a class of 16 have to work within a classroom with only 7 sinks, which is too small for purpose. As well as this, our resources are limited in terms of cooking facilities themselves, not to mention storage space for ingredients and equipment. The centre of excellence will transform this, offering our pupils the opportunity to thrive within a fully resourced, cutting-edge culinary environment.
Mrs. Lesley J. Ross Head of Health and Food Technology
