Welcome to the Art Department

Visual arts courses focus on studio and art appreciation and are primarily concerned with exploring the expressive character of how we see and the design of things we use. Within these courses, visual literacy expands into a broader perception ? turning seeing into vision, translating reality into symbols and connections, and enhancing all other learning experiences. The expectations for visual arts courses are organized into three distinct but related strands:

• Theory. Theory is an organized body of ideas based on general principles explaining how people produce and appreciate art. This strand is subdivided into design and composition, art history and cultural community, and personal applications.
• Creation. Imaginative production through problem solving is the central aspect of visual arts education. The focus is on experimenting and producing, preceded by perceiving and planning and followed by reviewing and evaluating.
• Analysis. Analysis is the detailed examination of elements, structures, and ideas by which conclusions, interpretations, and judgements are formed. This strand is subdivided into critical process (steps that lead to an informed decision) and aesthetics (a system of enquiry that examines artistic value).