Arts Center

Arts Center offers 10 courses based on National Arts Standards and Advanced Placement (AP).


Every person needs aesthetic education in order to enhance their experiences, feelings and appreciation of beauty. Plato regards aesthetic education as an indispensable part of the education of a free man; Herbert points out the danger of rationality unilaterally in education and holds the opinion that harmony and balance in the child's personal integrity can be maintained through aesthetic culture. Arts and aesthetic education will focus on developing learners’ aesthetic sensation and independent learning methods of art, design, music and performance art, fostering their heightened awareness of and appreciation for all that touches our lives, and supporting them to be fulfilled individuals.


Learners will be immersed in a learning environment that is highly interactive and discursive, which will challenge learners’ perceptions and expose them to the culturally diverse world.

Art and Aesthetics Education aims to:

  • Introduce an understanding of the interrelationship of practice and theory, and to help learners become informed and conversant with relevant historical and contemporary points of reference;
  • Support learners in the development of a focused portfolio of work that demonstrates their technical and intellectual aptitude and their capacity for future study in art-and-aesthetics-related majors;
  • Establish a context that is responsive to local and global concerns and committed to active engagement and participation in the culture of arts and aesthetics;
  • Build confidence in learners' abilities to present their works and to engage in discursive modes of teaching and learning through listening and interpretation.

As Arts and Aesthetic Education curriculum, we value:

  • curiosity and exploration
  • passion and self-discovery
  • an open mind and experiments
  • project management
  • research ability
  • creativity and independent practice
  • communication of ideas
  • integration of art with other disciplines
  • the opportunity to combine mind and emotion, cognition and sensory experience, analysis and intuition towards understanding the world

Learning Outcomes

  • develop knowledge of art, design, music, and performance art;
  • demonstrate an understanding of historical and contemporary precedents and how they relate to their developing practice;
  • demonstrate an understanding of the principles and methods of research;
  • clearly articulate the intellectual and technical processes involved in the production of their works;
  • experiments with materials, processes and environments in order to make their ideas tangible in practice;
  • produce works that integrate independent thought, creativity and technique;
  • manage their time and resources effectively in order to meet their objectives.

DESI1004: Intro to Graphic Design (Semester Course)

What is graphic design? It is not only a profession, a creative and academic discipline, but also highly related to everyone’s daily life. From a company’s visual image, a brand’s logo, a movie or an event’s poster, to a business card, a fandom merchandise, or just one slide that you use for a presentation — graphic design is everywhere. Nowadays, graphic design is no longer a skill that only professionals should acquire, but a literacy and ability that everyone should know. After all, don’t you want your PPT to look better and more professional?

In this course, we will emphasize the relationship between design and daily life, understand how design plays a role in society and how it can help us solve problems. We will go through the basic knowledge of graphic design, and eventually use it to solve practical problems. This course does not teach any specific software techniques, but rather focuses on observation, inspiration, analysis, inquiry, and interpretation. It is geared toward Grade 9/10 learners.

DESI3001: Intermediate Graphic Design (Semester Course)

This course is a high-level graphic design course, which is for learners who have certain previous design foundations or who want to enter relevant majors and occupations in the future (they need to be reviewed under their grades of the prerequisite course, works portfolio, and interview before entering this course).

 

Through this course, you will further lay a professional foundation and deepen your understanding and research guided by specific practical creation projects: today's graphic design is no longer a single professional discipline of "making cars behind closed doors", but an open, permeable and adhesive discipline; It is the most powerful tool for exploration, research, and innovation. It crosses the boundaries of different disciplines.

 

The course will adopt the tutorial teaching method. Each learner will specify corresponding learning plans, evaluation standards, and creative projects according to their own levels. The tutor will provide targeted professional guidance according to the needs and abilities of each learner. The course will place great emphasis on learners' autonomous learning ability, time management ability, and expression ability. Each learner will take mass-produced works as the graduation standard, and will aim to participate in the domestic art market.

VART1004: Art and Design Beginner (A/B) (Semester Course)

Art and Design Beginner is a course for zero-based learners. In this course, we will develop the ability to observe and perception in contemporary art creation. At the same time, the use of basic computer software to solve problems in life is also an important part of the design unit. With the co-teaching of the four teachers, each learner will be able to finish the course with four complete pieces of artwork and basic graphic design skills, and presentation skills.

VART3005: Sculpture

This course will cover all aspects of three-dimensional design including clay, papier mache, wire, recycled materials, mold making, digital, wood, and found objects.  learners will explore materials and demonstrate growth and development in their 3-D Designs. All learners will be expected to document their work with written text along with drawings and sketches in their sketchbooks.  Learners will be assessed by creating, presenting, responding and connecting standards. They will also be expected to assess their own work and write a reflection, visual analysis and comparative analysis.

VART3006: Intermediate Painting and Drawing (Semester Course)

This course is open to learners who already have basic drawing skills and wish to further develop their understanding of drawing. The course will focus on learning and exploring different media and painting styles.

VART4003: Narrative Image: Illustration, Comics and Animation (Semester Course)

Before the invention of the camera, painting was used as the primary recording and narrative tool. What about after the invention of the camera? Is a single image considered a comic? What is the difference between Japanese manga and Chinese comic strips? Besides the typical chronological telling of a story, how else can we use images? What are the respective characteristics of illustration, comics, and animation in telling the same story? Welcome to the Narrative Image class to find out.

VART3007: Photography

Photographs are everywhere. From portraits to landscapes, from product to commercial, from narrative to conceptual, from fine art to documentary. Learn about all these styles and what makes a strong image. Learn tips and tricks to elevate the quality of your photographs. Broaden your existing knowledge and strengthen. Learn how to use your camera to visually communicate your ideas, identify and explore your creative process, and enhance your technical skills (related to aperture, shutter speed, ISO, lighting, post-editing, presentation, etc.) and compositional skills (related to the principles and elements of (design), and your creative problem-solving. Develop a broad-ranging portfolio that explores subjects that interest you as well as subjects and techniques that challenge you to explore new thinking, techniques, and ideas.

Painting and Drawing

"Why do my drawings always look like kindergarten children's sketches? , "Why can't people understand my diagrams?", "Why do I seem able to draw what the big artists draw? , "If I don't decide to be an artist, is there any use in learning to draw?" . If you have asked any of these questions or are just interested in drawing, welcome to the drawing class. Through this course, we hope that every learner will learn how to observe the world and express it through the work of their hands.

Narrative Image: Illustration, Comics and Animation

Before the invention of the camera, painting was used as the primary recording and narrative tool. What about after the invention of the camera? Is a single image considered a comic? What is the difference between Japanese manga and Chinese comic strips? Besides the typical chronological telling of a story, how else can we use images? What are the respective characteristics of illustration, comics, and animation in telling the same story? Welcome to the Narrative Image class to find out.

Installation and Sculpture

The teaching and practice of"Installation and media art" is based on the background of international and contemporary multi-cultural art, relying on the diversity of contemporary art forms and the independence of expression carriers, and paying attention to the knowledge of art principles, this paper explores the law of material media, and summarizes some practical and effective forms of artistic expression and materialized presentation of various possibilities through the transformation, production and experiment of materials in the process of training.

 

The installation art combines the comprehensive social topic, combines the media to express your own independent artistic language to express your understanding of the self-world as well as the external world understanding and emotional expression.

Through study and research, the students can clearly express their artistic creation theme with any material, comb out the creation theme vein for the work set, and provide more artistic possibilities and new expression ideas.

Fashion Design and Jewelry Design

The teaching and practice of“Fashion Design” is based on the background of contemporary international multi-cultural design and trends, relying on the unique diversity of the history of international brands, and paying attention to the artistic knowledge about fashion behind the history of art, exploring the trend and fashion elements of each era, through the professional creation transformation, production and experiment in the curriculum, summed up some unique and inheritance of the effective form of artistic expression, the materialization of various possibilities. Use your own fashion language to express your understanding of self-world and self-style, and express your feelings and emotions to the outside world through your works. Students can use any material to clearly express their artistic fashion and creative themes.

2D Art and Design + Drawing

This elective is for students who are interested in taking either AP 2D or Drawing next year. The first semester will focus of 2D Art and Design skills such as the application and articulation of the Elements of Art and Principles of Design through media not limited to graphite, paint, fine liner, and digital media. The second semester focuses on Drawing skills such a texture, mark making and manipulation of surface through media such as paint, print making and graphite. Students will learn how to document their practicing, experimenting and revision of work. They will be expected to research and write about their processes and concepts. The work created can be used as part of the AP portfolio next year.

3D Art and Design

This course is available to grades 10, 11, and 12 and can be taken as an AP. It will cover all aspects of three-dimensional design including clay, papier mache, wire, recycled materials, mold making, digital, wood, and found objects. Students will explore materials and demonstrate growth and development in their 3-D Designs. All students will be expected to document their work with written text along with drawings and sketches in their sketchbooks. Students will be assessed through creating, presenting, responding, and connecting standards. They will also be expected to assess their own work and write a reflection, visual analysis, and comparative analysis.

Photography

Over the year we will learn to use all functions of a DSLR camera such as

focusing, shutter speeds and exposures. The course will explore the impact technology has had on photography and learn the history of photography. Students will work in both documentary and conceptual photography as well as Photoshop. Students will document their progress in a Visual Diary which is made up of images, drawings, and writing. They will assess their own work and write reflections, visual analysis, and comparative analysis. Whilst school will loan each student a DSLR camera and memory card it is advised that Photoshop is purchased prior to starting the elective.

AP Art and Design (2-D, 3-D, Drawing)

AP Art gives students the opportunity to challenge their skills, ability to work through an inquiry and produce college level artwork. AP is time consuming and challenging! As an AP Art student you will be expected to work both in and out of the classroom, attend AP Club and support other AP Art students. All three portfolio types follow the same

submission requirements of written statements and artworks demonstrating a sustained investigation as well as selected works.

High School Band

This is a performance-based course. New students who are interested in taking this course should meet with the teacher to evaluate their level of musical literacy. Learning targets in this course are focused on continuing to refine all aspects of playing an instrument as well as continue to broaden musical understanding through reflection. A successful student in this class will be able to transpose for band instruments, spell basic triads in major keys, perform rhythms in mixed and compound meters, identify all major and minor scales, and be able to adjust tuning, balance, and togetherness while playing. Topics covered in this class include Jazz, Marches, and small group (chamber music) performances. This course may be repeated each year grades 9-12.

Music Workshop

Students who attend this class should be capable of bringing their own instruments, and we are going to learn new melody together by ears, and play after me with your instrument. After being flexible with the melody several times, we are going to talk about how to manage the melody with harmony and rhythm, suggesting some strategies about how to improvise. And finally, you are going to be assigned in different groups(3-5 people per group). Now it is time to on your own. The group people has to work together, come up with a plan to arrange the melody. At the end of the semester, of course, I’ll be around to help you out during the rehearsal. We are going to give the final performance on stage.

History of the Symphony

Have you ever spend quite a long time to appreciate symphony in your life? It is not an easy task to start, right? This class will be a great chance. I will guide you throughout the history of the symphony development. It would be a valuable journey that you probably do not have time to explore by yourself.

 

We start from recognize the basic instrument in the orchestra, following the classical symphony genre, through the 20th century development. We also include development of Chinese Symphon.

HS Chorus

This is a performance-based course where students will learn to sing as a member of a choir. Students will learn proper vocal technique, ear-training, and music literacy. No prerequisite is required for this course, and this is an opportunity for students who would like to participate in music but have not learned a band instrument. A successful student in this course will be able to demonstrate proper singing technique, sight sing melodies, demonstrate understanding of music theory, and demonstrate how to collaborate with other musicians within an ensemble. This course may be repeated each year grades 9-12.