The mission of the Art department at Co-op Academies Bebington is to inspire, educate and fully prepare our students to become exceptional artists and designers. Through a fully rounded curriculum that incorporates a broad spectrum of disciplines integrating art and design our students are prepared to go on to college and careers with industry-standard mastery in the specialism of their choice. With a commitment to promoting strong ethical values and professional standards, we strive to foster a sense of community among our students, staff and parents. We are dedicated to developing students’ productive, creative and innovative participation in the world of visual arts as concerned and caring citizens of the global community.

Arts Aims and Objectives:

1) To provide a varied curriculum that focuses on up-to-date and relevant arts

2) To provide a curriculum that supports every individual student’s artistic needs

3) To provide a varied extra-curricular programme for all years

4) To provide links with the community, from professional visits to supporting middle and lower schools in the promotion of the arts

5) To celebrate success of student’s artistic work

Arts enable students to gain a creative, independent and skills based learning as well the academic side available to Arts. The Arts collectively promote group work, individual work, a team building experience and importantly adaptability to other peoples’ needs – factors that may not always be met in other disciplines.

Staff Members

Mrs M Fleming – Curriculum Coordinator

Mrs L Edwards

Mr A Young – Technician

Year 7 – study art every 2 weeks. They will start with Basic Skills and then one other project over the year

Basic Skills

The basic skills project covers the formal elements of art and design and links them to an artist. The formal elements are line, tone, texture, colour, shape and pattern. Students will explore and refine their skills at collage, frottage, painting, the colour wheel, drawing from primary sources and mixed media combinations while developing a knowledge of a wide range of artists.

Clay Animals/Mark Smith

The clay animal project introduces students to clay slab work. Students will learn the skills of slab work, stamping, smoothing, carving, leatherhard clay, scoring and slipping, designing for clay, sponging, wedging while learning about how to earn a living as a ceramicist by researching and being inspired by the clay artist Mark Smith

Personal Response to the Basic Skills unit

Students will develop their own ideas based on the knowledge and skills they have learnt in the Basic Skills unit. They will produce artwork in their favourite media. The focus will be on the handling of the media and the creativity involved in developing their own ideas.

Year 8 – study art once a week and will study 3 projects over the year.

African masks/Dag Weiser.

Students will mix east and west by producing their own mask. Students will be inspired by the shapes, patterns, symmetry and colours of wooden African masks while also looking at the quirky asymmetrical masks of Dag Weiser. They will learn the skills of card construction, paper mache, proportion, colour mixing, embellishment, templates, layering and decorating in a range of media.

Clay Natural Forms/Pamela Sunday/Ernst Haeckel/Kelly Jean Ohl

Students will build on the slab work skills in year 7 and produce a 3D natural form in clay. The inspiration for the clay will be from natural forms like shells and seed pods. Students will learn to produce a pinch pot, sculpt clay in 3D, design for clay, stamping and carving, scoring and slipping, smoothing and painting on a 3D surface. Students will be inspired by ceramicists working in the industry and the wonderful and weird images of Ernst Haeckel.

Still Life/Annie O’Brien

The still life project is a traditional fine art project that results in a painting of a still life. It builds on the shape element and landscape project taught in year 7. Students will be inspired by the artist Annie O’Brien’s colourful artwork. Students will learn to draw a still life from primary source, arrange objects for a still life, layer paint, use a range of brushes, scale and proportion of objects, mark making, enhancing with dry materials.

Year 9 – study art once a week and will study 3 projects over the year.

Portraiture

Students will learn to draw the face accurately. They will begin by studying the features of the face, the next step will be the proportions of the face. The final outcome will be an accurate self portrait in coloured pencil and paint. The students will  use their Maths skills to help them draw a grid to ensure their portrait is accurate.

Clay Turkish Delight Boxes/Islamic Design

This is the most challenging clay project the students will encounter at KS3. It builds on the clay skills taught in year 7 and 8. Inspired by the mathematical designs from Islam and the box of Turkish Delight that tempted Edmund in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe this clay project teaches students the skills to construct a hexagonal box with a pointed lid. Students will gain knowledge of Islamic design and learn skills of 3D clay construction.

Abstraction/Kandinsky 

The abstraction project moves students towards GCSE and focuses on how students can develop their own inspiration for their art work. The project starts with black and white paper sculpture and develops into experimenting with abstract shapes in a range of mixed media including photography, oil pastel, charcoal, collage, ink, PVA, paint. The playful shapes of Kandinsky’s paintings inspire students to experiment with colour and composition. Students will produce a mixed media artwork.

The Art and Design department offers Eduqas GCSE Art, Craft and Design. Within the course you can specialise in Textiles, Fine Art, Photography, 3D, Graphics or produce work in all specialisms. It is a 2 year course.

• Projects change each year but most will come under the heading of Portraiture, Abstraction, Landscape, Figurative, Architecture, Still Life. Students will work in a sketchbook or on boards and produce work in a range of media. Photography is a big part of the course so your phone will become a useful tool.  Students need to be creative and self-motivated and have an interest in art in the wider world. Gallery visits are vital at GCSE and regular trips are taken to local galleries. Meeting practising artists is also part of the course. Recent workshops included Textile designer Nicola Parmenter and artist Ian Murphy.
• The course is marked of one portfolio of work 60% and one externally set exam 40%

The Art and Design department offers Eduqas GCE Art, Craft and Design. Within the course you can specialise in Textiles, Fine Art, Photography, 3D, Graphics or produce work in all specialisms. It is a 2 year course. You must have achieved a level 4 at GCSE to be accepted on the course.

• Projects change each year but most will come under the heading of Portraiture, Abstraction, Landscape, Figurative, Architecture, Still Life. Students will work in a sketchbook or on boards and produce work in a range of media. Photography is a big part of the course so your phone will become a useful tool.  Students need to be creative and self-motivated and have an interest in art in the wider world. Gallery visits are vital at GCE and regular trips are taken to local galleries.
• The course is marked of one portfolio of work 60% and one externally set exam 40%

“How can I make a living from art?”

This is a question that is asked so many times in school, especially around option time. I find the answer to this question is easy to answer. Think about your average day and your surroundings, e.g. getting out of bed, putting the kettle on, dressing yourself, grabbing a chocolate bar snack, leaving the house and getting in your car. How many of these everyday things are connected to art? All of them. From the designs on your bedsheets and pyjamas, Textile design. To the  wallpaper, Interior design, to the kettle, Product design, to dressing yourself, Fashion design. Grabbing the chocolate bar, Graphic design. To leaving your house designed by an Architect and getting into your car designed by an Industrial designer. Think about some aspect of your life that hasn’t been designed, you will struggle. Your everyday life is surrounded by art and design and it affects your life without you realising it. All the jobs in bold can be studied at degree level. Art is not just about paintings in galleries, it is a way of life.