Visual Arts

The visual arts program at St. Andrew's seeks to foster an understanding and appreciation of drawing, painting, ceramics, photography, and film, while also encouraging students to discover and pursue interests in any or all of these art forms, and to develop personally as adventurous, expressive, and creative individuals. Our visual arts courses provide both formal training and instruction in the theoretical, historical and cultural background of each discipline. This intensive training and instruction, combined with close contact with established faculty artists who are continually pursuing their own artistic practices, allows the student grow in their artistic understanding, creative capabilities, and tendency toward free expression. Our master-apprentice teaching model for the visual arts allows our students to gain a strong sense of the arts as a means for investigating and celebrating the world in which they live.

An additional fee may be charged for visual arts classes to help defray the cost of materials.

Read more about the individual visual arts disciplines offered at St. Andrew's on the Arts section of our website.

Visual Arts Courses

Studio Art

Foundations in Visual Arts

Open to ALL Forms

Semester-long, Half-credit Elective

The Foundations of Visual Arts course is designed to introduce III Form students to the materials, techniques, language, concepts and processes of making, using, and thinking about art. The course aims to keep a healthy balance between formal concepts, hands-on skills, imagination, and critical thinking.

Students will be introduced to fundamental elements of visual language through a variety of exercises, discussions, and lectures, utilizing an array of materials and techniques. This might include drawing, painting, 3D experiments, and photography. Ultimately, the course is designed to prepare students for higher level coursework in any of the visual arts offered at St. Andrew’s.

The principal context for the courses is current practices in contemporary art/design, which is a vast arena of diverse styles, techniques, materials, subjects, forms, purposes, and aesthetic traditions. Thus developing a “foundation” in art and design entails developing an awareness of contemporary art-making practices. Through experimentation and examining the terms and concepts of visual artists, students will be challenged to create imaginative and open responses to the question of how they connect visually to the world at large.

Drawing 1

Drawing 2

Open to IV, V, VI Form students

Semester-long, Half-credit Elective

Prerequisite: Drawing 1 or instructor permission

Students work with a variety of media that will build upon skills that were previously acquired in Drawing 1. The language of value and form will continue to be explored with tools such as colored pastels, India ink, and charcoal. Students will then begin to pursue assignments of their own choosing, looking to construct their own visual ideas as they assemble a portfolio of images.

Painting 1

Painting 2

Open to IV, V, VI Form students

Semester-long, Half-credit Elective

Prerequisite: Painting 1 or instructor permission

Students will work through a series of assignments that explore composition, color, brushwork, and value range. The ultimate goal of Painting 2 is for students to develop and pursue their own independent ideas in a portfolio of original images. Gouache, watercolor, and oil paint will all be options for medium as students develop their own artistic voice.

Printmaking 1: Screenprinting

Open to ALL students

Semester-long, Half-credit Elective

The medium of printmaking provides an arena of creativity where photography, drawing, design, collage, and painting collide. While the term printmaking refers to a myriad of techniques, this course will focus on screenprinting. The art of screenprinting, or silkscreening, is a fun way to create posters, cards, t-shirts, or even fine art prints. Foundational concepts of art and elements of design will be taught in this class, and students will have a chance to put their skills to work as they design and produce posters for school events around campus.

Artist we will look at include: Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Shepard Fairey, Blexbolex, and Jay Ryan.

Advanced Study in Drawing & Painting

Open to VI Form students

Yearlong course

Prerequisite: Drawing 1 or Painting 1, or instructor permission

This yearlong course is an intensive studio class designed for VI Form students interested in investigating advanced methods and concepts central to the visual arts. Students concentrate on hands-on studio work with individual faculty in one of the visual arts disciplines (painting, ceramics, photography, or film), and come together for lectures and discussions of contemporary issues in art, practical demonstrations, such as portfolio development, and critiques. Coordinated, thematic assignments stimulate comparative discussions among visual art disciplines as in an advanced fine arts seminar.

Art History (not offered in 2022-2023)

Open to IV, V, VI Form students

Semester-long half-credit elective

Does art matter? Why do we study art, and its history? In what ways does art communicate, and to whom? How does a history of art objects help us understand different cultures and moments in time? How can we understand an object in a global context? How can art create community, capture memory, and support or resist power? How can we engage productively with the structures of the art world?

This introductory course is a thematic examination of selected moments in the history of art and cultural production across time and space. Case studies may cover any of the following geographic areas: Asia, Africa, Europe, the Americas, and the Pacific. Using an overall chronological framework that spans a significant period of history, the class will employ comparative and transnational approaches to examine art objects within (and across) their historical, socio-political, cultural, and religious contexts. Themes may include: the effects of globalization and trade; collecting, ownership, and markets; the interplay of religious and political values; visual constructions of power and identity; frameworks for landscape and space; the formation (and interrogation) of a canon; style and the role of the artist in society. Students will develop visual, verbal, analytic, and written skills through class discussion, student projects, visual, digital and written assessments.

Photography and Film Studies

Film Studies 1: Intro to Film

open to all Forms

Semester-Long Half-credit elective

Introduction to Film is for students who want to experience the creative process of filmmaking. The basic elements and grammar of film are explored including light, color, composition, and editing. Students will complete a series of film and editing projects as they practice their skills. While this course serves as a foundation in the cinematographic and editorial skills required to create a film, it also uncovers the narrative ingredients required to create engaging cinematic stories. Early cinema, current blockbusters, documentaries, and commercials are viewed for inspiration and historical value. Student projects are given ample time in class for shooting and editing.

Film Studies: Cinematography & Lighting

Open to IV, V, VI Form students

Semester-Long Half-Credit Elective

Prerequisite: Film Studies 1 or instructor permission

Progressing from Film Studies 1, students explore further techniques in cinematography by developing and practicing with more advanced camera technique, working with filters and controllers, and a wider range of lenses. Students will also be introduced to technical and artistic lighting styles and techniques to further enhance their visual images. Students will complete several works demonstrating proficiency with both camera and lighting.

Film Studies: Post-Production Techniques

Open to IV, V, VI Form students

Semester-Long Half-Credit Elective

Prerequisite: Film Studies 1 or instructor permission

The post-production class focuses on everything that happens with footage after the shoot. The class will focus on editing, color grading, visual effects, and sound production. Using footage from student and professional shoots, students will learn to edit for continuity and montage, learn to apply visual effects to repair and enhance scenes, and to understand the importance and best techniques of sound design and mixing.

Advanced Study in Film

Open to VI Form students

Prerequisite: Film Studies 1

Yearlong course

The Advanced Study in Film course is a year-long intensive studio class designed for VI Form students. By working on multiple projects from conception to delivery, the students refine their cinematography, production, and editing techniques in a holistic format. Students will utilize advanced lighting and sound techniques and equipment as well as a more developed editing and color grading process. Other major projects may involve exploratory video essays on film and the development of an original script.

Photography 1

Open to IV, V, VI Form students

Semester-Long Half-credit elective

This foundational course introduces students to the medium of photography by focusing on camera controls, composition, and storytelling. Starting with the basics, students learn how to utilize a digital SLR camera and edit using Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. Students hone their photographic voice in an open critique setting and learn to edit their work by compiling a comprehensive final portfolio. A study of historical and contemporary photography complements practical exercise and independent projects. No prior experience is required.

Photography 2: Darkroom & Color Film

open to IV, V, VI Form Students

Semester-Long Half-Credit Elective

Prerequisite: Photo 1

This course explores all aspects of traditional wet-lab photography. We will learn about, and experiment with, small, medium, and large format film cameras. Students will learn how to work with the wide variety of chemicals involved in the creation of analog photographic materials, and discover how many contemporary artists are reinventing the past and finding inspiration in these beautiful techniques. Most importantly, student will walk away with a portfolio of beautiful, unique prints from a wide array of fine art photographic processes.

Photography 2: The Lyrical Image—Creating Narrative Through Photographs

Open to V & VI Form students

Semester-long, Half-Credit Elective

Prerequisite: Photo 1

Good photographs show us something of the world around us; great photographs show us something about ourselves. Using the tools we have as photographers, and your imagination, we will work to transform the ordinary world we see around us into a lyrical and transcendental image. As poets use the language of metaphor and allegory, so you will learn to recognize motifs in your own work to create images rich in symbolism. This course will challenge you to see past the surface of the image and discover how your own personal narrative connects with the broader world.

Advanced Study in Photography

open to VI Form students

Two semesters of a Photo class, one of which must be photo 1

Yearlong course

This yearlong course is an intensive studio art (in this case, photography) class designed for VI Form students interested in investigating advanced methods and concepts central to the visual arts. Students concentrate on hands-on studio work with individual faculty in one of the visual arts disciplines (painting, photography, sculpture, or film), and come together for lectures and discussions of contemporary issues in art, practical demonstrations, such as portfolio development, and critiques. Coordinated, thematic assignments stimulate comparative discussions among visual art disciplines as in an advanced collegiate fine arts seminar.