Art can embody some of the highest forms of human creativity.  Our Art & Design curriculum at Manor Croft Academy is bold, brave, ambitious and creative.

INTENT:

Our curriculum is designed to ensure that all our students are able to achieve and make progress throughout KS3 and into KS4 and beyond.  At Manor Croft Academy we enable students to create and imagine, express and experiment, adapt and develop.  We aim to engage, inspire and challenge our students, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to appreciate art whilst experimenting, inventing and creating their own works of art.

We designed the curriculum at Manor Croft so that students can start with the foundation of the formal elements and then refine, develop and build upon their skills as the key stages progress. We place a high value upon the importance of drawing, making and experimenting.  Students investigate ideas through visual language, exploring techniques, materials and processes through their own practical work.  As student’s progress throughout KS3 they will be able to think critically and develop a more rigorous understanding of Art, Design and the world around them.  At KS4, students are encouraged to think as an artist and be creative, take risks, be experimental and ambitious with their sustained units of work.

IMPLEMENTATION:

The Art & Technology faculty encompasses a wide variety of disciplines at KS3 that allows students to delve into and explore a multi-specialism carousel, with a range of dedicated teaching staff, over 3 years. The areas we cover at KS3 are:

Within each area, students will research and investigate cultures, artists, designers, sculptors and photographers that will inspire and add context to their understanding and work they produce.  At Manor Croft, starting in Year 7, we embed the concept of assignment themes, as students would be expected to work this way in KS4.  Our themes are:

We believe that working this way introduces the students to approaching projects and themes in a range of ways, utilising a vast array or materials, techniques and processes.  We also aim to embed Memorable Moments and trips into our schemes of work that help inspire and engage students in the assignments and at KS4.  These visits provide a wealth of opportunities to capture vital primary source images and incomparable exposure to famous and important works of art.

At Manor Croft, our aim is to sculpt passionate and reflective pupils through our curriculum. It will guide them into having a brave approach when developing skills with media and their techniques, using the physical act of art as a tool for looking, experiencing and learning.  Understanding and applying the formal elements of art across all disciplines: line, shape, form, tone, texture, pattern, colour and space, are vital in underpinning creative work and successful students and this is reinforced throughout the entire curriculum at KS3 and 4.

IMPACT:

Ultimately, we are committed to nurturing resilient, ambitious and curious art & design students, who have a new found appreciation and love for the subjects, who will embed creativity along their educational journey, in their own futures, careers and everyday life.

ART DEPARTMENT STAFF: 

Head of Department – Mr Graham Ward 

Teacher of Textiles – Mrs H Hinchliffe 

Teacher of Art & Photography – Miss N Todd

Teacher of Photography – Mrs J Laverick 

Teacher of Media & Computing – Mr M Hodkinson 

What we do at KS3 (in brief): 

Year 7  

Art: 

Influence – Mark Hearld, York based Illustrator & Artist, British Wildlife 

Formal Elements, Colour Theory, Mark Making, Mixed Media, Drawing, Foam Printing 

3D/Ceramics: 

Influence – Dwight Davidson, American Sculptor, Insects 

Mark Making, Colour, Collage, Design, Pattern, Ceramics – Slab & Relief 

Textiles: 

Influence – Sophie Standing, British Textile & Embroidery Artist, Animals 

Transfer Paint Print, Pattern, Hand-Embellishment, Colour, Scale 

Digital Art: 

Influences – Arne Fredriksen, Ronald Ong, Eduardo Martinez Digital Artists, Surrealism, Animals 

ICT Basics, Digital Image manipulation, Effective work storage, Layering, Colour, Photoshop Skills 

Year 8  

Art: 

Influence – Kate Watkins, British Printmaker, Seashells, Seas & Oceans 

Formal Elements, Line, Contour Drawing, mixed media drawing processes, presentation, Lino Printing, Repeat Pattern 

3D/Ceramics: 

Influence – Kate Malone, British Ceramicist, Sea Creatures, Fish 

Artist Research, Drawing and design, Recording and refinement, Ceramics – Thumb-pot, Slab & Coil 

Textiles: 

Influence – Laura Slater, Sea Creatures 

Stencil, Colour, Pattern, Hand Embellishment 

Digital Art: 

Influences – Otis Porrit, Pierre Corbu, Giacomo Costa – International Digital Artists, Structures 

ICT Basics, Digital Image manipulation, Effective work storage, Layering, Perspective drawing, Photoshop Skills 

Year 9  

Art: 

Influence – Human Form, Portraits, Guy Denning, Loui Jover, DAIN 

Portrait drawing, Observing & Recording, Proportion, Sources and Influences, Artist research & Presentation, Materials, Techniques & Processes, Mixed Media 

3D/Ceramics: 

Influence – Antony Gormley, British Sculptor, Human Form 

Artist Research, Drawing and design, 3D material Exploration, Wood, Wire, Card, Clay. 

Textiles: 

Influence – Richard Kilroy, British Fashion Illustration, Human Form 

Fashion Illustration, Dye Techniques, Trace Monoprint, Hand Embroidery, Human Form 

Digital Art: 

Influences – Portrait Photography, David Hockney, Christoffer Relander, Rocio Montoya etc 

Using DSLR Cameras, Taking & Composing photos, Lighting, Digital Image manipulation, Effective work storage, Layering, Photoshop Skills 

What we do at KS4 (in brief): 

All our Art & Design Courses at MCA are 2-year AQA Art courses. We currently offer FINE ART, TEXTILES & PHOTOGRAPHY. These courses are structured with 60% Coursework Portfolio and 40% Externally Set Task. We also offer the Cambridge OCR Creative iMedia course that runs alongside the other creative subjects, looking at TV, Film and Media Design. 

Depending on their selected pathway, students can pick one or more combination of each subject, except from FINE ART & TEXTILES. Either of these courses can be accompanied by any other course but cannot be selected together. 

Our KS4 courses allow students to be creative, experimental, expressive, and independent within the creative arts across multiple disciplines. Students are expected to produce inspired, high-quality work, using a vast array or materials, techniques, and processes, and gaining inspiration from a wide range of artists, cultures, and practitioners.