THE AIMS & OBJECTIVES
OF THE COURSE

AIMS (taken from the AQA specification)
The Aims identify the educational purposes of 'AS' and 'A' level Art and Design. They are the same for 'AS' and 'A' level.

The course is designed to encourage the development of:

Intelligence, imagination, creative and intuitive powers.

Investigative, analytical, experimental, practical, technical and expressive skills, aesthetic understanding and critical judgements.

An understanding of the interrelationships between art, craft and design and an awareness of the contexts in which they operate.

Knowledge and understanding of art, craft and design in contemporary society and in other times and cultures.

SO WHAT DOES ALL THIS REALLY MEAN?
It may well sound complicated but it's all really quite simple. Let's assume that the first unit has asked us to explore STILL LIFE. How do these aims and assessment objectives apply?

The best place to start would be a quick tour through some good books. We could recommend;

"The Story of Art" by E.H.Gombrich (Phaidon) 1950 - latest print 1995.
ISBN 0 7148 3355 x (hardback)
ISBN 0 7148 3247 2 (paperback)
This is a really good survey book, which recreates the timeline of art through the ages. It's not the easiest read but contains a great deal of information.
Out of this book you could select some images of classical Still life work. Read about the artists and find out why and how they painted the works.
This sort of investigative works helps the student to understand the subject and begin to put their own interpretation on the theme.

Another good book, to help you begin to understand the requirements of the course would be;
"Visual Theory" edited by Norman Bryson, Michael Ann Holly & Keith Moxey (Polity) 1996.
This book will open your eyes to visual images, how their constructed and why. When you understand the elements of a successful piece of work you can begin to apply them in your own.

Another classic worth reading is;

"Ways of Seeing" by John Berger (Penguin) 1972.
This is used by every art college in the country and is a little easier to read. A small book, it contains a great deal of information on how we look at images and the world around us.

So all these books would supply information to comply with the second part of the Assessment Objectives.

Your application of this knowledge, the way you interpret the images you wish to use as source for your enquiries, provides you with the content for the first part of the Assessment Objectives.

The development of your work, the annotation that explains it and how it will develop, provides you with the third element of the Assessment Objectives.

And Finally, all the above, brought together within your own interpretation of the subject, provides the basis of the final Assessment Objective.

We are grateful for the support and encouragement from Education & Learning Wales

It's never too late to learn...

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OTHER BOOKS:

"The Story of Modern Art" by Norbert Lynton (Phaidon) 1996.
ISBN 0 7148 2422 4 (paperback)

"The Shock of the New" by Robert Hughes (Thames & Hudson) 1980
ISBN 0 500 27582 or 3

"Certain Welsh Artists" compiled by Iwan Bala (Seren) 1999
ISBN
(This help to suggest Welsh Artists as source material)

"The Visual Culture of Wales" - Industrial Society by Peter Lord (University of Wales Press) 1998

"Welsh Artists Talking" to Tony Curtis

ASSESSMENT OBJECTIVES (taken from the AQA specification)
Candidates will be expected to demonstrate a response to all of the assessment objectives in each unit of assessment of the examination.
(A student is expected to show an ability to think about the subject and produce their own original interpretation of that set subject).
The assessment objectives for 'AS' and 'A2' are the same.
Candidates should be able to:

Record observations, experiences, ideas, information and insights in visual and other forms, appropriate to intentions.

Anal yse and evaluate critically sources such as images, objects, artefacts and texts, showing understanding of purposes, meanings and contexts.

Develop ideas through sustained investigations and exploration, selecting and using materials, processes and resources, identifying and interpreting relationships and analysing methods and outcomes.

Present a personal, coherenet and informed response, realising intentions, and articulating and explaining connections with the work of others.

So, what if the examining board set a subject like 'industry' , how would you begin to appraoch the subject?

TIP: Try thinking laterally - come at it from a different direction. Scribble your thoughts onto a sheet of paper (it's called 'brainstorming') and then try and pick out the best ideas.

TAKE 5 minutes to try and think of a personal response to the subject of 'INDUSTRY' then click on the link below to check your idea against a couple of our own.

'INDUSTRY' - BRAINSTORMING SUGGESTIONS

The 'AS' element of the course

The 'A2' element of the course