The IB Visual Arts course provides you with opportunities to explore Art on a number of levels:

You can produce work in drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, textiles, mixed media, electronic media and through utilizing found objects.

The course is not just about 'making things', rather it is a journey that is described in the following way in the IB subject guide:

'Artistic learning requires a high level of cognitive activity that is both intellectual and emotional. For students to communicate visually they must place themselves within a cultural context, or contexts, from which to discover and develop appropriate techniques. Through the visual arts, people acquire understandings which are unique in human development. Study of the visual arts allows students to discover ways in which to interpret and comment critically on the human condition.'

Studying the IB Visual Arts course allows students to develop a critical and intensely personal view of themselves in relation to the world.

The course aims to encourage:

• Personal growth and commitment through the study of art.
• A relationship between research and the production of art.

The IB Visual Arts course comprises of 2 parts:

How the course works...

Whichever option you do, there are 2 compulsory parts.

• Studio Work - Practical exploration and artistic production.
• Investigation Workbook - Independent critical research and analysis, visual and written, in more than one culture.

Remember that the Studio Work assessment criteria reward the pursuit of projects in a variety of media, the development of original ideas, the discovery of creative solutions and the acquisition of technical skills.

Work of quality which shows a maturity of artistic understanding at the end of the course is preferable to work which shows a superficial acquaintance with a large number of materials.

INVESTIGATION WORKBOOKS

PURPOSE: To encourage personal research and discovery, which function interactively with work in the studio.

Workbooks should include:

FUNCTION: Your workbook should contain visual and written information, including your own work (such as sketches and diagrams) and it should function as a working journal. Your WB should reflect your personal interests and may be a wide-ranging personal investigation into many topics or themes.

CONTENT:

• Personal reports of visits to museums and galleries, local artists / designers.
• Photographs, photocopies and cut-outs are acceptable if they are accompanied by explanations and critical comments.
• Relevant material from other disciplines (e.g. music, theatre, literature) may be included.
• Evidence of teacher / student dialogue.
• Information - recorded by writing, drawing, painting, collage etc. Sources should always be acknowledged.
• Workbooks are journals, which should reflect a personal approach or style; they are neither scrapbooks nor sketchbooks. Workbook entries should be dated and kept in chronological order; they must no1 be constructed artificially after the work has been completed. Your workbook should no1 be edited (for example by discarding the weaker beginnings or false starts), because this prevents the teacher and the examiner from assessing your personal progress during the course.

ASSESSMENT DETAILS...

The following points give you a broad overview on how you will be assessed. Further information will be given at the appropriate time.

EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT (60 %)

• Studio Work (HLA and SLA)
• Exhibition
• Discussion of SW (with an examiner)
• Research Workbooks (HLB and SLB)
• Discussion of WB's (with an examiner)

INTERNAL ASSESSMENT (40%)

• Studio Work (HLB and SLB)
• Research Workbooks (HLA and SLA)

CANDIDATE RECORD BOOKLETS
All students complete a Record Booklet, which is part of the moderation procedure. It includes:

• A personal statement (300 words maximum)
• Photographs of studio work
• Photocopied workbook pages