Art, Craft & Design GCSE

Art, Craft & Design

The joy of Art, Craft & Design is that you don’t just study art, you make it. A broad and practical course designed to introduce you to a variety of visual art techniques and provides a space for you to respond creatively and visually to the world around you and your own interests. You will study a range of artists, craftspeople and practitioners from across the world to inspire and develop your own critical and creative responses.

Why St Mary's

In 2021, the St Mary's Visual Arts Department won a national Education Business Award, which recognises excellence in the visual arts.

Working in our dedicated Art and Photography Centre @ No.47 Bateman Street, with the support of our highly experienced teachers, you will explore a broad range of 2D and 3D media, including digital mediums such as Photoshop.

You will have access to exceptional facilities including our kiln, printing presses, digital art suite and three fully equipped visual arts classrooms.

Our enriched learning opportunities include:

  • A ‘en plein air’ drawing experience trip
  • In-school, regional and national competitions
  • Visits to galleries, museums, workshops and studios
  • University of Cambridge events and lectures
  • Community art initiatives such as Cows About Cambridge, Standing Tall and Jurassic Arcade
  • Leadership roles supporting Art Workshops for Year 7-9 pupils
  • Taster lessons for A Level Photography
  • Professional artists’ workshops – past examples include Mark Dutton, Fay Palkimas and Karin Eklund
  • Clubs including Art Club, Art History Club, Photography and Digital Art Club

Support and inspiration

GCSE students can access additional support and guidance from specialist teachers and technicians during lunchtimes, plus three afterschool sessions during the week. You are encouraged to make full use of the equipment, practical workshops and specialist spaces to explore and experiment with your personal ideas. Visiting galleries and exhibitions is strongly encouraged to help inspire your creative thoughts and engage in the art industry beyond the school curriculum. 

Course overview

Component 1: Personal Portfolio

Teacher led project in Year 10, delivered through practical workshops to teach you how to approach, research and visually respond to a theme. By the end of the project you will have the skills to refine your ideas into creative and visual outcomes.

A second project begins at the end of Year 10 and continues through to Christmas of Year 11. This project is more student-led and allows you to design and lead a project based on your personal interests and your creative strengths.

Each project within the coursework will cover the following:

•    Critical research and analysis of practitioners (both historical and contemporary)
•    Primary research and observations – including photography
•    Development and communication of ideas through drawing
•    Recording and evaluation of ideas and insights through written annotation
•    Experimentation and refinement using a variety of mediums.
 

Component 2: Externally Set Assignment

Set by the exam board and released in January, students choose a starting point and produce a succinct portfolio of work independently.  

This culminates in the production of a final response in a 10 hour controlled assessment period.

Assessment

Component 1: Personal Portfolio - 60% of total mark

Your porfolio will be internally set and assessed through controlled assessments during Year 10 and Year 11. It is externally moderated at the end of Year 11, as part of your final exhibition.

Component 2: Externally Set Assignment - 40% of total mark

This component is internally and externally moderated.

Each component is assessed separately; the final marks are combined to create an overall mark/200 which the exam board apply an overall grade to. Component 1 offers a maximum of 120 marks equally split into 30 marks across the four assessment objectives. Component 2 offers a maximum of 80 marks equally split across the four assessment objectives.


These assessment objectives are;
AO1 – Critical Understanding
AO2 – Creative Making
AO3 – Reflective Recording
AO4  - Personal Presentation

At the end of Year 11 both components are presented in an exhibition for the moderator to assess, and to celebrate our students creativity and success.
 

At a glance
You will enjoy this course if you ...
  • Enjoy working practically and visually
  • Have creativity and imagination
  • Enjoy managing your own projects
  • Are willing to take risks and experiment with an idea or materials
  • Enjoy studying and observing the work of others.

What our teachers say...

“Art allows students another channel by which they can communicate. For some students it can be the only real form of communication they feel comfortable with.

Visual Arts is an important and powerful communicative tool, it is a language, even though it is not subject to phonetics.”

"I prefer living in colour." David Hockney

Art has the power to record and communicate the underlying values of a society, documenting the communities we exist in or have existed in, and the history of cultural development and events. It helps us to know and reflect upon what it is to be human.

If you know how Art is created and executed – by understanding symbolism, colour, composition and more – you unlock another world. You gain an insight into creativity and a certain type of freedom with which to communicate with world. We study language to better our understanding of our environment and to connect as a society and art is no different.

Past students have gone on to study at leading universities including Central St Martins, Bath University, Bristol University, York University, Leeds Arts University, Norwich University of Arts, UCL, St Andrews, Loughborough University, Manchester University, London College of Communication and Southampton University.

Our alumnae are now pursuing successful careers in architecture, fashion, graphic design, fine art, sculpture, communication and advertising, curatorship, interior design, photography, illustration, urban planning and art history.

 

Our results

Achieve the results you need to fulfil your dreams.

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Beyond St Mary's

Our Senior School students go on to pursue exciting futures.

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