artists of the week!

The Art, Craft and Design department are delighted to announce their new Artists of the Week and to share their beautifully crafted work for us to enjoy in a glorious finale to this term!

It is the turn of our immensely talented Year 12 students to be celebrated, and those who have been selected and commended are: Derin, May, Minnie, Charlotte, Hebe and Molly. Well done all!

It is our pleasure to showcase their art in the lead montage and in the pictures that follow, and Head of Department Mrs Nanvazadeh provides the context and background to their work:

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”: Maya Angelou

Art, Craft, Design and Photography at A Level is about developing an adventurous approach to students’ practical skills and ideas.

Students will gain a deeper understanding of past and contemporary art, crafts and design in order to produce thought-provoking work, within sketchbooks, digitally and on a large scale.

The course is designed and assessed to document thought processes and show a journey of ideas, portrayed with various creative media.

Building upon strengths from the GCSE Fine Art/Photography, students develop skills which support their studies in every subject.

They improve their ability to research and analyse information, solve problems, and find and understand links and connections which will result in creative personal outcomes.

Painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, computer-aided design, animation, film, textiles and life-drawing are amongst the most common media employed, but candidates are encouraged to introduce any media that they feel necessary to their work.

Introduction to Component 1: Personal Investigation 

This is a practical investigation supported by written material. 

Students are required to conduct a practical investigation into an idea, issue, concept, or theme, supported by written material. The focus of the investigation must be identified independently by the student, and must lead to a finished outcome or a series of related finished outcomes. 

The investigation should be a coherent, in-depth study that demonstrates the student’s ability to construct and develop a sustained line of reasoning, from an initial starting point to a final realisation.

The investigation must show clear development from initial intentions to the final outcome or outcomes.

It must include evidence of the student’s ability to research and develop ideas and to relate their work in meaningful ways to relevant critical/contextual materials. The investigation must be informed by an aspect of contemporary or past practice of artists, photographers, designers, or craftspeople. 

The ultimate purpose of the Personal Study is to teach students something: to help them develop as an artist, and to strengthen their understanding of art-related issues.

The most successful Personal Studies communicate ‘a strong sense of involvement through personal enthusiasm and a commitment to sustain the investigation. 

This year, students have chosen themes as diverse as Time:

Beauty in Art:

and Distortion, Identity, and Fusion to explore:

As always, contextual influences are varied, and you will see their work inspired by artists such as Vanessa Lemen @vanessalemen, Cindy Press @cindypressart, and Branko Starčević @brankostarcevic.

Huge well done to all of our students this term - you have certainly shown and shined with your creativity!!

With huge thanks to our students and the department for sharing their wonderful work, and we cannot wait to celebrate next term's Artists of the Week! 

For rolling, up to date information on the great work of all of our students in the Department follow: 

Instagram: @urmston_grammar_art 

X:  @UGS_Art 

Pinterest: @urmstongrammar_art