I want to first welcome you to the International Baccalaureate Visual Arts Program. This will be an exciting set of classes that will help challenge your artistic, research, and time management skills. 

Course Syllabus:

Prerequisites: Design Fundamentals + one other Art Dept Course and permission from the art instructors

Course Description: 

IBH1: Higher level art students in the first year of their two year commitment will begin the process of producing a highly personal record of expression and research following the guidelines of the International Baccalaureate program. Studio skills and journaling skills will be emphasized, with proper documentation of research, project plans and processes recorded in the students journal. The work you do in the first year is crucial to building successful final program assessments for the end of your senior year. Those assessment include:

• Comparative Study: An assessment where the student compares the artwork of three different artists by the means of its ascetics, context, function, purpose, and historical significance. You will then compare your own work to that of the different artists' artworks. 

• Process Portfolio: A significant assessment that looks at the process a student goes through to create a work of art. This process must include the project plan, the research done, the experiments taken, the techniques learned and applied, and finally the critique of the final piece. 

• Exhibition: This assessment is the culmination of all your work over the two years. The student will curate their own show, display it for Mr. Zeimet to grade, and then write about why they chose the pieces and layout for the show in a Curatorial Rationale.

Course Outline:

• There will be three (3) projects in Semester 1 and four (4) projects in Semester 2. Each project will be broken up into sections that include: research and planning, experimentation and art-making, and final presentation and critique. 

  • Research and Planning: Each project will begin with in depth project plan based on the work of a well known artist. In your first semester, you will research a new artist each project and critique one of their works. In the second semester, you will do this for Projects 4 and 6 only. This research and planning will be part of your final Process Portfolio and Comparative Study that is sent into IB at the end of your senior year. 

  • Experimentation and Art-making: This might be the MOST important part of making artwork in IB Art and the MOST different from your other classes. Each student will keep a detailed and up-to-date journal (process pages) to note their progress of the project with different experimentation and test runs before and during the making of their final project. You will also need to document through photos your process of the project and any changes or challenges you face. This documentation is a crucial part of your final Process Portfolio. This process pages must be documented through writing, drawings, and photographs. This section is part of the Process Portfolio and the final Exhibition. 

  • Present & Critique: This is when the student, the instructor, and their peers assess how well a piece of artwork turned out. The student will self-reflect on what worked, what didn't work, and what they want to improve on for the next work of art. Each piece will be critiqued by the instructor and at times by the students' peers. This is NOT a negative experience, it can be a great time to learn and grow as an artist. This section will be used for the Process Portfolio, Comparative Study and the Exhibition.  

Field Trips

Each student is required to participate in the 1-2 field trips each year. These trips could include visiting colleges and universities, art museums or galleries, and outdoor walks to draw in nature.