Visual Art /

Welcome from the Department Chair

Welcome to Archbishop Carroll High School’s Visual Art Department, where we believe every student is an artist!  Our joy is to help unleash the creative spirit within all of our students.  Carroll’s art program is designed to fulfill all the needs and interests of our young artists by offering an array of art courses that range from Ceramics, Digital Photography, and Online Art Appreciation; to Creative Drawing and Design, Studio Art, and Advanced Placement Art.  Students of all ability levels can find a course to enjoy!

Carroll also offers an outstanding advanced art program that pushes students to their highest potential.  Ample time is spent mastering the technical skills needed within each medium to build a strong foundation for students to creatively expand upon later in Advanced Placement Art.  Students learn mediums like charcoal, pastel, ink, watercolor, acrylic and oil paint, digital media, and many more.  It is our mission to provide students every opportunity to succeed and grow as artists.  Our hope is that every student who takes an art class at Carroll develops a love and appreciation for art and discovers an artistic side they may have never known they had!

Course Offerings

Creative Drawing

This course is for the student who wants to learn how to draw or improve their doodling skills.  A variety of media will be explored including pencil, charcoal, ink, pastels, and digital art.  An emphasis will be placed on the elements of design. This class is great for the beginning artist.

Creative Design

This course will help the beginning artist expand his/her creative talents in new and exciting ways.  A variety of media will be explored including painting, printmaking, drawing, digital media, and more. The principles of design will be emphasized.

Studio Art I

Prerequisite: Creative Design, Creative Drawing, and teacher recommendation

This course will improve student confidence in artistic skills and help develop a personal style.  A higher level of artistic challenges with materials and subject matter will be explored.  Examples are observational and digital drawings, as well as basic figure animation manipulation.  Elements and principles of design will be emphasized. This class is for the young artist who truly wants a more in-depth art experience.

Studio Art II

Prerequisite: Creative Drawing, Creative Design, Studio Art I, and teacher recommendation

This course is for the student wanting to experience more challenging technique and creative ideas.  Elements and principles of design are emphasized in this class.  Students will get experience with painting, drawing, and Adobe Photoshop.

Ceramics/Sculpture I

This course will introduce the student to basic techniques of hand building in pottery and sculpture from various cultures.  Simple glazing and sculpture surface finishing will be included.

Ceramics/Sculpture II

Prerequisite: 3.0 or above in Ceramics/Sculpture

This clay course is a continuation of Ceramics/Sculpture I.  The student will experience a more challenging variety of subject matter (teapots, vases, animals, etc.) and glazing techniques.

Digital Photography and Art

No drawing ability is needed to create computer graphics, manipulate personal photographs, create collages, or take artistic photographs.  This course engages the student with real-world projects that combine the computer and the art of photography.  The course will focus on software skills and features for creating the projects using Adobe Photoshop.  The student will learn digital techniques like layering, transferring, scanning, merging, and applying filters to create exciting new pieces of art from personal photographs.  Student projects can include a visual journal manipulating their own photographs, posters, a ceramic tile design, a memory box, a digital zentangle, in addition to the fine art of photography.  All students will need access to a digital camera.

Online Art Appreciation

The overall purpose of this course is to provide the student with a basic understanding and appreciation of the story of art.  The course uses the formal elements and principles of design to examine a wide variety of both two- and three-dimensional art, utilizing a textbook and PowerPoint reviews.  This course will be offered during October-March.

Advanced Placement Courses

Advanced Placement Studio Art 2-D Design 501/502

Prerequisite: Teacher recommendation

This is a four-semester program designed for the highly motivated student who is seriously interested in the study of art.  The 2-D Design Portfolio involves demonstrating conscious and deliberate applications of design issues using a variety of forms.  Graphic design, digital imaging, photography, collage, fabric design, illustration, typography, weaving, painting, and printmaking could qualify as forms used to address design issues.  Students will have the opportunity to submit a portfolio of artwork for evaluation at the end of the course.  The College AP Studio Art Board will evaluate the portfolio to determine if freshman college credits are earned (The College Board requires a fee for evaluation of portfolio).

Advanced Placement Studio Art Drawing 601/602

Prerequisite: Teacher recommendation

This is a program designed for the highly motivated student who is seriously interested in the study of art.  The Drawing Portfolio is designed to address a broad interpretation of drawing issues such as painting, printmaking, studies for sculpture, some forms of design, abstract, and observational works.  Students will be given the opportunity to submit a portfolio of artwork for evaluation at the end of the course.  The College AP Studio Art Board will evaluate the portfolio to determine if freshman college credits are earned (College Board requires a fee for evaluation of portfolio).