Art Curriculum

Master Techniques and Progressive Skills

The artists and designers have been chosen to meet the requirements of the national curriculum in a way that will enthuse our pupils and build upon their prior knowledge. Pupils are taught to develop their techniques, including their control and use of materials, with creativity, experimentation and increasing awareness of different kinds of art, craft and design.

Know Great Artists and Designers

Pupils produce creative work, exploring their ideas and recording their experiences. Pupils become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques. Pupils evaluate and analyse creative works using the language of art, craft and design. Pupils know about great artists, art movements, craft makers and designers and understand the historical and cultural development of their art forms.

Professional Artist

To achieve these exceptional outcomes, art and design is taught in half-termly blocks by a professional artist, with lessons supported by the class teacher. The artist shows pupils exactly how to use each media in depth step-by-step.

Art and Design and Technology

Art alternates with design and technology each half-term. There is synchronicity between the art and design and design and technology curriculum in terms of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement in Year 3. When Year 4 learn about structures in D&T they also learn about Zahar Hadid’s architecture and the importance of form. Technical drawings created when planning and designing products use proportion and perspective skills developed in art to create 3D renders in D&T.

Year 3

Autumn - First half term

Week 1

Outcome

To draw different marks using a variety of pencil grades

Week 2

Outcome

To create depth using shading with pencils

Week 3

Outcome

To create textures with a pencil

Week 4

Outcome

To draw a landscape with shading and texture techniques

Week 5

Outcome

To create different strokes using a paint brush

Week 6

Outcome

To present the relationship between colours on a colour wheel

Week 7

Outcome

To blend and shade using paint

Spring - First half term

Week 1

Outcome

To recall the key features of styles of portraiture

Week 2

Outcome

To draw facial features

Week 3

Outcome

To draw a face using traditional proportions

Week 4

Outcome

To recall the traditional proportions for a face and study a drawing

Week 5

Outcome

To paint a portrait with poster paints

Week 6

Outcome

To paint details with fine brushesTrip to National Gallery

Summer - First half term

Week 1

Outcome

To identify the features of the style of printing of William Morris

Week 2

Outcome

To draw symmetrical designs

Week 3

Outcome

To create a design onto a polystyrene plate for printing

Week 4

Outcome

To print using relief printing

Week 5

Outcome

To add further details to the print by amending a relief

Week 6

Outcome

To complete a relief print with a second print

Drawing Skills and Sketchbooks

Year 3 start by focusing on basic drawing skills. Pupils are taught to create sketch books to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas in subsequent years. Using a variety of pencils, they demonstrate their understanding of the concept of form and tone, experimenting with mark-making to build on their knowledge of shapes and textures.

Painting

Pupils are taught the importance of using the appropriate paintbrush and brushstrokes for the task. They also discuss the concept of colour theory, painting a colour wheel to show the difference between primary and secondary colours. Using all this knowledge they progress to shading and tonal painting.

Printing

Year 3 experiment with a variety of materials focusing particularly on printing. Previously, in KS 1 they concentrate on basic mono-printing with found objects. This progresses into Year 3 when they look at William Morris’s work and create a design using natural forms and symmetry which they transfer onto printing blocks and double print in repitition.

Portraits

Year 3 then use their knowledge of observational drawing to concentrate on portraiture focusing on the features and proportions of the face. They look at famous portrait paintings particularly Roy Lichtenstein’s ‘Marilyn Monroe’ and use this to inspire their own work.

Autumn

Core Skills and Colour Theory

Spring

Portraits

Artists: Da Vinci, Matisse, Lichtenstein

Summer

Printing

Artists: Hokusai, M.C Escher, Morris, Picasso

Year 4

Autumn - Second half term

Week 1

Outcome

To recall the traditional proportions of a face and features of portraiture

Week 2

Outcome

To draw the features of a face with changes to create individuality

Week 3

Outcome

To draw a face using the traditional proportions

Week 4

Outcome

To experiment with ways of shading a face

Week 5

Outcome

To analyse expressions and ways of creating individualityTrip to National Gallery

Week 6

Outcome

To paint features of the face with watercolours

Week 7

Outcome

To complete a portrait in watercolours

Spring - Second half term

Week 1

Outcome

To identify features of famous paintings in the history of still life

Week 2

Outcome

To draw and shade objects for still life

Week 3

Outcome

To prepare and draw a still life

Week 4

Outcome

To trace and analyse a still life drawing and rearrange to create a Cubist picture

Week 5

Outcome

To create a collage still life

Week 6

Outcome

To draw details and shading with pen

Summer - Second half term

Week 1

Outcome

To recall the names of famous sculptors and some features of their work

Week 2

Outcome

To make an observational drawing of natural forms

Week 3

Outcome

To design a sculpture based on the observational drawing

Week 4

Outcome

To make a paper maquette

Week 5

Outcome

To construct the first stage of a sculpture

Week 6

Outcome

To combine different elements to complete a sculpture

Concept of mood

Building on the knowledge acquired in Year 3, Year 4 revisit portraiture focusing on more realistic shading of the face and the concept of expression and mood. They then study the portraits of the well-known artist, Chris Offilli, noting his cultural influences and how they impact on his work. They use their observations to influence their final painting.

Still Life

Year 4 move on to a very popular aspect in art, the still life. Here, they apply their knowledge of drawing and shading objects but now they have to be aware of the relationship between the objects and draw them accurately in relation to each other. They look at the still life collages of artists Pablo Picasso and George Braque. Using a variety of coloured and textured papers, they create their own collage influenced by these cubist artists.

Shading

Building on the knowledge acquired in Year 3, Year 4 revisit portraiture focusing on more realistic shading of the face. They then study the portraits of the well-known artist, Chris Offilli, noting his cultural influences and how they impact on his work. They use their observations to influence their final painting.

Sculpture

Building on the children’s emerging awareness of texture and three-dimensional form starting with collage, they look at a range of sculptures by famous sculptors. Drawing on the natural world for inspiration, they will design and create a paper sculpture influenced by Barbara Hepworth’s ‘Orpheus’.

Autumn

Portraits

Artists: Vermeer, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Ofilli

Spring

Still Life

Artists: Picasso, Cezanne

Summer

Sculpture

Artists: Michelangelo, Rodin, Brancusi, Degas, Hepworth

Year 5

Autumn - Second half term

Week 1

Outcome

To compare style of Dutch Masters to Impressionists

Week 2

Outcome

To recall the proportions of the human figure for drawing

Week 3

Outcome

To analyse drawings of people in various positions

Week 4

Outcome

To analyse, draw and shade clothing on figures

Week 5

Outcome

To draw and paint a clothed figure

Week 6

Outcome

To paint details and textures using fine brushstrokes with watercolours

Week 7

Outcome

To shade and add detail to a figure drawing with pen lines

Spring - Second half term

Week 1

Outcome

To analyse and compare famous artists’ treatment of landscapes

Week 2

Outcome

To analyse the work of David Hockney and draw various elements of a landscape

Week 3

Outcome

To draw a landscape in the style of David Hockney

Week 4

Outcome

To paint a background tonally with a limited palette of poster paints

Week 5

Outcome

To paint the foreground of a landscape

Week 6

Outcome

To add textural details to a landscape

Summer - Second half term

Week 1

Outcome

To inspect the work of famous artists

Week 2

Outcome

To make an observational drawing of natural forms

Week 3

Outcome

To enlarge a picture with a viewfinder

Week 4

Outcome

To shade tonally with poster paint

Week 5

Outcome

To paint an enlarged picture

Week 6

Outcome

To add detail to complete a painting

The Human Figure

Having concentrated on portraiture in Year 4, Year 5 children progress to drawing the entire human figure. They look at various artists’ depictions of the figure and how the treatment and purpose for painting figures have changed through history.

Observational Drawings of People

They create observational drawings of people in various poses focusing particularly on the proportions. Using these preparatory sketches, they create a painting influenced by Paul Cezanne’s ‘Picnic’ of figures in a landscape which they paint with watercolours.

Landscapes

Having briefly touched on landscapes, Year 5 study an iconic British artist, David Hockney and his interpretations of various landscapes using traditional materials and technology. They look at perspective, colour, tone and texture in the art and design. Using his painting ‘Garrowby Hill’ as inspiration they will create a landscape with a limited palette of poster paint concentrating on receding and advancing colours to enhance the perspective element, finally adding layered texture.

Computer Generated Art

There are links with the Year 5 computing curriculum which uses design software to recreate Maurits Escher’s work on repeating objects and patterns, especially his tessellations and Bridget Riley’s work on overlapping art and her restricted colour palette. Geometric patterns used in Islamic art, especially in the construction and design of mosques links with art and design as well as RE as Year 5 focus in the Autumn term on Islam and visit a mosque. Pupils create a virtual gallery in computing to exhibit their computer generated artwork.

Detailed Observational Drawings

As landscapes are made up of so many natural elements, the children now look at those more closely. They create detailed observational drawings of plants and animals. Using these sketches the children will paint a picture influenced by ‘Exotic landscape with monkeys and parrot’ by Henri Rousseau which illustrates the huge range of shapes, colours and textures in nature.

Autumn

Figure Drawing

Artists: Dutch Golden Age, Impressionists

Spring

Landscapes

Artists: Turner, Constable, Van Gogh, Hockney

Summer

Natural Forms

Rousseau, Kahlo, O’Keefe, Monet

Year 6

Autumn - First half term

Week 1

Outcome

To recall the proportions of the human figure for drawing

Week 2

Outcome

To inspect the work of Henry Moore

Week 3

Outcome

To draw people in different positions

Week 4

Outcome

To describe the steps to create one-point perspective

Week 5

Outcome

To draw a group of figures with some in front of others

Week 6

Outcome

To shade and create emphasis in shading using wax crayons

Week 7

Outcome

To create sepia tones with watercolours over wax drawings

Spring - First half term

Week 1

Outcome

To describe the style, and landscapes of Edward Hopper

Week 2

Outcome

To sketch lighthouses

Week 3

Outcome

To draw a seascape in the style of Hopper on cartridge paper

Week 4

Outcome

To practise and experiment with watercolour effects for sea, hills and sky

Week 5

Outcome

To paint the background elements of a landscape

Week 6

Outcome

To paint to complete a painting

Summer - First half term

Week 1

Outcome

To recall the names of the most famous architects and features of key architectural styles

Week 2

Outcome

To analyse and sketch the key visual features of building

Week 3

Outcome

To sketch a design for a building combining features of architectural styles

Week 4

Outcome

To paint a design of a building with watercolours

Week 5

Outcome

To details to the illustration of a building with pen

Week 6

Outcome

To analyse various forms of perspective

Perspective and Figure Drawing

In Year 6, the children combine their knowledge of perspective and figure drawing to create a picture based on Henry Moore’s wartime art, depicting people sheltering in the underground in London during bomb raids. They discuss the emotions that must have influenced these pictures and how the artist shows this. Using this information, they create their own pictures of people in this situation. They use mixed media in their final piece.

Art History

Our pupils are able to appreciate and discuss artworks confidently having the knowledge and understanding of the history of it. They learn how meaning is communicated in images and artefacts through exploring Art History which is embedded within the curriculum.

Watercolours

Having used watercolours in previous years, the children in Year 6 now experiment with different watercolour techniques and how to create various effects including how to paint rocks, sea, sky and buildings. They look at the work of American realist painter, Edward Hopper and his paintings of lighthouses. Researching different lighthouses and creating preparatory sketches. Using their sketches and watercolour techniques, they create a final piece.

Architecture

Finally, having drawn buildings in perspective for their lighthouses, Year 6 looks at the history of architecture right up to the present day. Studying the buildings themselves and all the details that distinguish one period from another, they sketch windows and doors and any other decorative elements typical of a particular period. These evaluative skills are also used in design and technology projects to distinguish between different design periods. They then look at the buildings designed by a range of contemporary architects, particularly Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd-Wright, Frank Gehry and Zahar Hadid. Using this knowledge, they design their own preliminary watercolour sketches of a building with its surroundings.

Autumn

Figure Drawing

Artists: Henry Moore

Spring

Landscapes

Artists: Edward Hopper, Impressionists

Summer

Architecture

Styles: Baroque, Neo Classical, Modernism