Visual Arts
Art Accomplishments
Pantego Christian Academy has an outstanding record of achievement at the TAPPS and ACSI Art Competitions. Student work has consistently received recognition for outstanding creativity, craftsmanship and talent. Further, the department has won top honors at the State TAPPS and ACSI Art Meets, eleven out of the past fourteen years.
The Legacy Lives On
Many of our students have chosen careers that began with the acceptance of their high school art portfolio. Students have attended colleges across the United States and majored in a variety of art related fields that include photography, illustration, graphic design, interior design, architecture, pottery, painting, art history, media production, fabric arts and more.
Elementary Art
The elementary art program introduces the student to a broad range of artists inspiring appreciation through total experience. Elementary art promotes understanding and enjoyment through observation, history, biography, music and hands on experience. Art activities in the studio include sketching, sculpture, portraiture, collage, Asian brushwork and more. These contain exploration in resist, wash, texture, shadow and light, symmetry, value, patterns, movement, abstract composition, realism, impressionism and others. Each art activity is geared toward individuality, creativity and success!
Elementary artists have attended the ballet, sketched animals at the Fort Worth Zoo and flowers at the Arboretum, observed the Mondrian exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art and built individual projects with the Home Depot to further enhance the curriculum.
Secondary Art Course Descriptions
Middle School Art
The main focus of the Middle School art program is to help students develop a firm understanding of the elements and principles of design through the creative exploration of different types of media. Students develop the technical skills that allow them to produce a wide variety of art and explore personal creative attributes. The Christian emphasis within the curriculum guides students in both their pursuit of making art and their understanding of arts’ inherent message in modern culture. The course includes studies in drawing, painting, mixed media, typography, graphic design, industrial design, printmaking and 3D art.
High School
Art 1
The Art 1 curriculum is designed to both challenge and encourage students in their creative pursuits by allowing exploration in a variety of media. The class is taught with a distinctively Biblical perspective and students are encouraged to evaluate the visual message and concepts inherent within the work. Students are given instruction in drawing, painting, design, photography, clay building, sculpture, mixed-media, printmaking and art history.
Advanced Art: Studio
Prerequisite: Art 1
This course includes an in-depth exploration into drawing, painting, mixed-media, design, printmaking, found object, assemblage and ceramics, with an individualized focus on either 2D or 3D. Students are encouraged to incorporate knowledge of materials, imagery and technique to develop a personal voice within their work. Art History and Art Appreciation play a vital role by allowing students to gain a greater perspective of art and its place in our Christian culture. Students are required to produce and maintain a visual and digital portfolio of all work completed during the course. Students who wish to further refine their art skills may take Advanced Placement Drawing, Design, or 3D. The course includes field trips to galleries, museums, and art festivals.
Advanced Art: Photography
Prerequisite: Art 1
This is a basic course in photography designed to offer experiences with a manual/auto focus camera. Various camera settings will be learned to offer greater creative and technical control. This course builds the foundation for visual literacy regarding both form and content of photographic images. The elements and principles of design as they relate to photographic composition are emphasized. Students learn framing within the viewfinder and explore various compositional principles. Students also learn to examine images critically through weekly critiques. Digital processing techniques are introduced using Adobe Photoshop.
Advanced Placement: Drawing, Design, or 3D
Prerequisites: Art 1 and Advanced Art
AP Studio Art will be open to students who have shown a true proficiency in art and would consider pursuing further study on the college level. The course would follow the requirements handed down by the Educational Testing Service in order to take the portfolio exam. Advanced Placement in any of the three areas, drawing, design, or 3D, provides students the opportunity to investigate three main components of their work – Quality, Breadth, and Concentration. These components represent an on-going process that, by the very nature of creative exploration, combines a continual pursuit of technical excellence, a problem solving approach to visual interpretations and a disciplined endeavor toward personal expression of ideas and interests.
Art Faculty
