An independent, college preparatory, co-ed, Episcopal Day School serves a community of students in grades 6-12.
Issue link: http://palmertrinityschool.uberflip.com/i/1473316
Purists might question the value of digital art, perhaps thinking it requires less skill than other art forms. It is important to note, then, that digital art-making requires the same understanding of the elements and principles of design and the fundamentals of creative image- making. It simply allows students a greater freedom with which to utilize these skills. When I began teaching at PTS in 2006, I was surprised to find that our laptop school had courses like drawing, painting and mixed media – but there was no digital art class. I set about formulating a curriculum centered on what I had been taught in art school, and began offering digital art the very next year. The new course focused mainly on two objectives: to learn basic digital photography skills and to make interesting and beautiful photo collages using Adobe Photoshop. When I became Chair of the department in 2013, I was excited to help the department grow and develop in many ways. We've transitioned from single-material courses to integrative classes such as Studio Art. The digital art class, however, remained relatively unchanged. Last year, two of my AP Art students who specialize in Digital Art won top prizes at the prestigious Beaux Arts Student Artist Showcase. JO SEPH P OL O ' 2 3 won Best in Show and JUL I A NN A C UE VO ' 2 1 won First Place in the Digital Art category. As I watched my AP Art students move away from traditional methods and materials, and more toward expressive art making through digital means, it became clear to me that our digital art class would need to "keep up with the times." Graphic design, CGI movies and video games are billion dollar industries that need creative people well-versed in their digital languages. Digital art is also profoundly altering the contemporary art scene—just look at the arrival of NFTs at Art Basel! Considering all of this, I asked some of my AP Art students to come and share their experiences and techniques with my Digital Art class, so that they could inspire those just starting out on the art journey. The Digital Art class now creates projects based on assignments normally created through traditional means, but instead of an analogue paint brush, they are using a digital one. top / "The Creator" by Joseph Polo '23, 2021 Beaux Arts SAS Linda Pallot Best in Show Award winner bottom / "Parallel," Juliana Cueva '21, 2021 Beaux Arts SAS First Place High School Digital Art winner 11