Wondering how to decide which classes to take next year? Fear not! Mrs. Hamele-Szabo and Mr. Korb have an incredible resource to help you navigate the FAHS Art Department.

Do you wish you had more time in your day to explore your creative side? Art Foundations provides an overview of several artistic disciplines both two and three-dimensional. Students of all levels will explore drawing, painting, sculpture, metals, and digital art. Students will be encouraged to develop work that promotes personal expression, creativity, craftsmanship, techniques. This class focuses on establishing a strong understanding of the elements of art and principles of design while also teaching students to become careful observers of the world around them. Projects in this class are designed to promote higher-level thinking through problem-solving while enjoying a hands-on relaxed environment.

A great class for students who enjoy dabbling and want to learn more about this interesting and varied subject! Introduction to Painting allows students to tour the world of art history as we study the masterpieces of Picasso, Van Gogh, Warhol, and many more. Students will learn to identify major movements in art while experimenting with both realism and abstraction. Students will be introduced to a variety of media including acrylic, oil, watercolor, as well as digital painting and graphic design. This course invites students to make their mark!

In Art Metals students will be introduced to a variety of jewelry-making techniques (sawing, piercing, soldering, forming, etc) to create jewelry or wearable metal objects. We will also learn about shibori and tie-dye techniques in addition to making conceptual fashions from non-traditional materials. You will walk out of this class having made a pair of earrings, a bracelet, a necklace, a ring, at least one t-shirt, and a piece of sculptural fashion. The quality of work produced in this class is professional level and many students have sold their artwork from our art shows and even to staff at school! Jewelry design is a growing area of the arts routed in ancient times. This is a great companion course to Metals in the Tech Ed program, building on many of the same concepts and techniques, yet having a focus on design and creativity. This a great course for students exploring a field in design (interior design, furniture and cabinet making, welding and large-scale metalwork, etc).

Students will build upon the skills and techniques gained in Intro to Drawing and Printmaking. We will begin working with a variety of printmaking techniques, pen and ink drawing and mixed media work. We focus on being expressive in our drawings while experimenting with media. Students will be given the opportunity to engage in more independent and open projects and use their drawing skills to express themselves as individuals. The goal of this class is to help students become experts in drawing and printmaking techniques. Students leave this class as creative problem solvers with the ability to use their drawing skills in imaginative and expressive ways.

In this course, students will expand on the basic knowledge gained in Intro to Sculpture by studying advanced techniques in clay, glass, and other sculptural media. Students will create larger-scale artwork that is more conceptual in nature. This course also allows students to independently produce artwork that fits their individual aesthetics. The first quarter of the class will focus on clay sculpture and wheel throwing. In the second quarter, we will learn how to design and build a stained glass piece and create an installation.

This class is for students who would like to extend their skills in photography, technology, and digital art. Students in this class will continue to explore career pathways of the Digital Arts Industry such as graphic design, animation, and visual communication. Students will be challenged to “think outside the box” to solve high-level design problems. Students will work locally with clients in our school and community, as well as participating in state and national design contests. While completing real-world tasks, students are also invited to explore their creative side and express their ideas via photos, graphics, and video!

The AP Studio portfolios are designed for students who are seriously interested in the practical experience of art and the opportunity to create art in an independent studio environment. AP Studio Art is not based on a written exam; instead, students submit portfolios for evaluation at the end of the school year. AP Studio Art sets a national standard for performance in the visual arts that contribute to the significant role the arts play in academic environments. This College Board program provides the only national standard for performance in the visual arts that allows students to earn college credit and/or advanced placement while still in high school. In essence, the AP Program is a cooperative endeavor that helps high school students complete college-level courses and permits colleges to evaluate, acknowledge and encourage that accomplishment through the granting of appropriate credit and placement. Students in this class work to create a vast portfolio of high quality and thoughtful art. Students interested in this class should discuss their placement in it with Mrs. Szabo prior to signing up and should have a broad base of art class experience in order to be successful.

This class is structured for senior art students that want the independence to choose their media, subject, techniques and ideas for art. This is an independent project-based course that closely mirrors AP Art but does not require the rigor of the portfolio or the opportunity to earn AP credit. For students with a more advanced understanding of art that really want to explore their own art ideas.