Our UMS and MHS visual arts programs offer students a wide variety of engaging electives that explore all modes of art making. 7th Grade is an important point in our art program as courses transition from required shorter cycles for all students to full length elective courses. At UMS, about 400 students a year choose to participate in an art elective resulting in almost all students taking an art class while a UMS student during 7th and/or 8th grade. Our arts elective options cover many modes of art making including painting, drawing, sculpture and ceramics, multi-media, digital arts, photography, printmaking, and more.
All students in UMS have the opportunity to select from a number of semester long art electives. Each of these classes meets for 80 minutes, every other day, for a whole semester. Montgomery strongly values our students' ability to deeply explore the arts. Because of this, students are able to take multiple electives at a time in their schedule. Students can select to take a visual arts class, and at the same time, take other arts classes such as theater or music. Visual arts classes at UMS include:
Foundations of Art
Painting
Ceramics
Printmaking
Unified Arts
Digital Art
Students in this course will explore multiple areas of studio arts to include drawing, painting, multi-media, collage, and more!
Our painting course allows students to explore multiple techniques in painting using a variety of different paint types.
Students in ceramics will explore multiple forms of clay sculpture and pottery, including use of the pottery wheel.
Printmaking is an incredible class that allows students to learn and explore the many different artistic ways of using ink to create works of art.
Using multiple forms of art making, students use technology to either completely create or digitally enhance their works of art.
Unified Art is part of our Unified Electives program. Students in this class will work together as peers and partners, using studio arts as a basis for developing artistry and important lifelong skills.
All students at MHS have the opportunity to select from a number of semester and year long art electives. Each of these classes meets for 82 minutes, every other day. These classes fulfill the NJ Department of Education graduation requirement for Visual and Performing Arts.
Introduction to Studio Art
Studio Art 1
Studio Art 2
Honors Portfolio (year long course)
AP Studio Art - 2D Design studio focus (year long course)
Ceramics
Ceramics 2
Advanced Ceramics
Photography 1 (darkroom photography)
Photography 2
Advanced Photography
AP Studio Art - 2d Design photography focus (year long course)
Montgomery High School offers a track for students in the studio arts, beginning with our Introduction to Studio Art Class and progressing all the way through AP 2D Design (studio concentration). Through Introduction to Studio Art, Studio 1, Studio 2, Honors Portfolio, and AP Studio, our students have the opportunity to explore a myriad of mediums, techniques, and projects, and portfolio development.
Students at MHS have the opportunity to engage in an in-depth study of photography through our photography courses, moving from Photography 1 all the way through AP 2D Design (photography concentration). Our Photography 1 courses begins with wet photography in our state of the art dark room, using chemistry to develop film. Photography 2 moves into the world of digital photography where students have the opportunity to use industry standard software in our brand new digital lab. Students in photography 3 and AP Photography have the opportunity to develop portfolios using advanced photographic techniques both digitally and in the dark room.
We are very excited to offer a fantastic sequence of courses in ceramics where students have the opportunity to learn basic and advanced ceramics techniques, including the pottery wheel. Through our three levels of ceramics courses, students have the opportunity to learn and master both functional and aesthetic pottery and sculpture in our state of the art ceramics studio, complete with 2 kilns, spray booths, and a bank of pottery wheels.
7th - 12th Visual Arts Faculty
Whitney Ehnert, UMS: wehnert@mtsd.us
Dara Zimmer, UMS: dzimmer@mtsd.us
Tina Dailey, MHS: tdailey@mtsd.us
Deirdre McGrail, MHS: dmcgrail@mtsd.us
Heather Palecek, MHS: hpalecek@mtsd.us