Foundation Diploma in Art & Design

Coursework/Exams (%) 100/0
You need: 6 GCSE grades A*-C (at least 2 A/B grades) including Art or Textiles, English and Maths
Board: AQA
Duration: AS 1 year/A2 2 years

This course will prepare you for a degree in art and design or related subjects at universities. You’ll begin by exploring a range of subjects and go on to specialise in chosen areas in order to build up a professional portfolio. Throughout the course you’ll follow a core programme of drawing, history of art and IT and select three other subjects from painting, photography, 3D studies/sculpture, graphics, film, video and animation, fashion, textiles and print making.

Core Studies
The main focus of Drawing Studies is life drawing and the development of skills and experimental techniques. In Art History you will study ‘From Realism to Post-modernism – Art in the 20th Century’. Gallery, museum and theatre visits will broaden your appreciation of the arts.

The Course is delivered in three Stages –

Exploratory Stage
During this stage it is expected that the student will develop technological and practical skills. You’ll be encouraged to research contemporary, historical and cultural contexts and precedents and to relate your own emerging practice to others’ work. After an initial period of experiencing seven specialist subject areas you’ll then select three areas on which to focus for the remaining part of the course.

The seven specialist options are:-

• Painting and Mixed Media
• 3D Studies/Sculpture
• Graphic Design
• Photography
• Film, Video & Animation
• Fashion Design
• Printmaking & Textiles

Pathway Stage
In this stage you’ll develop your understanding of the contemporary visual world and your awareness of historical developments to inspire and inform your work. You’ll be able to develop your own creative intentions in preferred specialist areas. Recorded personal reflection on this critical understanding will allow you to tackle the issues within art, design, craft and communication media.

The work you produce should continue to challenge your preconceptions and visual awareness. You will develop your portfolio for interviews, which universities hold from February onwards.

Confirmatory Stage
This stage is externally assessed and graded. During this stage, you will integrate research and ideas into your own practice. You will produce a final major project, the brief for which you will write yourself. There willbe a public exhibition of all students’ work.

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