Art & Textiles

The world is open before us, everything is still to be done and not be done over again – Picasso

Picasso draws our attention to the important features inherent to all creative work; that it is in some way different, origional or distinctive and not a mere copy of what has gone before. The Art department at Rydal Penrhos School strives to provide a unique, interesting and stimulating introduction into the world of colour, texture, pattern, form and imagination.

Why study Art & Textiles?

If this sounds interesting then read on. Are you creative and do you have a strong commitment to succeed? Do you enjoy working with a range of media in an experimental manner? Do you have strong feelings and are you self motivated? Do you enjoy visiting art galleries and discussing what you have seen? Do you like the idea of exhibiting your work? Are you interested in a career in one of the many art, crafts and design-related fields?

In the Art & Textiles department we aim to encourage and stimulate participation, interest, thought, feeling, knowledge, skill, a sense of commitment and a personal confidence in relation to the visual arts throughout the age and ability range at the school.

We offer a wide variety of courses which include drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics and textiles. This allows all pupils to experience a range of techniques enabling them to broaden their skills.

The facilities are made available to all pupils at lunch times, after school, weekends and sometimes during the holidays (for pupils working towards exams). During these periods pupils can come and work on internal and external competitions, IB students can come to work on the creativity aspect of their course, and all pupils can come for the enjoyment of creating their own masterpiece.

Visits to galleries in Liverpool, Manchester and London are part of the art programme, which allow students to critically analyse the work of other artists and encourage them to use this to inform their own work. Artists and craftspeople are invited to the school, bringing with them new skills, which help pupils build upon their own. We run life drawing classes, and local artist, Wendy Couling, is a regular visitor to the school. We also had a visit from the group “Afro Roots” to work with pupils on the theme of African culture, which then fed into creating beautiful clay masks.