Arts

Visual Arts

Developing the visual art and observational skills of Hockaday students is one of the core missions of the school. Students learn two-dimensional, three-dimensional, and video design in a sequenced curriculum beginning in PreK.
 
Students in Lower School have multiple art classes each week in which they learn the fundamentals of art in a creative environment and in the context of art history. The curriculum has strong connections with the STEM disciplines and with the concept of experiment. The art program fosters imagination, problem-solving, teamwork, and the development of technique and facility.
 
Each Middle School student has a vital connection with the visual arts. She builds on her understanding of design to explore multiple media and produce individual work of considerable maturity. She begins to discover her individual direction and fine motor capabilities and arrives in Seventh and Eighth Grades with a portfolio of significant art projects and notebooks.
 
The Upper School visual arts program offers courses in Studio Art I and II, Advanced Studio Art, AP Studio Art, Ceramics and Sculpture, Photography, and Film and Video. In her four years of Upper School, a student can take several art forms or concentrate on one progressing through the most advanced level. Students participate in exhibitions at the school and in local venues and participate in the Independent School Association of the Southwest Arts Festival.
 
In Seventh or Eighth Grade, each student takes a course in Film and Animation to begin her involvement with this rich medium. In Upper School a student can take beginning and advanced courses in Film/Video featuring Final Cut Pro editing software and state-of-the-art facilities. Students participate in local festivals and competitions.
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