Curriculum of the Fine Art and Design component of the SvJT

If you intend to combine regular lessons with the fine art and design programme at the School for Young Talent, you will have lessons at the Royal Academy of Art four times a week.

The course is divided into two groups: the first three years of secondary school and the last three years. In the first three years, you will lay the foundations for making informed decisions and pursuing a more personal learning pathway in the later years of secondary school in preparation for a higher education in the arts.

There are three trimesters in the school year. In the first three years, each trimester comprises three months. The first two months are devoted to subjects on a specific theme. In the third month you will work on a single end product representing your personal view of the theme, which will be displayed at the ‘trimester exhibition’.

You will choose the materials and technique on the basis of systematic research and experimentation. You will find solutions for problems with visualisation in the world around you and in the world of the arts.

Students in the last three years also take part in the trimester exhibition with works based on their personal observation, concept and fascination.

All students attend the Academy on Saturday to work on their assignments in the studio under the supervision of a coach.

During the week, there are weekly lessons in the following subjects:

First three years

• 2D
  Practical lessons with theoretical underpinning on everything connected with two-dimensionality.
• 3D
  Practical lessons with theoretical underpinning on everything connected with three-dimensionality.
• Theorie
  Practical lessons with theoretical underpinning and background information on topics covered by the following key terms: conceptual, choice between 2D and 3D, a short written assignment, expansion of vocabulary, broadening horizons, cultural visits.

Final three years

• Photography 1 semester
  Practical lessons with theoretical underpinning on everything connected with photography and the photo as the carrier of an image.
• Interdisciplinary 1 semester
  Relationships between different disciplines are explored and tested, investigated and challenged, with the focus on questioning and investigating and using different media and different senses: video/film, installation, 3D prints.
• Drawing /painting
  Practical lessons about observation in the widest sense of the term at the two-dimensional level. The course also involves keeping a personal archive, making reports of cultural visits and creating a portfolio.
• Concept development/3D
  Practical lessons in spatial work with theoretical underpinning about the content, concept and significance of your own work.
• Theory: only in group 5
  Theoretical lessons about the world of the arts and ideas about it. This course includes written assignments.

In the last three years of the course, students start creating a portfolio of their own work. Every week they will have an opportunity to discuss it in person with their mentor after the lesson. In consultation with the mentor and provided they have written a good plan, students in the exam year may be allowed to take individual fine art lessons and work on a portfolio for the admission procedure to one of the Academy’s undergraduate courses, or any other art course.

The regular courses are supplemented with projects, excursions and workshops in partnership with De Besturing, Filmhuis Den Haag, Het Nationaal Theater, Movies That Matter, Rewire Festival, exchange partner in Vittorio Veneto.

Final exam students put on their own exhibition in the Academy. There are three Trimester exhibitions every year.