History of Art
St Paul’s Girls School is unique in the provision of Art history in the academic curriculum. Building on the existing School-directed courses in Art, Drama and Music, we are now in the fourth year of a GCSE-equivalent Art History qualification which, in the absence of any GCSE qualification in the subject, is truly unique to the school. The freedom to develop a bespoke course produced an exciting and ambitious syllabus that gives a superb grounding in the subject. The students learn about the idea of a European canon through the ‘Survey 60’ followed by a Global course of in-depth case studies from beyond the European tradition in the second year. The assessment is largely based on independently chosen and researched projects.
For decades, every Year 7 student has been introduced to the subject through a course that prepares them to take their parents or guardians on a tour of the National Gallery. So, whether you study art history throughout your school career or just for a term or two, it is possible to initiate a lifetime of looking critically at the art and architecture and provide the tools to unpick the complex relationship between visual culture and society.
