Visual Arts

“Bonnie Cotter was the main reason we chose DDS. She had a vision for this school that was superior to any program in the area. We believe in Bonnie. Also, the small classes give teachers the opportunity to reach students and pull out their personal best.”
Megan Lynch
Middle School Parent
““After my first two weeks being at Davidson Day, it immediately felt like a family; from the students to the teachers. All of my teachers have helped me out with everything that I have needed.”
Jenny Falcone '11
“I really love the academics, the teachers & the students. Everyone really made me feel at home my first day here.”
Kay Funderburk '13
“All Davidson Day staff work closely with families to build students' strengths and self confidence -- in a compassionate, nurturing way. The students are priority number one at this school.”
Carrie Lott
Lower School Parent
“ I cannot say enough good things about the attention and care that the teachers lavish on their classes. ”
Carrie Lott
Lower School Parent

Visual Arts

In our Visual Arts program, students use their hands, eyes, minds, and hearts to awaken their creative potential and produce inspired works in all grade levels. Whether they’re expressing themselves through clay, painting, photography, computer graphics, illustration or animation, we help them appreciate the artistic principles and master the techniques of the craft.

Lower School Visual Arts

How do you awaken artistic interest in a child? It’s easy. You get them to roll up their sleeves, try new things, and have so much fun that they forget they’re actually learning. At Davidson Day, we expose Lower School students to a variety of visual arts media, including drawing, painting, printmaking, and sculpting with clay. We even have our own kiln for firing clay.

We introduce young children to the fundamentals of art appreciation, aesthetics, and production. We also take the lessons they’re learning in their other classes, and we integrate these lessons into art projects. When our 1st Graders were learning about the ocean, they created their own aquatic art using a saltwater wash technique applied over their crayon fish designs. How cool is that?

Middle School Visual Arts

Our Middle School art classes give every 5th through 8th grade student a deeper appreciation for the Elements of Art that were introduced in Lower School. The students gain a richer understanding of line, shape, form, color, texture, and other key elements as they explore a variety of techniques and mediums, from color pencils to charcoal to pastels. The primary goal at this level is to give every student a strong basic drawing skill, and to inspire a passion for artistic self-expression.

Upper School Visual Arts

From 9th through 12th grade, our students can follow wherever their creative muse leads them in the visual arts. Upper School elective programs allow students to explore drawing, painting, digital photography, digital illustration and advanced studio technique. With hands-on learning and high-level instruction, students master the technical skills and achieve a greater fluency in the language of design. These classes are challenging, fun and rewarding wellsprings of student creativity.

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