Art

Art has a distinct profile at Maidstone Grammar School and we pride ourselves on not having a house style, but rather a true diversity that starts with a clear focus on individual student interests and abilities.

The Art Department has excellent open-plan facilities and all Maidstonians have constant access to a dedicated area where they can make work outside of lesson time. An A1 printer allows for high-quality large-scale professional imaging. A darkroom serves for traditional photographic processes.

Through our formal art curriculum and our co-curricular art programme, Maidstonians are encouraged to ask questions and to demonstrate their technical skills in a variety of practical and creative ways. They are introduced to new techniques and ways of working within the disciplines of drawing, painting, design, photography, digital manipulation and 3D/sculpture.

Our co-curricular art programme is extremely popular with Maidstonians who do not formally study art and our bi-weekly Art Club, weekly How to Photoshop, How to Use Blender, How to Draw and Photography Club sessions are consistently well attended. Art is also an extremely popular discipline with GCSE and A Level students and we send a steady stream of Maidstonians to Foundation and Degree courses across the country, and ultimately into successful careers in Fine Art, Design, Architecture, Film, Games Design, Graphics, Engineering and many other creative fields.

Maidstonians at all levels are frequently invited to enter juried competitions, and our students have an excellent track record of prize and bursary winnings, such as the Downton Exhibitions at County Hall, the National Association of Decorative and Fine Arts Societies, and the Association of Men of Kent & Kentish Men.

Visits to galleries, exhibitions, and museums play an important role in the art curriculum. Visits have included The National Gallery, The National Portrait Gallery, Tate Modern, Tate Britain, the Courtauld Gallery, and the University of London Art Lectures series. There are many opportunities for international visits via the many annual Art Department trips to places such as Paris, Milan, and Barcelona.

Our Annual Summer Exhibition showcases Maidstonians best work, and attracts both corporate sponsorship and coverage in the local press. Recent Guests of Honour have included international artist Ralph Steadman, Watercolour Challenge host Mike Chaplin, sculptor Paula Groves, UCA Foundation Head Mike Addison, Head of National Gallery Exhibitions Michael Wilson, and BP Portrait Award Winner Joel Ely.