Entry Requirements:
Minimum grade B in either GCSE Textiles, GCSE Art & Design or Head of Department approval of Portfolio.
This course requires an enthusiasm for Fashion, Design and the Visual Arts, as well as imagination and an enquiring mind. Students are encouraged to express their own artistic identity, be creative and thoughtful, and are expected to work with a high degree of independence. Throughout this course students will learn and develop skills in Machine Embroidery, Batik, Silk Painting, Felt Making, Screen Printing, Hand Embroidery, Dying fabric, Appliqué, Fashion Illustration and Garment Construction. Students will have the opportunity to work on one or more of the following areas: Fashion, Print, Textile Furnishings, Interior Design, Textile Art and Constructed Textiles. Students will be required to make frequent trips to museums and galleries making links between one’s own work and that of relevant professional artists. Students are expected to commit to 5 hours a week working independently on their coursework. This may include visits and time spent within the department developing coursework.
All work submitted will be marked by your course teacher and moderated by the examining board.
Course Content and Assessment: AS Unit 1: Coursework Portfolio
Students will begin the course by attending a series of workshops designed to introduce a range of Textile and Art techniques, creative thinking and research skills that will arm them with the tools they need to create their coursework.
Students are given a theme as a starting point, from which they are expected to develop their ideas through; research around their theme and of other artists work, drawing and photography and analysing their work. Students will then further develop work by experimenting with a range of textile techniques, refining and developing their ideas as they progress. Students will design and create a final piece based on their preparation studies.
AS Unit 2: Externally Set Assignment
Students will be given a question paper set by the examining board AQA. The paper contains five exciting themes. Students choose one theme to explore and develop into a final piece that will be completed during 15 hours. 5 hours of the development time are conducted under exam controlled conditions.
A2 Unit 3: Personal Investigation
Students have complete freedom to choose their own theme; they are encouraged to explore their own interests allowing them to produce work that shows a personal artistic identity. Practical work produced during this unit will need to be documented in writing, this could be in the form of a journal, a log, reports on gallery visits or evaluations of own and others work (1000 -3000 words maximum).
A2 Unit 4: Externally Set Assignment
Students will again be given a question paper by the examining board AQA, this time the paper contains eight exciting themes. Students choose one to explore and develop into a final piece that will be completed during the 15 hour exam.
Career Options:
A Level Textile Design can lead to higher qualifications, such as the Foundation Diploma and Degree. It can also lead to a variety of careers including Fashion Design, Fashion Marketing, Fashion Promotion, Textile Artist, Textile Design and Interior Design.