English Summary

Einar Granum School of Art

Maridalsv.17c, N-0178 Oslo
Phone: +47 22 99 03 40
Fax: +47 22 99 03 41
info@granum-kunstfagskole.no
www.granum-kunstfagskole.no

Einar Granum School of Fine Arts is concentrated on a two-year instructional program where the students are trained in traditional disciplines belonging to a foundational art education.

The program can be chosen as a:

* Part of other education (a bachelor degree in Fine Arts)
* Absorption for primary school and pre-school teachers
* Foundation course for studies in visual arts such as Architecture, Design or Fine Art.

Entrance requirements
Admission to the school is based upon entrance assignments. The first year programme is open to students who are preparing to study in individual areas as well as those with some prior art school experience. A limited number of students are accepted to the advanced course forcing the students to compete internally for available seats. External applicants to the second year programme must have undergone a training that is parallel to the first year at Einar Granum School of Art.

Application
Closing date for application, may.

The first year constitutes a foundation course.
The second year constitutes the first year of a bachelor program in Fine Art but is also a further education course for those who need an advanced and extended development of the general program.

Objectives
Through the program the students will

1. be introduced to and work with materials and techniques connected to creative subject matter in the visual arts
2. work with assignments that seek to solve problems, develop and visualize and express ideas in a creative process
3. develop a critical and informed understanding of fine art and the challenges tied to design and architecture through building and extending visual intelligence
4. accumulate basic experience in the use of information and communication technology as a tool in the development of ideas and as an implement for presentation
5. be able to reflect and analyse their own work and those of others in the fields of art, design and visual communication
6. develop a consideration for the environment, the general consumption and use of materials.

Contents
The content of the studies is described through three main areas of absorption. The three are intertwined in a reciprocally dependent creative process.

History
Einar Granum Kunstskole was started in 1970 as a private art school with 15 students. The courses had duration of three months three times a week in the late afternoons. The school was established as a fulltime one-year education in 1973 with 30 students enrolled. More and more students wanted an advanced course, and in 1983 a second year was established with a steadily increasing number of students.

From the year of 1988, the school has received economical support from the State under the Law of Private Schools. An executive committee was appointed under The Trade School Department of The Church and Education Ministry. In 1991/92 the school became a joint-stock company, and in 1998 it was turned into a foundation.

In 1999, the school moved into a new building, and the number of students increased to 110. As the school has grown, the content in the study programmes have evolved. The educational aim is to help students to become independent, self-motivated and resourceful practitioners, able to make use of their experience in future careers whether it be as an artist, teacher, designer, architect or in any other field of work.

Structure and organization
The school is governed by a Steering Committee consisting of 6 members. Two are representatives from other educational establishments within the arts, one is an artist, and the Granum family appoints three members.
A permanently appointed principal is the head of the school’s administration and responsible for the curriculum.
The school has 18 staff members. All of the teachers are highly trained artists or designers with careers in their own right. This is an obligatory qualification for all of the educational staff.
The school co-operates with other colleges and universities in Europe in recruiting students within the fields of art and design.

Foundation Course
The foundation course has a strong focus on the developing of practical skills and the exploration of the possibilities that lie within the use of different materials and techniques. The students are introduced to the use of Information and Communication technology.

Advanced Course
The second year gives the students a freer choice of materials and techniques. The students initiate much of their own programmes of work through tutorial discussion and agreement always relating to a specific area of absorption that follows the obligatory curriculum. The practical, imaginative and intellectual aspirations and intentions of each individual student are encouraged so as to emphasize their personal expression.

Work methods
All themes are introduced through lectures illustrated by examples and specialized debate.

Active participation is a presupposition. The training is to a great degree based on the execution of practical aesthetic creative assignments.

MAIN SUBJECT AREAS

1. Art and design 1st year studies

The programme focuses on technique, choice and use of material and the understanding and practise of different disciplines tied to the mentioned. All conventional techniques such as: pencil – charcoal – pen and ink – watercolour – tempera – oil and acrylics are explored.

The students are introduced to the problems of form by participating in a basic course of modelling in clay and through an introductory course in product design. They investigate the limits and possibilities of space in projects that are linked to architecture and 3-dimensional design, and eventually they work to try out artistic expressions in experimenting with objects and installations.

The field and history of colour is explored with reference to different colour theories and colour systems. The use of colour is explored both in schematic exercises and in more sophisticated ways such as in the use of colour on form, in interiors, in painting to describe depth and distance and as a means of expressing emotions.

The students are given a course in graphic art where they work with wood and linoleum cuts and eventually etchings and aquatint.

Art and design 2nd year studies

In the second year course the students work within different fields of expression, focusing on more extensive and independent work with fundamental problems concerning 2 and 3 dimensional form. The students are offered an optional choice in many projects where they can emphasize within a main media pathway. In 2D Media the work is associated with, paperwork and painting. The 3D Media pathway introduces concepts and processes associated with 3D applied art and design. More sophisticated methods and materials are employed in the exploration of artistic expression and in developing processes within three dimensional design projects and in the understanding of architectural problems.

2. Presentation, information and communication

Ways of gathering and using visual materials to enhance analysis and promote creative thinking is encouraged through different workshops throughout the school year. Contemporary and imminent digital technologies offer many opportunities for creative expression and purposeful communication. Art and design are areas that are characterised by discipline crossovers and emergent combined-media practices. An important part of the course is a basic skills programme, which enables the students to employ computer generated imaging in their work. The school believes that the experience of aesthetic values enhances the quality in many spectres of social life. Learning to prepare, build, realize and present an idea or a project is a main focus point throughout both school years. The students are encouraged to put together a portfolio of work for subsequent use. At the end of the year, the students undertake a major project that is presented in a joint exhibition.

3. Esthetical theories of art and design

The history of art is imparted in the 1st year in lectures with a focus on a study of different historical end esthetical styles with a reference to present day visual culture. In the 2nd year the focus is on present day art and design. All the lectures are presented with a showing of slides or video films. The students are constantly invited to participate actively both in discussions concerning the analysis of text, and in visits to museums and exhibitions. The school emphasizes the student’s ability to describe a piece of art as an esthetical object and as an historical document. A written paper is an obligatory project. An overall view of key issues which surround the development of art, design, and visual culture is at all times attended to through lectures, gallery visits and a trip in the first year to one of the Scandinavian capitals Copenhagen or Stockholm, and in the second year to one of the major metropolis presenting art such as London, Paris, Madrid/Barcelona or Berlin.

Elective studies
All the students are given the opportunity to join at least two of the workshops available:

* Fine art painting
* Textiles and fibre
* Illustration
* Animation
* Photography
* Digital media
* Space/architecture
* Artist books
* Printmaking

Evaluation
Periods with practical work are concluded with joint commentary where students and teachers participate. In each semester, every student is given the opportunity to meet with a teacher for personal coaching and guidance and individual evaluation of their progression in work.

A leaving certificate is given to all students at the end of each year provided that they have participated in the compulsory tuition and that he/she does not have a percentage of absence that exceeds 15%.