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  No renowned masterpieces are to be found here, no authentic reproductions either. Instead, it is the firm brushstrokes on canvas and on paper, of the young, fertile minds, in light pastels and in bolder, vibrant hues that bring the stark walls alive. Every picture here resonates the confidence and courage that exploring new techniques, understanding new cultures and transcending previous limitations have brought about. Each vividly expresses the dreams and convictions of an entire generation, and connects with the world at large through varying motifs, symbols and designs.

  There are pictures that depict intriguing aspects of daily life, vignettes of characters we meet along the path of life, nature-inspired sketches, stimulating abstracts and captivating portraits in techniques that vary from pop art to cubism and neo-realism. Through the teaching of arts, the school has indeed transformed an otherwise disciplinarian, rigid environment into one of discovery and learning, of creative and intuitive thinking.

  According to Karamah Aweidah, the high school Head of the Department of Arts at the Emirates International School, “Arts is an integral part of the curriculum of our school. We strongly believe that the study of arts engages all students in education, from those who have an inborn talent to those who aspire to learn more.”

  Art provides a critical avenue for students to be able to express themselves and relate to their peers through personal growth and cooperative learning experiences, she says. “The stress given to arts at the Emirates International School is such that what other schools consider to be extra-curricular activities are looked upon here as full-time subjects, and considered as important as the mainstream curriculum.”

“Everybody takes art here,” she says. “It is a must.”

  In grades 7, 8 and 9, art is compulsory but after the 9^th grade, the student can choose what option to pursue in the GCSE years (Grades 10 and 11). Drama, Physical Education, Music, Food Science and a few other subjects are the other choices open to the students for their GCSE years. Yet, every year, out of 140 to 150 students, an average of 40 to 45 students opt for Arts in GCSE, she says.

  “As we pursue arts as a proper subject, students have to learn it in-depth,” she adds. “This includes knowledge and skills in the use of the basic vocabularies, materials, tools, techniques, and intellectual methods of each arts discipline. There is a detailed syllabus, and students have to do their own research, learn different techniques and do some critical writing work. In fact, art criticism helps students develop observation, analysis, interpretation and evaluation skills that can be transferred to other areas of study. The same is true of the other subjects such as P.E. or Drama – it all involves a detailed and thorough, exhaustive study. ”

  There are no shortcuts here, she asserts. “A student has to be willing to do plenty of work – there are five lessons each week in Art at the GCSE level and eight lessons a week for IB (International Baccalaureate). An average student would have to schedule a minimum of eight hours each week just for Art. Indeed, one can easily fail in Arts if he/she does not work hard enough.” And it is here that the quality of the teachers at the school – their professional qualifications and commitment to the students, gains importance.

  “I am very proud of the staff we have,” says Karamah Aweidah. “Their expertise is such that even a weak student, if he were to follow the guidelines set by the teacher, would easily be able to aim for a seat in GCSE.” However, admission to the IB programme (for grades 12 and 13) is not so easy. “The criteria here are very tough, so much so that in IB Art even if you get a 5, which is a C, it is considered to be a major accomplishment,” she says.

  The standards set by the IB Art course requires each child to become a proper artist and think like one during the course of his study. Though they are taught concepts and encouraged to think out of the box, the students are also allowed a great deal of individual freedom. “We merely teach them the way but how to choose to represent their thoughts and ideas is entirely up to each one of them,” says Karamah. “They have to adhere to certain criteria but once they’ve grasped these basic elements, they are also given a lot of space to unleash their creativity. In Arts, there is a segment of wrong but there is a vast expanse of right as well. One plus one does not always yield two here. Hence, within the perimeters of what is right, the child can give vent to his original vision and exercise his verdant imagination to develop his full potential.”

  She likens this process to a child learning to walk that initially needs a helping hand in taking its first steps. “But once the child has mastered the technique, it is time for us to let go,” she says. “This becomes quite apparent especially at the end of the course when the students do not really need the teachers to help them. At the beginning, we are inundated with queries and doubts and clarifications, but towards the end of the course, they have come into their own, each has developed his/her own style and technique, has his/her own preferred medium or theme and as teachers, we have to take a step backward.”

  “This, in my opinion, is a mark of excellence,” she says, “because it means that they have learnt how to take care of themselves. The creative freedom and independence they have enjoyed have made them individuals in their own right. And this, I believe, is the true purpose not just of art, but of education in general.”

  Education in the arts thus helps students to acquire those skills that will be essential to their success in the long run. Besides developing cognitive and physical skills, the arts are also a strong motivator for students to develop self-discipline and social skills. It also gives them the opportunity to represent what they have learned, thus achieving greater comprehension and retention of the material being covered.

  Says Karamah, “The school walls are adorned with pictures and photos taken by the students themselves or of teachers’ demos. Anywhere you look, a student is bound to find something to draw inspiration from. However, most of the students tend to take back their works when they finish school and I think, this is one of the drawbacks of having a strong arts department – that it enables you to produce such good work that you definitely do not want to relinquish it when you leave school!”

  The students are always encouraged to collect interesting postcards and pictures and in the course of their study, are exposed to linking their works to artists, cultures, art movements and ethnic art forms. “Students should be able to develop and present basic analyses of works of art from structural, historical, and cultural perspectives, and from combinations of those perspectives,” she says. “They are coached to gain an informed acquaintance with exemplary works of art from a variety of cultures and historical periods, and a basic understanding of historical development in the arts disciplines, across the arts as a whole, and within cultures.”

  Visits to art galleries, exhibitions and outdoor visits – when weather permits – to sketch by the Creek or at Bastakiya are all part of the course curriculum at the Emirates International School. “To study local culture, a visit to Madinat Jumeirah is essential while the Ibn Battuta mall showcases an intriguing variety or a fusion of cultures that enable the students to gain a better understanding of their subject.”

  Given that arts is all about creativity, is it something we are born with or can art be nurtured in a child showing no signs of inborn talent? According to Karamah Aweidah, “There are two ways of succeeding in art: either you are born talented or you have a passionate interest in the subject. For the former, it is of course easier to pursue the subject of arts. But it is often seen that students who are not born talented, by their dint of hard work and sheer determination sometimes show better results than the naturally gifted students.”

  The syllabus places a great demand on students’ time, which leaves the Arts Department practically no time to conduct other art-related activities, she adds. “Art is taken very seriously at this school and children often stay after school hours or come on Thursdays to complete their work. We are not the only department here, and students have to focus on other subjects as well.”

  The response from parents too has been quite encouraging, she says. “Often times, midway through the course, parents tell us how shocked they are to see the progress their child has made and how, they had never thought their son or daughter could reach up to this level. That is indeed heartening for us as the hard work and efforts of the students are being appreciated at home too.”

  While in grade 9, the Arts Department gets a chance to explain to both parents and students on a designated day, the demands of the course before they make their final choices. The same happens before the student goes into IB as well. Students’ works are displayed so that freshers can see the levels they are expected to reach. “We try to recruit students intent on pursuing Art Majors or those who are very strong in Art and can handle the IB art work load,” she says. “This course calls for some vital time management skills and there are deadlines every now and then, so if a student thinks he will not be able to cope, it is best to opt for something else. However, for gaining admission for Arts Major in universities, you need to have a strong portfolio and IB Art enables you to get to that level.”

  For those pursuing Arts as a major, there is a vast array of career choices, she says. “Students can look at options ranging from architecture to graphic art design, interior or fashion design, photography, animation, illustration, etc. The list just keeps growing.”

  Art is important to every child’s education, believes Karamah Aweidah. “Can you imagine a world without arts? Art touches every single aspect of our lives. We just have to look around to see how it manifests even in the objects we use on a daily basis like the clothes we wear, the shoes we walk in, the bags we carry and so on. Who designed all these? Who chose the colours? Look at the designs in furniture, automobiles, carpets, jewellery . . . Art dominates life because art is inherent in everything that we see.”

  Art is a universal language that has stretched over several generations and cultures, she says. Any form of arts enhances the awareness as well as the understanding of other cultures, both of the past and present. A strong, sequential arts education programme in schools, therefore, promotes cultural literacy in our society.

  “And at the Emirates International School, art is taken to a different level as this institution gives students a chance to help them excel, meet greater challenges and enable them to realise their own potential for success,” she says.

An artist in the making

  16-year-old Ryan Safa’s first tryst with art began several years ago when, as a toddler, he let his creativity run riot on the bare walls of his home. This was to be his large canvas on which emerged animals in all hues and shades, and trucks, an object of his fancy as a young boy. “In those days, I used to sketch things as I saw it,” he recollects.

  But today, as a grade 11 student at the Emirates International School, Ryan Safa has come a long way.  Art is no longer a replication of what he sees. Instead, he has learnt to personalize the objects he views and make it his own. “We have a base that we have to follow,” he says. “And though there are certain rules that we have to abide by, we can also let our imagination flow. Our teachers do not want us to reproduce something in an exact manner. They expect us to link it to who we are by using our own individual techniques and styles.”

  A student has to complete several projects during the course of his study, he says. “What makes it very interesting and absorbing is that we have to link it to several cultures and artists for each of our themes.” For instance, in his project on Surfaces, he chose nature as his subject linking it to artist Georgia O’Keeffe and incorporated Chinese symbols as his culture link.

  Ryan has a penchant for abstracts. It is very easy, he says, “because it allows you to be more creative. However, every element that is shown in the work needs to have a reason as to why it is there and, has to contribute to the overall piece.”

  In the past two years alone, he seems to have progressed immensely well in his work, he admits. “I’ve become more skilled and adept since I took up this course in Grade 10 and have begun to develop concepts. Thanks to the unstinting support and dedication of my teacher Ms. Farah Delshad, I have become more creative and have started to work with different media. I’ve learnt how to make my work look better, identify flaws and have developed my own technique and style.

  “I now work with oils, colour pencils, acrylic, fabric paint, dyes, etc,” he adds. “The course allows us to combine our interests with hobbies and we can look towards any aspect of life such as religion, culture, etc to seek inspiration.

  “For me, art is like a hobby,” he adds. “I like to express myself and it allows me to put my mood into the painting. Currently, I am focusing on drawing horses as it has been my passion since I was a young kid. I love to do art because it keeps me calm, helps me relax and makes me feel nice about myself.” 

  Ryan Safa intends to graduate in architecture and he is confident that the skills he has imbibed at school will help him in his career path.