As a purpose built, self-contained A-Level centre with the goal to educate and enthuse the next generation of learners, Dudley Sixth is fast gaining a reputation for being one of the best places to study A-Levels in the Black Country, Birmingham and the wider West Midlands region.
Our A-Level courses in Fine Art, Graphic Communication, Photography and Textile Design are your gateway to Higher Education, Higher Apprenticeships or employment. The majority of our learners plan to progress onto university and many accept places at a range of Russell Group universities, including Birmingham, King’s College London and Manchester, as well as other local prestigious universities including Aston and Keele.
With subject specialists guiding you through your two-year A-Level programme, you will receive the highest quality education. Our aspiration is for you to achieve your potential and have a very successful future.
This year has seen the return of our exam project (which due to COVID hasn’t been conducted since 2019) and with it, a workload increase for all on A-Level Fine art. The organisational skills and motivation of the students has really been tested, working with given topics presented by the exam board, which at times can often be frustrating. However, all the students have risen to the challenges presented over the year and produced high quality work they should be proud of.
This year we’ve even managed to resume our educational visits, with trips to Liverpool, London and even Berlin. These have inspired and engaged our cohort and provided them with some additional inspiration outside of the classroom.
Gillian Worley, A-Level Fine Art Tutor, Dudley Sixth
Graciela Amulong
I wanted to explore the uniqueness of different encounters and how these experiences vary from person to person; we remember and dwell about our favorite memories, but being able to present the passing moments is just as valuable.
I also created a project that consisted of me recreating dishes and a variety of foods to help elevate the concept of the mundane; foods are recognized to amplify our five senses, so I wanted to see if I could recreate that in my work using colour and different styles.
Morgan Cadd
For my first project, I choose the topic ‘Animals’ where I explore different domestic pets such as dogs, cats and snakes in a range of different media leading up to my final piece centred around the negative stereotypes surrounding dogs, all painted in acrylic paint as I thoroughly enjoyed the harsh and bold colours/look of this material.
For my next project, I choose the exam topic ‘Vivid’ as this spoke to me the most. I knew from the beginning I wanted to continue using acrylic paint as well as exploring coloured pencils and watercolour.
Ultimately, I decided acrylic was the medium I preferred through my experiments around objects and people in bold, monochromatic colours. My final piece encompasses all I learnt throughout this project. Again, I chose acrylic paint as my chosen medium, using it in a monochromatic style that has since become another technique I fell in love with throughout this project.
Charlie Craig
This project focused on portraits and how you could manipulate and distort the facial features of a person to represent the disconnect between the body and mind in times of severe mental health episodes. I used oil paints and oil pastels to create a smooth flowing texture.
I then explored a project focused on time, and how long movements of a person can be painted into a single image. I used long exposure photography to take my images and dragged the paint to show direction of motion.
Leanna Douglas
In project one I practiced portraiture by looking into the concept of the effects of aging.
For project 2 I explored fish and fears of the deep ocean through printing and painting medias.
Libby Spinks
I explored the idea of circles in art through printing and painting.
In my second project I investigated animals and the pollution of their habitats.
Ellie Vaughan
My first project focused on the beauty and intricacy of insects versus a more negative view and why we fear them, using materials such as watercolour, acrylic, biro and pencil.
My second project stemmed from the word “vivid”, exploring how I can use colours together to get the best visual outcome, while using materials like coloured pencil, oil pastels, acrylic and watercolour.
Grace Ward
For my first project, the concept was ‘abstract mind’, which was about seeking and exploring the possibilities of representing anxiety and confusion in portraiture.
For my next project, I focused on the idea of the mundane reality of relationships, looking into the significance of the small moments of life with a significant other.
As a purpose built, self-contained A-Level centre with the goal to educate and enthuse the next generation of learners, Dudley Sixth is fast gaining a reputation for being one of the best places to study A-Levels in the Black Country, Birmingham and the wider West Midlands region.
Our A-Level courses in Fine Art, Graphic Communication, Photography and Textile Design are your gateway to Higher Education, Higher Apprenticeships or employment. The majority of our learners plan to progress onto university and many accept places at a range of Russell Group universities, including Birmingham, King’s College London and Manchester, as well as other local prestigious universities including Aston and Keele.
With subject specialists guiding you through your two-year A-Level programme, you will receive the highest quality education. Our aspiration is for you to achieve your potential and have a very successful future.
This year has seen the return of our exam project (which due to COVID hasn’t been conducted since 2019) and with it, a workload increase for all on A-Level Fine art. The organisational skills and motivation of the students has really been tested, working with given topics presented by the exam board, which at times can often be frustrating. However, all the students have risen to the challenges presented over the year and produced high quality work they should be proud of.
This year we’ve even managed to resume our educational visits, with trips to Liverpool, London and even Berlin. These have inspired and engaged our cohort and provided them with some additional inspiration outside of the classroom.
I focused my project on dark naturalism. Through which I explored a range of sources of inspiration and found myself exploring the anatomy of both humans and animals. I used a range of techniques to explore my ideas and found that I drew inspiration from unexpected artists.
My project focuses on portraiture and how it can be expressive. Through experimentation I explored a range of techniques, finally focusing on combining flowers with the human face. I deliberately left the portraits in pencil and created loose line work to show the flowers.
My project focuses on the human form and looking at the human body in varying detail. I was inspired by traditional studies of the human body within art and wanted to recreate this in my own way. For this, I used different media and techniques to demonstrate and highlight different aspects of the anatomy.
My project is based on the theme ‘Body Image’. Through this I wanted to highlight individuals’ imperfections. I did this by producing pieces using contrasting materials and experimenting with both the presence and absence of colour. As my work progressed I explored Tondo art and the saying ‘under the microscope’, this lead me to the use of circular areas that create the view down a microscope and combine it with my contrast in media.
My project is based on the concept of how time affects natural decay. My aim was to highlight the contrast between ‘decayed’ and ‘alive’ nature, by using different media. My main focus was to visually portray how decay affects nature, and use ‘modern’ art techniques to emphasise the idea of decomposition.”
My project is focused on portraiture and capturing an individual’s personality. I used graffiti marks as inspiration for layered and expressive backgrounds which acted as a contrast to the neatly drawn images of the faces. I originally started by drawing all ages , but as the project developed , I found myself favouring the elderly and showing them in a youthful manner.
