In the most literal sense of the word, art is foundational for The Wheeler School. School founder Mary Colman Wheeler  was an artist, trained in the ateliers of 19th century France. In her day, Miss Wheeler received international recognition as a pioneer in art education, participating in many symposia on the subject in the U.S. and abroad. She is among the first American educators to fully integrate art into primary and secondary curricula. We are proud to continue the legacy of Mary C. Wheeler through our comprehensive Nursery-Grade 12 curriculum.

Our faculty includes full-time, working artists teaching in every division of the school. Art classrooms and studio spaces are found in every division, and a professional art gallery, The Chazan Gallery, is located within our campus.

A Three-Tiered Approach to Teaching Art

Our philosophy of teaching art is traditional in the sense that we base our curriculum on the following three-tiered approach:

1. We teach a structured approach to art, believing that it is necessary to learn basic elements that underlie any work of visual art: line, shape, space, mass, texture, light, and color.
2. The formal elements are the basic vocabulary of art. We also teach the grammar or syntax of a work of art so that students lean how the basic elements are organized through the principles of design and composition: repetition, variety, symmetry, asymmetry, proportion, emphasis, and economy.
3. The vehicle for teaching these formal elements and principles of design is based in a range of traditional subject matter: the portrait, the figure, the landscape, and the still life.

Lower School: Developing Creative Strengths

The Art Program in the Lower School has the special opportunity and responsibility of beginning a process of growth that develops the creative strengths of all its students. Starting with its youngest learners in Nursery, students are exposed to a wide variety of art experiences that use both two and three-dimensional media. Among the many offerings are ceramics, printmaking, painting, drawing, and mixed-media sculpture. All class sizes are divided into small groups with a class size ranging from eight to 12 students, making possible individual attention and accommodation of different learning styles.

 Middle School: Building Ideas from Structure

The art curriculum for Middle School is traditional, building on the curriculum of the Lower School and preparing students for the art demands of Upper School. The art curriculum for the 6th, 7th, and 8th grades helps students tackle visual problems by teaching them how to build their ideas from structured plans and research just as their other classes do. Wheeler’s Middle School Art Program has two art studios that include a kiln and photographic darkroom. Through a series of carefully designed projects using a variety of two and three-dimensional media, students learn to develop their problem-solving, organizational, and perceptual skills. Just as importantly, students use their art skills to explore their own creativity and imagination. Our instructional method prompts creative thinking and also addresses organizational skills that are of benefit in other academic disciplines.

Upper School: Taking Risks Without Fear

The Upper School Art curriculum encourages students to be open and receptive to new ideas, to new ideas, to new ways of working and thinking, and to taking risks. Students learn to value experimentation and discovery without fear of right or wrong outcomes; the process of art-making is valued before product. Program goals broaden student awareness through involvement in the art-making process and aim to help students value themselves, their work, and the efforts of others. Because Wheeler considers art to be an integral part of the educational process, each student is required to take two art courses in the Upper School. The first of these, in the 9th or 10th grade, is always the Foundation Art course. Students with a strong interest and ability in art may apply for acceptance in the Studio Art Program. Students with a strong interest in art specialties can pursue advanced work in two-dimensional media (Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, and Graphic Design), Ceramics, and/or Photography sequence of courses. Serious students in the electives track may enroll in the Advanced Art Seminar. The professional art shows help in the Chazan Gallery provide our Upper School art students with an excellent exposure to local, regional, and nationally recognized artists. Students make regular visits to the gallery to conduct written reviews. Field trips to major museums in New York and Boston are made annually.

Through the Global Experience Program, students may follow in the steps of Mary C. Wheeler by touring the great art centers of Europe. Trips are offered at least once during a student’s time in Upper School.

You can learn more about our program on the Visual Arts section of the Wheeler website.

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