Painting

The preoccupations of contemporary art have shaken the classical framework of the artistic field. We see easel painting more often alongside new artistic forms such as art in situ, urban art, installation art, performance, online art, video art, etc. Technological advances as well as new means of expression have allowed artists to create an approach that combines several artistic disciplines.  At this time, the term plastic artist is therefore reserved for painter artists. Thanks to its multidisciplinary orientation, the Painting programme attaches great importance to contemporary realities oriented towards this diversity of means.  

Being a plastic artist

Being an artist, in other words practising art as a profession, is to subscribe to a field where several worlds of art and several families of artists coexist. In order to find their way, artists have to build their own system based on the transgression of frontiers, innovation and originality of their production.

These days, in parallel with their creative activities, artists engage in various activities connected to their profession. Indeed, with the development of educational services and the mediation of cultural and museum operators, these institutions are increasingly calling on artists to assist with educating the public, animating workshops, setting up artistic and interactive events, etc. Going forward, students in plastic arts can achieve not just an art degree but also one or several specialisations in fields as varied as artistic and cultural mediation, scenography and exhibition staging, socio-cultural animation, teaching or exhibition curation. The mediator artist, the artist teacher, the artist scenographer, the artist curator can now all work side-by-side with the plastic artist.

Being a plastic arts, Painting student

During the first three years of Bachelor studies, the students develop their sense of discovery and experimentation. They will be initiated into the different techniques: painting, drawing, engraving, screen printing, photography, volume, video and infographics. They will also be introduced to the diversity of the processes of contemporary creation, thanks to which they will be able to complete their personal projects. In their development, the students will adopt a critical and self-critical attitude that integrates reflections on their role as a citizen who is also a plastic artist. To achieve these goals, the students build their own methods of analysis and questioning of the techniques used in their research and, thereby, participate further in the development of their own training.

The years of Master studies must lead the student to master the notions of meaning and content, so that they can claim a maturity of expression and critique in their creative work. To this end, the students partially define their course programme, thereby allowing them to personalise and to structure their creative language. During the course, they are also faced with the complexity of communicating efficiently about their artistic production according to the terms of a professional context. By enjoying a high degree of autonomy, the students develop new skills that enable them to adapt to contexts outside of school, that will allow them to pursue their creative practice.

Outside of the workshop

During their time at the Academy, the students are regularly encouraged to participate in external events such as “l’Art dans la ville” (Art in the city), “la Nuit des Musées” (Night of the museums) or other exhibitions in the cultural spaces of the region.  Many students have been recognised in the various artistic awards from the Wallonia Brussels Region: Tournai award, Hainaut award, Médiatine award, etc.

“Art does not reproduce the visible. It makes visible”    
Paul Klee.