Course Offerings

Digital Arts Program

The goal of our Digital Arts Program is to teach students how to concept, create and present art and design that is technically sound and visually impactful. The evolution of computer technology has facilitated a seemingly limitless amount of creative options for artists and designers; however, generating effective work requires a balance of technical capabilities and creative insight. The Digital Arts Program at LAS is designed for students who wish to develop skills in graphic design, digital photography, and web design. Our program allows students to develop and build a solid familiarity with computer software technologies and equips students with strong communication skills, self-motivating techniques and organizational skills.

The need for digital artists' is paralleling the exponential growth of the Internet. Digital artists are always in high demand to design and layout websites, products, publications, animations, packaging, logos, marketing campaigns and communication platforms. Every business requires great-looking, dynamically generated graphics or marketing materials and there are dozens of different careers opportunities for the artists who can create them.

Fundamentals to Digital Graphic Design

An introduction to elements of design, spatial relationships, typography and imagery as they apply to practical visual solutions for self-promotion, resumes, logo design, Web design, and marketing materials. This course instructs the student in graphic design skills employing traditional and digital tools, and procedures employed in the communication arts industry. The focus will be on finding creative visual solutions to communication problems using technical skills. Students are exposed to the theory and function of the major software packages and basic digital design principles utilized in the visual arts. Topics include operating systems, typography, vector and bitmap imaging, page layout, PDF creation and editing, file transfer and management, file output, emerging technologies, and other material relative to the digital visual arts workflow.

Introduction to Photoshop

Students explore the boundless potentiality of the digital image editing software Adobe Photoshop for use in the visual communications, graphic design, marketing and photography industries. Students manipulate scanned images and digital photographs in preparation for publication layout and design, Web output, use in other software packages, or immediate output. Topics include conceptual planning, photo restoration, layered composite imaging, masking, and the color balance adjustment of imagery used in graphic design and photography.

Introduction to Web Design

Students learn the basics of the Web design process by gaining an understanding of the four phase process of site development: plan, design, launch, and publish. Through a hands on approach including design principles, best business practices and site analysis, a foundation in HTML and CSS is established and students are exposed to the discipline of Responsive web design. In addition, the class will look at issues of social media, mobile device apps, search engine optimization and web animation.

Music Production, and Instrumental Study

Students study music in two separate sects: Music Production, and Instrumental Study.

The Music Production students create music on the computer using the latest version of the application Garageband. These students study song form, genres, instrumentation, and conveying emotion and stories through sound. They create a series of projects throughout the year for a grade, and all of their work will be uploaded to their Soundcloud.com accounts. The Instrumental Study students choose an instrument (sometimes two!) to begin learning or to continue studying. They choose repertoire and rehearse throughout the year, with the intention of performing at the end of the year Talent Showcase, held in front of all students and faculty.

In addition to studying to play the instrument and performance techniques, and building a repertoire, this year the Instrumental Study students can record their playing onto Garageband to be uploaded to Soundcloud.com.

The LAS Music Collective is creating music with the purpose of sharing our skills and talents with music-lovers outside of the walls of our school! Students have created their own accounts on Soundcloud.com as a platform to express themselves and tell their stories through music. Students will create, record, and upload their musical pieces directly to their individual accounts. The tracks will then be shared to the LAS Music Collective account where viewers can listen to the cumulative gallery of music created throughout the year. Songs will continue to be uploaded throughout the year as students complete them, so be sure to check back weekly for updates to the music selection!