"Learning to think creatively in one discipline opens the door to understanding creative thinking in all disciplines. We believe it is the creative thinkers among us who will become the visionaries of tomorrow."
- Pat Frederick, fine arts chairperson

The Pius XI art department has a tradition of excellence that is rich in its history and achievements. We believe that in every student there is an artist waiting to be born, and that in each of their bodies is an intelligence that is all their own. Tapping into that intelligence, uniting body and mind, is what the arts are all about.

In an era of diminishing resources when many schools are reducing or eliminating the arts, our commitment to the “artist-scholar” remains unwavering. We view the arts as powerful tools in our students’ search for self-realization and thus we keep the arts accessible to students throughout all four years. At Pius XI, the arts are not a collection of art classes, but rather a four-year sequential program that has opened doors for thousands of Pius graduates. Unlike most other schools, at Pius XI a full honors academic schedule can include the arts.

The four year sequential curriculum begins with a solid foundation in technical visual skills. Creative thinking skills are added gradually until students become adept at problem solving. Eventually, by senior year, our students learn how to formulate their own problems and to work independently. Most students begin their art studies at Pius XI with little or no art background.

Upon completion of the visual arts program, portfolio students are prepared to compete for college admission and scholarships to the finest art colleges and universities in the country. Pius XI visual art scholars are routinely offered more than $3 million in college scholarships each year. Additionally, the program has produced two presidential scholars and numerous merit and scholarship awards through the Art Recognition and Talent Search (ARTS) Competition, the nation’s most prestigious art award, as well as five National Scholarship Arts Portfolio gold medal winners and more than 100 National Scholastic silver Portfolio Awards.

The quality of instruction by the art faculty has been recognized by invitation to the White House five times since 1995, and was recently recognized for excellence by the Education Department of Harvard University and the International Network of Performing and Visual Arts Schools.

Pius XI graduates pursuing post-secondary education in art can be found in some of the country’s most prestigious art programs including Art Center, The Rhode Island School of Design, the Maryland Institute College of Art, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Washington University and Tufts University.

The Art Program is designed to:

• Help you recognize that art is primarily a means of communication.
• Empower you with the ability to communicate visually with honesty and accuracy by giving you the necessary thinking and technical skills to discover your own voice.
• Help you to respond thoughtfully, analytically, sensitively and critically to the voice of others.
• Help you interact intelligently and responsibly with a culture that is increasingly becoming more visually adept.
• Be taken all four years. Pius has no fine arts requirement, although many colleges and universities do. Most art schools and universities with strong art departments require a portfolio for admission. The Arts include, but are not limited to, architecture, computer graphics, animation, fashion, film, video, fibers, photography, and all design programs. Design includes such areas as graphic design, illustration, communication design, interior design, industrial design, environmental design, and stage and set design.