About the School
The South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities (SCGSAH) gives young emerging artists the opportunity to explore and refine their talents in a one-of-a-kind, arts-centered community. As a state-funded, public, residential high school serving sophomores, juniors, and seniors, SCGSAH gives artistically talented students from across the state the opportunity to receive pre-professional training in Creative Writing, Dance, Drama, Music, and Visual Arts.
With the guidance of teaching artists/mentors, Visual Arts students gain hands-on experience exploring different mediums and techniques. Young artists learn to be constructively critical others’ artwork as well as their own — all while gaining the tools necessary to be competitive in a creative environment.
As professional animation studios and game developers raise their expectations of what new hires bring to the job, there is increased pressure for schools to invest in industry standard tools that will make teaching —and learning — more effective.
For SCGSAH, preparing their students for professional careers has meant more than merely making the newest creative tools available. The school also wanted to ensure that the technology they invested in would enhance their students’ creative processes and efficiency. “The Wacom products help speed up the process of getting a result the students are thrilled with,” says Zachariah Inks, Visual Arts and Animation Instructor at SCGSAH.
Partnering with Wacom
Wacom products are not something new for SCGSAH. Intuos Pro tablets had been an asset in their visual arts program for years. There was a learning curve for the students with the Intuos Pro drawing tablets due to the lack of a display, however.
David Gerhard, Chair of the Visual Arts Department, shares: “With the Cintiqs, our students are able to feel the new technology in a very innate way. It feels like drawing with your hand. The older models worked great, but we had the disconnect with ‘I am drawing here and seeing it there.’ But now you are drawing right on the display. The learning curve has gone away.”
“Having a partnership with Wacom has provided tools that students are expected to know in the workplace. Having that experience gives students a leg up in their future.”
David Gerhard, Chair of SCGSAH Visual Arts Department
Time is a limited resource in the classroom, and the need to get students started quickly on their work is very important. Taking away the learning curve and providing a tool that is natural and intuitive is key. Inks says that the ability for students to quickly and easily move from traditional mediums into the world of digital allows students to iterate faster and get satisfying results.
“Because of tools like the Cintiq, our students are able to bring a lot of their traditional art practices to the program,” explains Gerhard. “[We’re bringing] the tradition forward. So, we see the textures they are learning about in painting class, [such as] and charcoal on paper, but we are able to utilize the Cintiq in a way that feels natural for an artist that maybe doesn’t feel comfortable with technology. They don’t feel that discomfort anymore.”
The Wacom Cintiq Pro displays feature 4K screens, superb color performance, enhanced ergonomics and a natural pen-on-screen experience users can fully immerse themselves in. All these features made the Cintiq Pro the correct decision for the staff and students of SCGSAH.
Implementation
The Governor’s school prides itself on being a pre-professional program, preparing students for their next steps, whether that is to higher education or directly into creative industry careers. With a variety of art studios on campus such as ceramics, photography, painting, and sculpture, the addition of the Wacom Cintiq Pro displays to graphic design and animation studios has provided access to industry-quality tools.
Student Reese Wiggins adds: “I was super excited to see that we were going to be getting the screen tablets. I know that it would help elevate my art and help me in so many different ways. Being able to use the screen as a secondary monitor for reference and being able to use the screen to directly draw on were both things that I was hugely looking forward to.”
“I have noticed an improvement in my speed and quality of my art both,” Wiggins continued. “Especially when it comes to things that I do digitally, [such as sculpting] in Blender. When it comes to sculpting, being able to work directly on that tablet helps it feel like I am still working with clay and being able to move it with my hands instead of feeling so detached from it as I would without the screen. When it comes to some of the 2D things I work on — usually it will be texturing — it really feels like I am just working with a paint brush or a pencil.”
It is always important to find the balance between traditional and digital within education, and even more so within the arts. The intuitive nature of the Wacom displays allow for the students to bridge that gap from traditional to digital.
“The Wacom Cintiq brings the intuitive nature,” adds Inks. “You can move from working in traditional mediums to the Cintiq. With the Wacom products, we are able to bridge the gap between pen and paper. It feels tactilely similar to pen and paper. We also use it a lot in the context of digital sculpting, so when you are translating those sculpting techniques to the digital world — there is a parallel there as well. The Wacom products allow us to really quickly move from the world that the student is currently comfortable in, to the digital world without a lot of friction. They are able to just do the work, focus on the art and not worry about the technology as much.”
Wacom for the win
Since implementing the Cintiq pro displays, Graphic Design instructor Chris Koelle says, “Students are getting experience with state-of-the-art technology that they will be using into the future in a professional career.”
Students benefit greatly from the addition of the Cintiq Pro displays into their classrooms. From long term career benefits to increased productivity in class, the students are pleased with the experience and work they are creating on the devices.
“Students are getting experience with state-of-the-art technology that they will be using into the future in a professional career”
Chris Koelle, SCGSAH Graphic Design Instructor
“I think both the quality and the speed of my artwork has improved, explains student Ellie Strom. “There is a lot less backing up with the Cintiq because I am drawing directly on the canvas, and I have a lot more control of my lines. That saves me a lot of time there. I feel like the responsiveness and pen sensitivity is better. It allows me to make smooth transitions from a large line weight to a fine line. It helps me get the vision from my head onto the screen.”
Wiggins agreed: “It has definitely helped my workflow. It helps speed it up while making sure that I am not losing the quality. If I were to just be using a mouse or trackpad on a computer or laptop, my workflow would be completely stumped. I wouldn’t be able to do what I do.”
Another student, Paige Dayton, summarizes the benefits of implementing the Cintiq Pro products into her educational experience: “Wacom tablets are the industry standard in animation. It’s very well known. Every college that I have toured has had the Wacom tablets. So being able to work on those tablets and using that equipment so early has been beneficial to my education and my future career because I am already familiar with these tools and resources that a lot of high school students are not familiar with. I have come to realize while using these tablets, just why they are the industry standard.”
