DNA and DNSEP

The Art option

It offers a course that takes place gradually, from the first to the fifth year: from learning a plastic language to acquiring a vocabulary suitable for carrying out a singular and autonomous project. Teachers – artists, designers, theorists, historians – work to cross disciplines which involve the student in complex plastic thinking and diversified practices. In this sense, the School is a place of experimentation, exchanges and resources, where knowledge and practices are transmitted and where courses are built together.

The Design option

The Design option trains designers capable of adapting, researching, and developing projects in diverse creative situations. Based on project-based learning, it aims to develop mastery of experimentation and design methodologies while placing social, ecological, and economic dimensions at the heart of the learning process.
The program is based on an open, collaborative teaching approach, where each student can choose a theme, method, or area of ​​exploration related to their personal research. The approaches are multifaceted and interdisciplinary: design of material forms (objects, artifacts), critical design, speculative storytelling, contextual design, etc.
The curriculum is structured around the experimental and collaborative project "Design in Common," implemented from Cycle 1 to Cycle 2. Conceived as a laboratory for experimentation, it engages students in socially embedded contexts, in partnership with local organizations and/or communities. This project places "making with" and "making within" the heart of design practice. It invites students to rethink the role of the designer, no longer as an observer, but as a participant in relationship, in constant dialogue with social and material environments.
Students learn to co-create sustainable forms, to cultivate meaningful narratives, and to develop proposals based on situated actions and shared, lived forms of collective intelligence. It's less about "designing for" than about imagining with, starting from uses, everyday gestures, and the realities of the territory.
Rooted in an environment rich in resources and know-how — ceramics, wood, leather — and linked to an active artisanal and industrial network, the School offers a unique learning environment, where research, creativity and experimentation are articulated with reality.
At Ensad, the Design option is conceived as a space for reflection, debate, and creation, at the crossroads of pedagogy, collaborative thinking, and engagement. It promotes situational design that articulates creativity, critical thinking, and consideration for others, becoming a lever for rethinking the purposes of design, its social impact, and its transformative potential.

The Ceramics mention

The ceramics specialization spans both options and draws upon the fields of art and design to offer a unique perspective on contemporary creation. The ceramics workshop encompasses the entire production chain (modeling, throwing, molding, casting, glazing, decorating, and firing). It demonstrates the student's engagement in exploring the material, its meaning, and its techniques.

Contemporary jewelry

Only issued in Limoges, the Contemporary Jewelry designation represents a real opportunity for recognition and attractiveness. Ensad Limoges is the only school, with that of Strasbourg, to offer this type of specific training in the field of contemporary artistic creation in general, and more particularly within higher education in art schools.

alternating

For the past three years, Ensad Limoges has offered the opportunity to prepare for the DNSEP through a work-study program. Currently, only the second cycle (Master 2 and 1) is eligible for this program. Finding an employer is the student's responsibility, and the Limousin Academic CFA assists the company in signing the apprenticeship contract.

The work-study program takes place at a pace of two weeks at school and two weeks at the company, but can be flexible depending on the company. The latter may be located in the region or in another region.

The school supports the student and adapts the curriculum to suit the context. While this type of training is a valuable experience and provides concrete preparation for professional life, it requires daily commitment and is aimed at organized and motivated students.

Hyphenation

The gap year is an optional system which allows students to suspend their training for an academic year, with the aim of acquiring new skills, having professional or associative experiences, etc.