Preamble

Hi, I'm Jonah. I'm a student at the Academy At Charlemont, but not for very long. It's my senior year, and I'm going to be graduating in a couple of months. Part of that graduation involves me completing a senior project-- which is what you're looking at right now. Going into this, I was trying to figure out the best way I could get this whole thing to serve me; what I could get out of it. I've always wanted to be a creative, a writer, an artist, and so incorporating those things into my project seemed like a no-brainer. However when it came to deciding my subject matter, it felt like the most natural thing to put the focus on were the people who helped enable me to get to this spot in the first place. The models of mine that I decided to do portraits of and interview are all my real world role models, and crucial figures in the past four years of my life. Through their actions and personalities, they've demonstrated what being an adult, let alone a person, means to me. Through this project, and it's exhibition, I hope to inspire my viewers to look around their own lives for the people who've always had their best interests. In sharing my own role models with you, I hope you can see them in the way I do, and really appreciate just how awesome they really are.

The Models

Conclusion

I understand that unless your being paid to grade this, you're likely not going to consume all of the work and effort I put into this project. That wasn't really the point of all this anyways. The goals I set on, that of challenging myself, learning something new, and incorporating my role models, were successful I feel. Now, when I think of the purpose of art, I'll think of the essay by Jon Vervoort Rafael mentioned. Now in the future when I think of how my mom was able to managed, I won't have to wonder. Curiosity was not only quelled, but has been expanded upon. Now theres new layers, new questions, to the people who I thought I already knew pretty well. I think in general this project has left me a better and more nuanced person than as it found me. 

So, what is the conclusion of Gratitude Through Graduation? Think for a second. Who loves you? Do they have to? What makes them? Write a good question down. It could be about anything. Call them. Ask. Ask, ask, ask. Eventually, you will start to talk. If we don't let each other know we care about one another, then what do we have? I believe we're all bursting at the seams with amazing ideas, and complex interesting philosophies. Far more interesting and informative than whatever a stranger could tell you through a book. So go call some one and go ask some thing. You only got knowledge to gain and an audience to give. 

Reflection

I believe there were many things I could have done better in this project. Regardless, I am proud of what was accomplished. I didn't finish my paintings by their intended deadline of May 5th,  but I believe I appreciated all the right people. Originally this project was going to be larger, with maybe five models, but I narrowed it down to people who I knew more intimately.  My paintings obviously arn't the best, but I'm glad this was my first step taken into the medium. I think this was a really positive introduction, and taught me a lot about the logistics of painting, let alone doing an exhibition of this scale. I think it could have definitely benefitted from more of my investment and time. I also think on the other hand however that I gave it my all. Recently I've been thinking of this quote from Ursala K. Leguin that's "two people can do three jobs, but one person cant do two." I've been trying to have a lot of jobs. 

I want to be a writer, and an artist, and a student, but also a good person. I've been wondering if this is a flaw of mine. If maybe as an adult I'll have to focus on something instead of being so broad. I hope not. Maybe I could be a great writer, or a great artist, but not both. In my heart I know where my inclinations lie. This project has really made me face this concern of mine. In asking others about who they are, I'm now having to ask the question to myself. Who am I? Am I an artist? Am I interesting? Am I smart? I don't know, and I've sort of come to not really care. I'm just Jonah, man. I write, I play, I'll notice things, and I'll sometimes talk too. We try and put each other into boxes to better understand each other; but we aren't in any boxes, we just are boxes. In my box are the things I love, and in your's are the things you love. I think my project is an unfortunate example of this. My questions to Rafael are about him being an art teacher. My question's to my mom are about motherhood. Gabe and Sal's questions are about their relationship to one another. While this provided my project with some very helpful structure, and made things easier to understand, they (the models) are so much more than just their roles to me. If I could go back, I think I would like to focus more on my people as their own boxes (so to speak.) I want to ask them about what they love. Their favorite type of music, favorite memory of the outdoors, favorite recipe. I think the questions I did ask were good though, but in hindsight, not as representative of their person as I'd wish.