Preparing for the AP art and design portfolio is important to students success in the course. The portfolio should result in a body of work that the artist/student is proud of and connected to on a personal level. In truth the students are fully engaging in the artistic process.

I strongly recommend that student engage in the ideation and investigative process of their portfolio during the summer before they take the course. This allows students to think through their ideas at a gradual pace before embarking on the time needed to create the work in the studio.

Activities I recommend are artistic behaviors that the majority of students interested in the course are already doing - sketchbook exploration, looking at art, etc.