2D Design

By taking 2D Design this semester, I feel as though I have grown immensely as a visual artist. Prior to taking 2D Design, I found it hard to make art outside my comfort zone, which was basically limited to watercolor painting. This is apparent through my work this semester, as you can see my first few projects using actual materials, like my "Beautiful Oops" and "Circle Project" were both done in watercolor and thin pen. While I was and still am very proud of those pieces, you can tell that my comfort with other materials and techniques grew throughout this class. I started working with acrylic paint, which I used to despise, and found techniques that worked for me. My "Macro Leaf" project was the first acrylic project that I felt very confident in, and I enjoyed using new materials and challenging my skills. After that, I started experimenting with materials that I had never used or only used briefly in Foundations of Art during freshman year. Using linoleum carving and ink in my "Abstract Emotion Design" was challenging, and I got frustrated while making print after print. It was the first material that felt very foreign to me, and I had many trial and errors while layering watercolor on top of the ink. That experience improved my problem-solving skills, and I eventually went back and used that material again (Inclusion Project), feeling more confident in doing so. During this course, I also found a love for paint pens, and did two projects using them as my main materials (Find Your Voice & Inclusion). You can see my improvement with the paint pens, as the concentration of the color is much better in my "Inclusion Project" than in my "Find Your Voice" piece. Finally, my improvement with acrylic paint is visually improved from the start of this course, and my "Donate Life" piece is actually my favorite of all of the projects I've done this semester.

The most challenging project for me during this course was the "Inclusion" project. I found it hard to get inspiration for this project and the concept challenged me a lot for some reason. I wasn't extremely proud of my piece, while it did have good composition, I feel as though I could've thought outside the box more and challenged my skills. On the other hand, I am most proud of my "Donate Life" piece. Like I said earlier, acrylic paint used to be my enemy. I was really proud that I used it as my main material, and during this project, I found a liking for impressionist-like painting. I was most proud of the mark making and the color, as I felt like it was very pleasing to look at. I also challenged myself in this project by doing mixed-media, which is something I had never tried before.

My work illustrates my strengths as a learner because it is very clear that using new materials and working outside my comfort zone can be a struggle, however, once I do challenge myself, I always want to perfect my skills with that material. I think my work also illustrates my weaknesses as a learner, because I don't always challenge my skills when given specific prompts, like the "Inclusion" project and the "Word Design". Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this course and feel as though my skills as an artist and a learner have really grown.