Sustained Investigation Reflection

The Inquiry question I chose to focus on was the following "What can I create that relates to fishing?" I wanted to create a reativly open ended question that could be seen in multiple lights. I initially thought that I might craft a tackle box or a fishing vest, things that related to fishing but weren't necassarily fish. However with my concussion that I got about a quarter of the way into this project things got more complicated and I started running out of time. I chose to focus on fish and fishing because thats what I mostly do over the summer and thats all I could focus on by the end of the year. I also wanted to show the raw beauty of fish and I feel like I was succsesful in this with at least the 2 fish sculptures.

My sculptures built on each other as my craftsmenship got better and grew in the process of creating. In the first project "Trash Luers," I carved lobster bouy foam with a swiss army knife to create the shape for the popper luer and it turned out rather crude. I took this knowledge of foam carving and put it into my next project, "Plight of the Ocean," in which I carved foam to creat the base. I knew more about foam the second time around and had learned that I must be more patient and careful with my carving. Once I had finished carving the foam I wrapped it in paper mache, a skill I had to learn but then used again in "Yellow Finn," in which my paper mache abilities were much better than before and I was able to shape the body a lot better. This is how I showed expiramentation and revision. The thinking aspect comes into play in my first andsecond projects which were some what of an enviornmental statement of the condition of our oceans.

My sculptures were thoroughly planned out although some of them changed or were modified from my original sketches. I have faced agressive artist block in this class and in this sustained investigation especially, so I spent lots of time in the sketchbook planning and refining my ideas. You can also see in my sketches that I planned out what materials I was going to use in the projects and this actually came to be quite helpful yet time consuming. The material I used was also reflected in the art as it was just any old art supplies from Amazon or Micheals. The material mattered the most in the first project, "Trash Luers," where I collected trash on the beach and hand crafted them into useable fishing luers. I wanted to show that luers and art can be made out of anything including trash discarded by fisherman. The visual relationship in my materials reflected the best in the second project where I encased the sculpture in enviornmental articles. A viewer is able to see (if they have a keen eye) that "Plight of the Ocean" is a statement as much as it is a school assaignment.

My work took time, effort, caffine, advil, numerous sketchbook pages, unholy amounts of adhesive materials, lots of white paint and careful thought and imagination. If you look at the project in the order they were produced you can see my artistic skills growing by the project. I got more confident, techincal and advanced in each step of the way.

3D Class Evaluation

My work this year has been unlike any art that I have ever created before, even including the few 3-dimensional projects I created in middle and elementary school. This year in 3D design I worked with wire, plaster clay, cardboard, paper mache, alginate, miscelanious adhesive materials and so much more. I had zero previos expirience working with most mediums used in class this year. Clay kicked my butt every time I tried to create with it and that was a big hurdle or challenge for me this year. I stopped using clay imeadiatly after the clay unit ended because I was afraid I would get defeated again, but cardboard was a material that I used often and in various forms.

My work has come such a long way since the start of the semester and that is very evident and you can literaly see the progress in my work the more recent it is. I leared how to craft with so many different mediums including clay and plaster. My first project of the year was a cardboard relief where the only materials I used were cardboard and hot glue. My most complicated project of the year started with a plaster model of my own hands and I carved it, painted it, chipped at it and finally added trees and moss to make it look like a pacific island. That project (The Human Jungle) included plaster, acrylic paint, hot glue, super glue, toothpicks and wax paint. I really struggled with coming up with ideas in this class especially after my concussion in the middle of the sustained investigation unit. But when I finally did come up with an idea they were always bigger and better than the preceeding project.

The most challenging sculpture for me this year was either the first clay project (Mo-Eye) or my second sustained investigation (Plight of the Ocean). The Mo-Eye project was especially tricky because I was only learning how to use clay and so far I have never struggled more with any other medium than clay. I really struggled with not having the clay dry out and not having a shape that looked like a sweet potato. Eventually I changed the idea of what I wanted my project to look like to fit the clay's needs. The Plight of the Ocean project was also really hard for me because I got a severe concussion half way through the creating process, I eneded up taking about a week off from art because I was too tired to do anything creative and I never truly caught back up in the class and I felt super time crunched for the rest of the time.

Another project I struggled with big time was the plaster hand project which I already discussed above. I loved the almost renasaince look that they had in their pure white state and my mom even had them on the book shelf, and it was super hard to intially alter them especially because my first coat of green looked absoltly awful. However by the time the project was finished and was looking quite tropical I loved it, and it is one of my favorite pieces I have ever created.

I plan on continuing art and I cant see why I would stop, the only thing is the art that I create is very time consuming and I'm a busy person. I was even painting and creating when I was recovering from my concussion. An obstacle I have to deal with is fitting art into my schedule of school, sports, school-sports, work and socializing, things I prioritze over art either because I have to or for my mental health. A style of art I would love to teach myself or learn this summer would be sewing as I was absolutly in awe of what Jillian Wight and Macy Jonsson did for their sustained investigation projects. 3D design was hands down the worst and most trying, soul crushing, creativity depriving class I have ever particapated in, yet it pushed me into a design space with mediums I'm not sure I would have ever used before.