Foundations of Art

Final Exam: Written Reflection

My overall experience in Foundations of Art was very stressful as well as challenging, mainly because of my habit of taking a while on assignments. However, I would not change my decision to take this class. The challenge this class brought made me grow as a student in a way that I don’t think I would have otherwise. I also came out of this class with a greater respect for art and artists and a deeper understanding of techniques and the principles of art. 

As a learner, I believe that I have many of both strengths and weaknesses, which is something that can be seen throughout my artwork. Specifically, a way in which I struggle as a learner is time management, which is portrayed through some of my works due to their lack of smaller details or a disregard for visible pencil lines or brush strokes, resulting from rushing. However, even though these smaller details may have been rushed occasionally, I also believe that it is through these details that one of my strengths as a learner is demonstrated. I like to think that I am relatively observant, and I try to include every detail that I have time to add to my work, so I would say that being observant is one of my strengths as a learner, especially in art class. This also connects to how my work shows my improvement. From the Surrealism project to my most recent: The assemblage sculpture, I see a noticeable difference in my quality of work. There is a much greater inclusion of detail, and my work appears to be much less rushed, which I think is a result of my improvement in managing my time. Though this is something that I am still working on, I think my work makes it evident that I am improving, at least a little.

Out of all of the artwork I created this year, the project that was the most challenging for me was the linoleum prints; specifically the carving portion of this assignment, merely because it did not appeal to me the same way in which creating the other projects did. I also found this challenging because while carving the linoleum block it was very difficult for me to include small details. However, the project that I created this year that I am most proud of is the charcoal drawing for the mixed media unit. This project isn’t one that is necessarily my favorite in terms of my skill, but I learned a lot from doing it, such as how to utilize white and black charcoal, and it also enhanced my knowledge of depth, shapes, textures, and matching values when creating art. Additionally, I am proud of this project because of the time that I put into it. I chose to do this project on paper that was 18" x 24", which made the smaller details more crucial and also made the overall project more time-consuming as there was more surface area to cover up.

For the future, my goals for art are to get art done in a more timely manner, which I will get better at doing by continuing to make art over the summer, and throughout my life. Another goal that I have is to further work on my craft and technique, and make sure I don’t rush my work.