Advanced/AP art and design

Final Reflection 

Through my artist journey this school year, I have developed a new sense of skill. I have explored various mediums and experimented with their possibilities. For example, we made encaustic pieces earlier in the year. We all began to create simple designs and experiment with the wax. We learned that the wax becomes very hot and can melt quickly so you have to work pretty fast. Subsequently, by brushing several coats evenly across the board, you can form a cool-looking base that you can then add smaller details onto. We also made embroidered pieces out of yarn and fabric. We all had a good sense of sewing with a needle and thread, however, as far as creating a design, we had to go through some trial and error. Personally, I was very frustrated with this unit, however the more I sewed, the easier it got. I had trouble with simply putting the thread through the needle hole and then some trouble with actually embroidering. I found that if you tie good and lengthy knots beforehand as well as getting the right amount of yarn, the process could go much faster. 

Clearly, some of my works are better than others. I really enjoy painting and portrait-style pieces. Most of my pieces are paintings (as well as the portrait paintings). I think all of the portraits (near the end of my portfolio) are my strongest works and really represent my strength in painting and portrait-making. Some of my earlier pieces, for example sustained investigation #6, show my weakness in experimenting with materials I don't usually use -- as well as mixing materials poorly. I used colored pencil and marker in that piece and it turned out looking messy and smudged. That work overall is pretty boring and doesn’t show what I’m capable of creating. Moreover the pieces where I didn’t have much of a plan are usually the weaker ones. For example the encaustic one shows how I didn’t take a lot of time to really learn the concept and explore my abilities with it. My experimentation of it was also my final piece, which didn’t turn out looking good. 

I’d say the embroidery unit was the most challenging. I became very frustrated with it and realized that it was going to take me a long time. As I stated above, I had trouble even getting the thread in the needle. As the project went on, I found myself facing more roadblocks as the yarn would get tangled and stuck in the fabric (due to my poor choice in knot tying and simply stitching on the wrong side every now and then). 

As I stated above, my portrait pieces are some of my favorites. To be more distinct, the one I did of Theo and his sister is definitely one of my favorites. Along with the message and power behind it, I’m just really satisfied with how it came out. Crazily, I did this in the quickest amount of time (it took me a long time duration wise but it was two days that I banged it out where I usually don’t do that with any other pieces). I’m very satisfied with the technique shown and also the power behind their facial expressions. Some could interpret this as a simple scene with two kids laughing. Others could view this as a symbol of memory, grief, or honor. 

This summer I plan to paint with my grandma by the water as this is one of our favorite activities. As far as the future, I’m planning on doing art more for fun (not a school construct). I plan on doing art my whole life and hope to not lose too much interest, yet right now I am keeping it at a relaxing and chilled-out state. Additionally, I don't know if this fully counts as an artistic goal. But I have recently been learning guitar and really enjoy it -- so I hope to carry that out for the summer and the rest of my life.