AP Drawing

Sustained Investigation Semester 1 Reflection 

Final Reflection

Jillian Wight

Medsker

AP Art and Design 

28 April 2023

I love this class because each year I surprise myself with the ways that my work develops and changes.  Towards the end of last year, I was really loving what I was creating.  This year, I’ve struggled a bit more to find my style, and my art has been more about practicing new approaches.  One element of art I focused on especially was space.  I’ve pushed myself to play with space in new ways and find what works.  In September, I created a piece called Clock’s Tickin.  My subject broke the border and hung off a significant amount.  Later in the year, I drew Stranger Danger! In which my subject, again, broke the border, but this time I was much more intentional and revised so that the choice was both meaningful (emphasizing the threatening nature of my figure) and visually valuable.  I’ve had fun playing with borders since then, such as in my piece What’s your next move?.  I’ve also had a lot of fun working to improve my composition skills.  In pieces like Boo-boo and “I’ve got some irons in the fire” I used proximity, a tight crop, and even warped my subject to engage all the edges of the piece.  These compositions have so much more intrigue than my earlier ones, such as Don’t Get Old, which is a little disorganized and overwhelming to the eye.  I think that as this class went on, I also improved my ability to create focused and evocative color schemes (like in “Don’t cry because it’s over!” or Earth Angels!), and got better at exploring new perspectives that better highlight my theme (such as the fishbowl perspective of What’s your next move?).  In addition to learning lots about my artwork, this class highlighted some of my strengths and weaknesses as a learner, which are evident in my body of work.  A strength that I think has emerged is experimentation.  Many of my pieces are created with different materials, most of which I would have considered myself uncomfortable with before this year.  I used linoleum block printing, acrylic paint (both with a brush and by fingerpainting), needlepoint, watercolor, chalk pastel, etc.  And even those pieces which use the same material, like oil pastel, vary a lot in color scheme, perspective, shape, and detail level.  My goal was to push myself artistically and I think I did just that!  Another strength I showed this year was my ability to accept and absorb feedback.  I listened to critiques, and revised a number of my works!  I added engaging backgrounds that contextualized the image (such as in Stranger Danger!), I rethought compositions that didn’t articulate my theme or were too boring (Down to Earth, for example), I added darker shadows to better highlight my subject (like in Don’t Get Old).  In each of these instances, I was much happier with the final product.  I really enjoy critiques, because the feedback I get is always a helpful new perspective and an opportunity to grow!  I also struggled with some weaknesses this year.  As always, I had a tough time with time management.  Some of my pieces were a little more rushed than I would have liked, which meant I made them very small, or I didn’t think them out and work/revise the idea as I should have.  This is something I really want to work on, because I think my body of work could have been stronger if I’d left myself time to make adjustments and iron out my plans before creating a final draft.  Another weakness I encountered was my grasp of the concept, material synthesis.  I tried my best to use my materials intentionally, and there are definitely some strong instances, such as my needlepoint piece, my use of stickers, glitter, and fireplace ashes in some of my works, or my connection of oil pastels to crayons and bright colors that reflect childhood.  However, I think on the whole my use of material synthesis was a bit of an afterthought where it could have been an unconventional driving force behind my works.  Still, I’m glad I thought about it consistently, and I hope to continue this habit in the future.  

This year, the biggest challenge for me was translating the skills and style I developed in AP 2D Design to AP Drawing.  I think that last year, I thought a lot about what the standards for my portfolio were, and really intentionally worked on each one.  This year, I kind of did the same thing, but I don’t think I had a strong grasp of what AP Drawing really entails.  I had a really hard time bridging the gap between design and drawing, and as a result, I struggled to push shadows and highlights in my works, as well as texture and mark making.  Though I made a consistent effort, I think I was a little too attached to my personal style, and was afraid to step out of my comfort zone in that respect and risk not liking the product.  Towards the end I began to work through this challenge, and I created pieces like “I’ve got some irons in the fire” which I think reflect who I am as an artist and the criteria of the drawing portfolio nicely.  However, this is definitely something I’ll continue working on going forward.  On the other hand, I am most proud this year of my use of a variety of materials I was previously unfamiliar to, and the difference between my work this year compared to last.  Without realizing it, I developed a pattern of creating pieces of a similar type that are very different from the detail-focused, precise work I created in the past.  Now, I feel more free to be messy, focus on large, single, or even multiple subjects, and mix and layer colors.  I think in exploring new ways of creating and expressing myself, I’ve expanded my horizons as an artist!  And, in familiarizing myself with different materials, I’ve given myself the ability to delve into new projects confident that I can work in a wide range of mediums that will enhance and support my final product.  I’m really proud of this skill, and I know it will serve me well! 

Next year, I’m headed to SCAD to study illustration!  I’m so so excited to be in a place with so many creative minds working together.  I’m especially excited that all my general education courses will be approached through the lens of art.  My artistic goals as I leave high school are to keep creating over the summer, even if it’s super casual.  I want to keep a sort of doodle journal, because when I was touring schools, a professor told me that every day I don’t draw is a wasted day that I didn’t give myself a chance to come up with something new and exciting.  Once I start school, my goal is to keep a really open mind and continue to push myself out of my comfort zone.  I want to experiment with scale, with more materials, with some 3D work, etc.  I want to stay open to feedback and use the kind of critiques I’ll get in art school to really distinguish myself!  It’s so cool to finally be taking steps towards what I’ve always wanted to do!

. . .