2015 - 2019

Studio Arts Major: Community College Associate's for Transfer to University

Beginning of Studio Arts Major

2D Art & Composition

Introduction to Computergraph

Beginning Drawing

Illustration

3D Art: Volume & Space

Life Drawing

Beginning Painting

Beginning of Studio Arts Major

After graduating high school, I didn't have a set plan of how to go about pursuing my dream career. I remember going to an Art Institute Open House, but being forced to leave when I didn't have a ride home when the event ended past midnight. I would get letters which were essentially advertisements for numerous computer science/animation colleges throughout the country, but I never entertained going to any of them since I'm poor and they seemed impossible. I stuck with going to community college until I figured myself out a bit more. I spent the first two years taking mostly general education classes, before moving to a computer science major for my third year. Math happened, I was doing horribly, and changed to studio arts since coding/programming just wasn't going to happen. My fourth year (Fall 2018 - Spring 2019) was solely dedicated to the studio arts major, taking multiple art/art history classes with transferable credits to CSULB, all of which are listed here, compiled with a good 95% of what I've done, sketches included.

During my fourth year at LBCC, I struggled with time management as I always did and put out projects that weren't up to my personal standard, but at least enough to get the grade.

2D Art & Composition

I took this course in my first semester of community college in Fall 2015. This class focused mostly on composition on a two-dimensional surface. Except for the last project done in colored pencils, all of our projects were done with magazines cutouts. I'm missing our first assignment, which was a simple composition and and black and white version of said composition.

This class was my first experience with having to create abstract expressionist art, since that seemed to be what the art world has evolved to embrace. Looking back, it seemed frustrating that I had to create something both abstract and "deep" because 1) I didn't feel like I was making something I felt passionate about and 2) it seem like a bunch of nonsense to assign meaning to things that don't have any. Regardless, I did my best to learn subtlety, even if I would have to explain the meaning behind certain things in my artwork during critiques. I'm still proud of the work I had created, even if over time my passion seemed waning.

Compositional Piece (colored pencils)

Introduction to Computergraph

This class was essentially a rehash of my Digital Art & Imaging class from freshman year, where I relearned Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, taken Spring 2017. To be honest, I can barely remember for the life of me what assignments I did for this class except for some reading and discussions, this image to the left, and a zoetrope that chronicled my dealing with ending of a near 3-year relationship, which is long gone.

I remember the prompt being that I take an image of any modern celebrity of sorts and attach it to a painting of a regal figure. I chose MF DOOM for the portrait, which I remember having trouble finding a suitable face, since most images weren't the best quality or hardly front-facing. I don't remember the name of the gentleman whose body I used for this photoshop exercise.

Below are other photoshop exercises. The left image carousel was just messing around with effects and such while the right was meant to be protest signs without words. The objective was to relay a message using symbols as with modern day texting.

Homework Assignments/Exercises

Beginning Drawing

Taken in Fall 2018, this class, along with Illustration, marked the true beginning of my Studio Arts major at Long Beach City College. As the name implies, it's a beginner course for the major and isn't even listed as one of the classes to take for General Education credits. This class focused on the seven elements of visual art: line, shape, form, color, value, space, and texture. We began pretty easily working with generally line, shape, form, and space before incorporating value and texture. We didn't use color at all the entire semester except for one class meeting where our professor told us to draw a composition with any coloring materials that wasn't for a grade. I forgot my materials and even lost the drawing I had done that day so I don't have them as part of any of the image carousels.

The left image carousel is of all notable homework assignments and exercises done on 9x12 paper while the bottom two are of bigger projects done on 18x24 paper.

What I took away is split myself up and create some sort of fighting game character select screen.
From bottom left highlighted clockwise explained:
1) Hawaiian Shirt Ron is on display almost 24/365
2) High Ron. Edibles. Self-explanatory
3) Ron Hansen is who I ideally would like to be. Confident, self-assuring, high self-esteem. Not there yet. And I want a throw a mean lariat.
4) Random Character Select
5) Anbu Black Ops Ron was a poorly made Halloween costume just because I saw the mask and it was worth the $10
6) Drinking Ron. I have become what I hate
7) Chicken Ron. I'm a chickenshit
8) Horse Ron is all the insecurities I hide behind this persona I've created since 10th grade ft. Kaia the cat
9) La Parka Ron is the result of getting a La Parka mask in LA just because and a skeleton spandex to go along with it
10) Weeb Ron in an All Might sweater I actually own. Combined with Ron Hansen, it will be the best version of myself no matter what.

"Pocket Drawing"

The prompt of this assignment was to carry a regular 8.5x11 piece of paper in your pocket and use it to draw or write anything at any given time. We were given a month to do the assignment and our only requirements being that all space being filled with something.

I left this homework assignment separate because this was a more personal. I remember a classmate in my Illustration class talking about people having multiple "masks" that represent how they act in different situations and circumstances. I grew a liking to masks and costumes, usually through cosplay, throughout my childhood, adolescent, and teenage years. I used the mask motif to represent the various ways I've represented in various social situations and different friend circles. I act differently depending on circumstances and from group to group, seeing varying aspects of me.

In-Class Projects

In-class Projects

Illustration

This class focused a lot on composition and applying it to storytelling and graphic design. Our professor encouraged us to use different mediums for each of our projects: starting with graphite, scratch board, inkwash/watercolor, and the final project with any medium. I enjoyed this class a ton, as our professor was very easy-going and helpful, working closely with his students often and giving legitimately great feedback.

3D Art: Volume & Space

Never take a 9AM - 3:30PM Saturday art class on a full-time student basis and with a job unless you can truly handle it.

This class was particularly frustrating: creatively, financially, and of my own issues. I got flashbacks to my time in 2D Art: Color & Composition where I felt I was creating abstract artwork meant to be "deep", but this time around, I didn't feel obligated to uphold that standard and drew inspiration from the literal; however, that would be my downfall.

My art suffered and didn't live up to the standards of my professor, as they preferred more organic and abstract pieces instead of "visually boring and uninteresting" aspects that lead to lower grades. We had four projects in total: low-relief sculpture made of foam core board, continuous line sculpture made of iron wire, a sculpture made to house an important item(s), and a sculpture meant to fit ourselves in.

I no longer own my third project, as I felt it was a failure and immediately discarded it after critique (I got a pretty low C if I remember correctly). I had intended to make a case to house some of my gaming paraphernalia, especially my Nintendo handhelds and their add-ons like Link Cable, Action Replay cheat device, and the devices themselves. I originally planned to take apart an old large PS2 model to convert into that case, but it didn't make sense to put Nintendo products in a Sony compartment. I changed the outer shell to look like a large Nintendo DS Lite, by taking apart an old laptop I owned, keeping the top and bottom shell. Using leftover foam core board to create dividers, bits of wood to represent the inner shell, and lining the inside with cloth, with ink painted all over and sheets of plastic and construction board meant to represent the top DS screen, I spent some 8 hours, ending around midnight and starting again at 4-5am quickly putting together this assignment or risk getting lowered one letter grade. It got poor reviews from my professor and peers alike and I agree with them.

This was another class taken for the transferable credit rather than chosen out of my own volition.

The fourth project, the "Housing-in Sculpture" was frustrating and a factor low mental point during that semester

Self-Portrait (Life Drawing, 4 hours)

Life Drawing

Taken in Spring 2019, this was my first time having the opportunity to draw nude models in real time, taking drawing from observation to a different level for me. We first started out with quick 1 minute to 2 minute sketches before we gradually increased our time to close to an hour or so for a single pose.

We didn't have a lot of huge projects, as each class usually had a different model and we would constantly shift agendas. We had two portfolios for the entire semester due, one mid-term and one final, which wasn't really difficult if you showed up for class and used your time wisely.

My professor for this class was really nice and despite the late class time (6:30PM - 9:45PM), was very understanding of personal issues, and at the same time, a great teacher who loved doing what they do.

4 Hour Self-Portrait

Beginning Painting

This was my first class trying out oil painting in Spring 2019. We first began with a monochrome painting, using titanium white and black, learning value in painting, before moving onto using colors.

Our color theory exercises began with painting fruit from observation, having to use our three hour class periods to knock out a small painting utilizing various color harmonies (listed under each image caption to the left). We also created a color chart by mixing two colors (2/3 of top & 1/3 of the left column) to help expand our color palettes for our final project.

Visions

Alluding to the Pocket Drawing, I reused the mask motif for a scene study, using more masks I owned and various eye wear to revisit the concept. As you saw with the previous image carousel, we painted from still life objects. For our final project, we were allowed to paint whatever subject material we could, granted it was there in person.

"The masks are who I am, and whoever is underneath simply does not exist" was the general message I was putting here.

Beginning Painting and Life Drawing in Spring 2019 were the among the last two major art courses required to receive my Associate's in Studio Art to Transfer. If I was properly on top of things, I could have started at California State University of Long Beach later in Fall 2019. However, the deadline to transfer was the year before in Fall apparently, so I had to wait over half a year to start to see if I were up to snuff.

Spoiler alert: Could've been better.