Reflection:

I chose to use acrylic paint for this piece because I knew I’d be able to build up layers to my liking, and I’m more familiar with the medium, so I knew I’d be able to control the opacity of the sheets of music, and I wanted my first piece to act almost as a warm up, to get myself into the groove of things. Additionally my process of building up layers to a finished work is reminiscent of the layers that go into creating music. I used actual sheet music to “Sweet Baby James” by James Taylor in my piece, recreating the ukulele version of the song on my piece, since that song was a lullaby for me growing up, and still holding a large comforting presence in my life, and I found it super meaningful to include in this painting.

My piece shows evidence of practice and revision through both my process photos and my planning on my iPad, where I was constantly experimenting with different ideas while I worked. I built up multiple layers, and revised different areas and I found more effective ways to communicate my ideas. I experimented with the different opacities of the paint, as well as using an acrylic medium to help with blending and drying time, something I wasn’t used to, but really enjoyed. My question made me consider how other aspects of my room are also musical, like the vinyls on my wall, or the band posters above my head, and how other ways music is a comfort to me, not just during sleep. 

My next piece is going to look into how music affects my emotions, and since I used a physical analogy in my last piece, I plan on doing something similar in my next one. Using the concept of “putting on clothes” and how different music genres affect my mood and personality for that day, like how putting on different clothes might affect how I express myself. I also think I’m going to challenge myself by incorporating different facial expressions, as well as going for a more realistic look.