1.) The project that I felt was the most challenging yet still successful in the end, is my self portrait drawing. I felt that this piece was one of the most challenging projects that we had to complete during this class for multiple reasons. First, as an individual, I feel that trying to draw people is already hard, but trying to draw yourself is much harder because you don't always want to recognize every tiny detail in your appearance. Many times when working on this project, I found that in order to really be successful in making the drawing recognizable as myself, I had to just pretend I wasn't looking at myself. Instead, I just looked at every tiny detail one at a time and just told myself that this project was no different from any other. I also found myself very nervous when I first started the final project because I started at the key features of the face; first the eyes, then the nose, then the mouth. I felt more nervous about this part than other components of the project because these features are what give away a person's true individuality. You have to be incredibly accurate in the eyes especially in order to portray your own personality within them. The final challenge in this drawing for me was the hair. Initially, I did not feel worried about drawing the hair, but as I went on, I got more and more nervous. The hair is very challenging because you want to be able to capture the detail to make it as realistic as possible, but not too much detail, because it could end up seeming unrealistic if you accidentally add more detail than you could see in the photo. I overcame this final obstacle by taking my time so that I could work carefully. I started out with very light values, and then as I continued, I slowly built up the layers so I could incorporate highlights and shadows. In the end, I believe my final piece was successful because I overcame all the major challenges that came along with a self portrait and made the final drawing a recognizable representation of myself.
2.) How do you describe your artistic style/perspective? How do you define success as an artist? What do you find most rewarding about being an artist? What are some of the most important skills you draw upon to create your work? What are some of the most significant things you've learned through art-making?
I would describe my artistic style and perspective as very realistic and detail-oriented, and also in ways represents the things that I feel strongly about. I feel like my most successful artwork has been when I chose to do an animal or something else that could represent how I feel about the protecting the environment because I believe that I often produce a better final project when I am drawing something that I enjoy and feel passionate about. I am also very realistic though because I am much better at drawing realistic pieces from photos rather than doing abstract work. I define success as an artist as feeling powerful. When producing a piece of artwork, I believe that my project was successful if it made me feel stronger because I felt like it represented who I am or what I love to do. Being an artist, I find that the most rewarding part is when I finish a final project because I can look back at it and understand why I put so much time and effort into it. When I look back at my artwork, I feel good inside because I feel like I have accomplished something. Some important skills that I draw upon when creating my work include, being extremely careful, being patient, and having a good eye for every tiny detail. I think that my alligator drawing is a good representation of this question because it shows how I take my time to include every tiny detail, as well as the use of other techniques that are very useful in art, such as drawing out the bright white highlights first and working around them in order to show the opacity of the water and glass with reflections. Through art-making, I have learned the key to patience because, if you really put time into it, you can make any artwork look just as you imagined it.
I would describe my artistic style and perspective as very realistic and detail-oriented, and also in ways represents the things that I feel strongly about. I feel like my most successful artwork has been when I chose to do an animal or something else that could represent how I feel about the protecting the environment because I believe that I often produce a better final project when I am drawing something that I enjoy and feel passionate about. I am also very realistic though because I am much better at drawing realistic pieces from photos rather than doing abstract work. I define success as an artist as feeling powerful. When producing a piece of artwork, I believe that my project was successful if it made me feel stronger because I felt like it represented who I am or what I love to do. Being an artist, I find that the most rewarding part is when I finish a final project because I can look back at it and understand why I put so much time and effort into it. When I look back at my artwork, I feel good inside because I feel like I have accomplished something. Some important skills that I draw upon when creating my work include, being extremely careful, being patient, and having a good eye for every tiny detail. I think that my alligator drawing is a good representation of this question because it shows how I take my time to include every tiny detail, as well as the use of other techniques that are very useful in art, such as drawing out the bright white highlights first and working around them in order to show the opacity of the water and glass with reflections. Through art-making, I have learned the key to patience because, if you really put time into it, you can make any artwork look just as you imagined it.
3.) Choose 2 mini lessons that you felt were the most beneficial in your learning for that particular project. Include photos of these and explain thoroughly. Do you feel you needed more instruction for success? Explain or did you feel that the instruction given was enough to ensure success? Explain.
The first mini lesson that I felt was very beneficial to my learning for a particular project was the ribbon that we used when practicing the use of white prisma colored pencils on black paper. I thought that this lesson was very useful for multiple reasons. One, it allowed us to practice using white on black for the first time. This practice helped us adjust to having to draw the light parts of a picture instead of the darker parts. I felt that this lesson was especially useful to me when we had to draw fabric because it helped us become better at using a white medium on black paper. I also thought that this mini lesson was useful to me for the vase drawing we did because the skills we used when drawing highlights for this drawing allowed me to have more success with drawing the vase on black paper. The second mini lesson that I found beneficial was the pumpkin colored pencil drawing. I thought that this mini project was very useful because it introduced the class to using prisma colored pencil. Even though I have used prisma colored pencils before, I found this project helpful because it helped boost my skills in layering different colors. This mini lesson also helped contribute to my vase drawing because it allowed my to better understand the blending of the pencils to create realistic coloring. For both of these mini projects, I felt like we were given enough instruction to ensure success because all the steps for creating a good piece were given to us very clearly. |
4.) Look over the portfolios of other students in our class. Choose a piece of artwork from one of your classmates that you feel is an exemplary showcase of what the project was to depict. Discuss how the artist used the medium, utilized the elements of art and design principles, was original with their ideas and went beyond their comfort zone or the realm of the requirements.
When I looked through the portfolios of other students in my class, I chose Abby's opacity project as an exemplary showcase of what the project was meant to depict. For her opacity project, she drew two bottles honey, using colored pencil as her medium. I felt like Abby's project was the perfect example of the opacity project and that she depicted it very well to meet the requirements for the assignment because she really put in her full effort in making this a wonderful piece. First, she followed the basic instructions for the opacity assignment by starting out by only drawing the white highlights, but then she built up the color around them to create the great, realistic piece that she finished with. I also thought that she did a wonderful job depicting the 3-dimensional aspect of the bottles, especially the bear shaped one. She was able to utilize her skills with white highlights, as well as some shadowing to give it an even more realistic appearance. I thought that her piece depicted the opacity project so well, because of the clearness of the bottles. I thought that the emphasis of the honey sticking to the side of the bottle, especially in the farther back bottle, really emphasized the opacity by allowing us to see exactly how each of the bottles appear in real life.
Abby's art website is: https://abbyf-apex-18.weebly.com/drawing
When I looked through the portfolios of other students in my class, I chose Abby's opacity project as an exemplary showcase of what the project was meant to depict. For her opacity project, she drew two bottles honey, using colored pencil as her medium. I felt like Abby's project was the perfect example of the opacity project and that she depicted it very well to meet the requirements for the assignment because she really put in her full effort in making this a wonderful piece. First, she followed the basic instructions for the opacity assignment by starting out by only drawing the white highlights, but then she built up the color around them to create the great, realistic piece that she finished with. I also thought that she did a wonderful job depicting the 3-dimensional aspect of the bottles, especially the bear shaped one. She was able to utilize her skills with white highlights, as well as some shadowing to give it an even more realistic appearance. I thought that her piece depicted the opacity project so well, because of the clearness of the bottles. I thought that the emphasis of the honey sticking to the side of the bottle, especially in the farther back bottle, really emphasized the opacity by allowing us to see exactly how each of the bottles appear in real life.
Abby's art website is: https://abbyf-apex-18.weebly.com/drawing
5.) What medium was your favorite to work with? Explain why and how you were able to master the techniques associated with this medium.
My favorite medium to work with was colored pencil. I really love using colored pencils because of the techniques that I can use with them. First, I love how smooth the final piece looks once you have reached the point where the drawing is shiny with none of the paper showing through. I love the use of colored pencils to add very small details. I was able to master the techniques associated with this medium because I am very careful and I don't allow myself to make mistakes. When I use colored pencils, I use blending techniques to create the perfect colors for the image I am trying to draw and my careful nature helps me develop the skills I need to use to transfer all the fine details of the photo onto my own drawing. I believe that colored pencil is a great medium to use in trying to create realistic artwork for a few reasons. One, I am able to use the sharpened, thin point of the pencil to include all the tiny details that you might have missed when using a different medium. Also, the blending of different colored pencils tends to contribute to the realistic aspect of shadows and 3-dimensional views. I love using colored pencils because I feel very in control of what I am doing, and it produces a beautiful piece once finished.
My favorite medium to work with was colored pencil. I really love using colored pencils because of the techniques that I can use with them. First, I love how smooth the final piece looks once you have reached the point where the drawing is shiny with none of the paper showing through. I love the use of colored pencils to add very small details. I was able to master the techniques associated with this medium because I am very careful and I don't allow myself to make mistakes. When I use colored pencils, I use blending techniques to create the perfect colors for the image I am trying to draw and my careful nature helps me develop the skills I need to use to transfer all the fine details of the photo onto my own drawing. I believe that colored pencil is a great medium to use in trying to create realistic artwork for a few reasons. One, I am able to use the sharpened, thin point of the pencil to include all the tiny details that you might have missed when using a different medium. Also, the blending of different colored pencils tends to contribute to the realistic aspect of shadows and 3-dimensional views. I love using colored pencils because I feel very in control of what I am doing, and it produces a beautiful piece once finished.