Visual Arts Standard #1: Artistic Thinking and Behaviors - I can approach artistic problem-solving using multiple solutions and the creative process.
Lost You
Through the process of making this painting, I started off thinking of creative ideas to represent the title "Lost You". I wanted to make something that showed confusion with the use of black and a bunch of bright colors. Initially I wanted to splatter the colors in the shape of a head and outline it all in black, but in the end I thought that by having the colors coming out of the head onto the black would be more representative of the idea of feeling lost. Our thoughts can make us feel lost and once we let them out, we begin to find ourselves.
The Kaleidoscope of Being
The title "The Kaleidoscope of Being" inspired me to create something that captured the idea of being pulled into life. I also wanted to make a piece with lots of colors because that's how kaleidoscopes are. By having the radial variety of colors, it represents life and the beauties within, and following the kaleidoscope theme, I wanted to make it feel like the viewer is being pulled into it. Sometimes it can feel like we are wrapped up in life, and I created a piece that represented that.
The Day
With this piece, "The Day", I decided to divide the canvas in half diagonally and create 5 different sections to represent 5 different stages throughout the day. The purpose of dividing it in half was to represent that not everyday is the same and sometimes there are opposites to every day. Each section was representative of the 5 major parts of my day (waking up, enjoying the morning because it is usually peaceful, then the middle of the day is usually chaotic, after school I play tennis, and at night is when the fun happens). By dividing this piece up, I thought that this would be a creative way to represent the title.
By creating 3 thumbnails, this helped me narrow down the subject of my painting. For each one, I played with different kinds of lines so that it would best represent the message I was trying to send through this painting. The message is that the lines are representative of our futures and we all go off in different directions and our roads may cross with new people. The colored background represents the fun and happiness that we will embrace throughout our lives. These thumbnails also helped me visualize which on looks the most visually appealing.
Visual Arts Standard #2: Responding - I can apply literacy skills to describe, analyze, interpret, and evaluate art.
Critique of Lost You
By reflecting on one of the 31 paintings, it helped me really take into consideration the process that goes into each painting. It made me stop and reflect on the final product. I studied the splatter paint inside the head and the outline of the head and forced me to reflect on what I did well in this piece and what I could improve on. After writing this critique, I realized that I could have improved the process by skipping a step that I messed up on. In the end, it was beneficial to reflect on what I did well and what could be improved for my future pieces.
Self Directed Critique
After finishing my self directed project, the only thing that I could think about were the mistakes that I made rather than the strengths in the piece. I noticed that I accidentally left a few areas on the painting white when they were really supposed to be colored. Another thing that I thought could be improved on was the consistency of the color in the background. I wanted to make it look like the color was more abstract and not a repetitive but because I did the color on separate days, I lost sight of how to do the background. This critique made me think about the strengths of this piece as well and not just the weaknesses. This also helped me reflect on the process and made me realize that I should have spent more time making the background not as repetitive.
Visual Arts Standard #3: Connecting - I can understand the relationship among the arts, history and world culture. I can make connections among the arts and to other disciplines, to goal-setting, and to interpersonal interaction.
Prisoner
My style of painting usually comes from emotions that I am feeling in that moment. This piece was perfect for the title because in that moment I was feeling like I was trapped inside DHS. I purposely used DHS colors and depicted the image of two fish in a tank that has cracks in it, so the black water is draining. This was supposed to represent that it feels like this I have run out of options in this school and everyone knows everything about others.
Purity of Purpse
When I was given titles to base my paintings off of, I would put a lot of effort into thinking about creative ideas to represent that title. This piece is supposed to represent the idea that the purpose of everything is to be what it is. This tree's purpose is to be a tree. This is also very representative of my style because I tend to use colors or values that have lots of contrast and bold colors to make it all pop. Between the actual product and the idea that is behind the product, it is a perfect example of how my style comes through each of my pieces.
Planning for Self Directed #1
With researching lots of different ideas, it helped me find the style I was going for. At the beginning of this project, I knew that I wanted to create a piece that was mostly abstract while slightly realistic. I was going for the abstract look in the sky with the lines going in different directions, and the mountains as the slightly realistic element. The planning process gave me new ideas about how to execute this painting and it also showed me that other people have similar styles to my own.
Style Paragraph
By writing this paragraph on my style of painting, it made me reflect on the reasons why I paint the things that I paint. I reflected on the fact that I paint emotions that I am feeling in that moment as well as experiences that I have had. This paragraph links my reasoning behind my paintings, to my paintings because I began to acknowledge what is behind all of my paintings.
Visual Arts Standard #4: Producing and Presenting - I can create an original body of work and and then select my best work to present it in a portfolio and an exhibition.
The Beast
I chose this piece as one of the more polished paintings behind it exhibits the abstractness that I have found in my painting style this semester. I have really come to love painting things abstractly because it leaves them up to interpretation. This has also helped me expand my skills and get out of my comfort zone because I always thought that painting things realistically was the only way to get messages across. In the end I have come to find out that a lot of painting is about leaving it up to the viewer to interpret pieces.
The Thaw
I chose this piece as a polished pice in my portfolio because I thought that it would be interesting to compare how I painting at the beginning of the semester to the end of the semester. At the beginning I stayed within my comfort zone and painted a lot of silhouette and over the course of the semester, I have learned that you have to push yourself to become a better painter. I also think that this piece is just as valuable to the others because it has made me reflect on the kind of painter that I am. It is important to me to know where I've been, to really know how far I've come.
Directions
This is the final product that I created this semester. It is a representation of how I have grown as a painter. I have incorporated my new style (using abstract elements) while keeping some of my original style. I have always loved colors and contrast, nature, and painting my emotions and I think that this piece successfully captures each of these elements.