Reflection Essay

Art III has given me a skillset that I know will take me very far. From precise Renaissance drawing, to chaotic sculpture, to oil realism and acrylic abstraction, I have been stretched well out of my comfort zone. Out of both comfort and discomfort I have experienced tremendous growth, particularly in my abilities to take creative risks and use color, though I do still have room to improve in how I evaluate my own work and manage my time. 

Throughout the year, I have learned many new skills, especially surrounding sculpture, painting, and abstraction, which I had very little experience with or knowledge of. Our opening unit on drawing and the Renaissance was my personal favorite, likely because drawing has always been my strong suit. Through my artist copy and self portrait, I gained a much better attention to detail and understanding of proportion, something my previous drawings had somewhat lacked in, and how marks can shape a piece. Compared to my skill-inventory portrait, I can see strong improvements in precision and composition. My self portrait remains the piece I am most proud of this year, and is in a style I hope to continue next year. Our sculpture unit, on the other hand, was a whole new world to me, and I definitely struggled at times to come up with ideas and find enjoyment in the process. The chaos of the classroom with power tools and materials strewn throughout was certainly a jolt in the early mornings, and I had trouble finding confidence in what I was making. However, the positive response to my sculpture and final grade was a pleasant surprise that taught me to have more confidence in myself and try new things. Looking at sculptures now, I can much better appreciate the intricacies of different techniques and elements such as composition that define a piece. From oil painting, I certainly learned the most vocabulary and new skills, and once again I found myself with a much greater understanding of composition. More importantly, the project, in comparison to abstraction, affirmed for me that I much prefer to make objective and detailed works over non-objective works. Our last unit, abstraction, greatly subverted my expectations. While I don’t see myself continuing to make abstract works, I enjoyed the process itself more than anticipated, and, like sculpture, have learned how to properly analyze and appreciate abstract work and its meaning. Looking now at my “abstract” skill-inventory, it is clear that I barely knew what abstraction truly meant, as my swirling spray bottle seems more like surrealism than true abstraction. 

One of the biggest growths I’ve seen in myself has been my ability to take risks, which includes using color. Most of my work before Art III was colorless, but after our color unit I felt more able to use color freely. I think this was most strongly seen in my Fantastic Four projects, which all used color. (My oil pastel Heart projects, in particular, were a strong departure from my usual work). As far as how I can improve, I hope to be able to match these skills with more creative ideas. It seems ironic, but as an art lover my entire life, creativity has been my biggest struggle. Since I know next year I will begin to hone in on certain ideas and create narrative works, I hope to improve in my planning and put more thought behind my work. 

While I may not continue to make abstract works or sculptures, I have gained vital skills from every unit of art this year, specifically in using proportion, composition, etc. I hope to be able to use these skills to move into larger but more detailed projects of drawing and painting. I have consistently focused on figures in my work over the years, and in my work next year I intend to make more personal pieces that incorporate the myriad of skills I have learned this year as well as my own love for portraiture.