First Semester Self-Reflection
I think they are illustrating my theme pretty well throughout my concentration pieces, though the mountain-Colorado-flag piece I did with Kenna along with the last few sketches kind of stand out. I’m pretty sure it’s just because they’re either a different style, or not made with eyeliner, and I think branching out and trying to make my own designs and dabbling with different styles is really helpful.
My strongest pieces are probably the rose-lily-arm tattoo, the sketch of the mountains in the circle, and the hand with the pine trees. I really like the rose-lily-arm piece because it’s really clean and doesn’t have too much going on. It’s pretty simple yet executed well.
My weakest piece is definitely the thigh piece I did. It was one of my first times using eyeliner as a medium on skin, and it was kind of in a difficult place for me to see if I was making the details muddy and not as clean as they could have been. I can enhance by redoing it now that I have a much better idea on how to effectively use the eyeliner, and maybe redoing it on someone else rather than myself. That will make it easier for me to be able to pay attention to detail and whether or not I’m adding too much or not enough.
For my breadth assignments, I believe that I did a decent job showing a variety of approaches and styles, though I could show more. I did a one with watercolor (my first time), one as a ‘kill the pen,’ two with Prismacolor pencils, and one with completely sharpie.
My strongest pieces are either the ‘Kayleen’ (foreshortened) piece, or the Sharpie/‘Keanu’ (emphasis) piece. I put a lot of time into the ‘Kayleen’ piece, and worked a lot on making the shading and shadows look really good. It took me about a week to do, in and out of school. I also really like my ‘Keanu’ piece because it’s really simple, yet clean and well done. I really like how you can only see part of his face due to the shadows, and I like how I did the shadows on the rest of his face.
My weakest pieces are the watercolor self-portrait, or the Prismacolor ‘eye reflection.’ Both of these pieces were my first time working with either mediums, and I think it could’ve gone a lot better, especially now that I’ve actually worked with both mediums a little bit more.
I can completely redo the watercolor piece, and this time make sure to bleed and blend the colors out better. As for the reflection piece, I am unhappy with the way the skin blends out to the black, but the problem is I used this new blending tool made for Prismacolor, which is basically a wax stick, for the first time. I was also the first person actually trying it out as well, so no one else had tips or tricks for me. I was very unhappy with the way that it blended the Prismacolor, and how it left an almost crayon-like layer on top of the color, making it impossible to build off of. That wax layer is the reason I couldn’t get the skin to blend out nicely, so to fix that I might have to go through with a different medium, or maybe keep trying to build color on top of the wax.
The biggest challenges I faced was probably working with different mediums for the first time. Because I haven’t really had the chance to work with certain mediums on my own, I didn’t have much experience and had to basically make it up as I go. It was difficult because I would come up with an easier way or better technique for something halfway through finishing it, and I would either have to start over and use the new technique throughout, try to use the new things I’ve learned while trying to make it still look connected to the rest of the piece, or just continue as I was.
I tried to overcome it when I got to the Prismacolor for the first time (after struggling with being new at watercolor) by asking around for some tips and tricks. This way, I would know some of the most common ones before I started, and at least then I would know at least how to use them.
I have learned that I just need to take a deep breathe and relax. Honestly, I had no idea I could get so stressed and worked up about art. It wasn’t the best experience having what I named “Mini Mental Break-Downs” during several of our classes. I really do need to work and stress management a lot more and try to keep myself from freaking out so much. The stress that piled up was definitely one of my weaknesses. It held me back from being everything I could’ve been, especially when I was having mini mental breaks practically every other class.
On the other hand, I did help my stress out by taking the time either during my off block or at home to work on my pieces. I did okay on time management, though it could’ve been a little better for all of the critiques, but that’s not really my biggest concern. I finished with more than the required pieces, and honestly, I’m pretty proud of myself.
My strongest pieces are probably the rose-lily-arm tattoo, the sketch of the mountains in the circle, and the hand with the pine trees. I really like the rose-lily-arm piece because it’s really clean and doesn’t have too much going on. It’s pretty simple yet executed well.
My weakest piece is definitely the thigh piece I did. It was one of my first times using eyeliner as a medium on skin, and it was kind of in a difficult place for me to see if I was making the details muddy and not as clean as they could have been. I can enhance by redoing it now that I have a much better idea on how to effectively use the eyeliner, and maybe redoing it on someone else rather than myself. That will make it easier for me to be able to pay attention to detail and whether or not I’m adding too much or not enough.
For my breadth assignments, I believe that I did a decent job showing a variety of approaches and styles, though I could show more. I did a one with watercolor (my first time), one as a ‘kill the pen,’ two with Prismacolor pencils, and one with completely sharpie.
My strongest pieces are either the ‘Kayleen’ (foreshortened) piece, or the Sharpie/‘Keanu’ (emphasis) piece. I put a lot of time into the ‘Kayleen’ piece, and worked a lot on making the shading and shadows look really good. It took me about a week to do, in and out of school. I also really like my ‘Keanu’ piece because it’s really simple, yet clean and well done. I really like how you can only see part of his face due to the shadows, and I like how I did the shadows on the rest of his face.
My weakest pieces are the watercolor self-portrait, or the Prismacolor ‘eye reflection.’ Both of these pieces were my first time working with either mediums, and I think it could’ve gone a lot better, especially now that I’ve actually worked with both mediums a little bit more.
I can completely redo the watercolor piece, and this time make sure to bleed and blend the colors out better. As for the reflection piece, I am unhappy with the way the skin blends out to the black, but the problem is I used this new blending tool made for Prismacolor, which is basically a wax stick, for the first time. I was also the first person actually trying it out as well, so no one else had tips or tricks for me. I was very unhappy with the way that it blended the Prismacolor, and how it left an almost crayon-like layer on top of the color, making it impossible to build off of. That wax layer is the reason I couldn’t get the skin to blend out nicely, so to fix that I might have to go through with a different medium, or maybe keep trying to build color on top of the wax.
The biggest challenges I faced was probably working with different mediums for the first time. Because I haven’t really had the chance to work with certain mediums on my own, I didn’t have much experience and had to basically make it up as I go. It was difficult because I would come up with an easier way or better technique for something halfway through finishing it, and I would either have to start over and use the new technique throughout, try to use the new things I’ve learned while trying to make it still look connected to the rest of the piece, or just continue as I was.
I tried to overcome it when I got to the Prismacolor for the first time (after struggling with being new at watercolor) by asking around for some tips and tricks. This way, I would know some of the most common ones before I started, and at least then I would know at least how to use them.
I have learned that I just need to take a deep breathe and relax. Honestly, I had no idea I could get so stressed and worked up about art. It wasn’t the best experience having what I named “Mini Mental Break-Downs” during several of our classes. I really do need to work and stress management a lot more and try to keep myself from freaking out so much. The stress that piled up was definitely one of my weaknesses. It held me back from being everything I could’ve been, especially when I was having mini mental breaks practically every other class.
On the other hand, I did help my stress out by taking the time either during my off block or at home to work on my pieces. I did okay on time management, though it could’ve been a little better for all of the critiques, but that’s not really my biggest concern. I finished with more than the required pieces, and honestly, I’m pretty proud of myself.
Peer Critique
Jessica’s concentration statement is clearly laid out beneath the slideshow, stating the purpose of her pieces. I think the works illustrate the theme pretty well, the only thing is that if I didn’t know what the theme is I might’ve been a little confused. If Jessica’s goal is to base it off pirates and Neverland, I think she should include some more recognizable elements. Other than that I think the pieces together are really strong and do have the recurring theme throughout. I chose Wendy 1 and Wendy 6 to give constructive criticism for. I think the skills are pretty effective when coming to representing the different skills for a designer. For example, when you compare Wendy 1 with 6, 1 is more simple and elegant while still showing style, while 6 has more stylistic chances that were taken.
Her breadth assignments show different skills and don’t focus too much one one medium. She expresses many skills from drawing, designing, and photography. They do show experimentation with the different mediums that are used. For example, her upside down photography piece shows the risk of people not being able to understand her approach. The two pieces I used for giving positive constructive feedback was her upside-down photography piece and her Google Fairy Tail doodle. Her upside-down piece is really colorful and makes it seem as if you’re looking at the world from outer space. I also really like her Fairy Tail doodle and how it shows the different tails in a way that still leaves the Google symbol recognizable.
I think her work so far is really setting her on the right path for succession. She shows progress and that she’s working really hard to achieve her goals. I think to grow she could focus on making the factors in her works more recognizable. She could include more mediums in her concentration but other than that I think she’s on a great path for success.
Her breadth assignments show different skills and don’t focus too much one one medium. She expresses many skills from drawing, designing, and photography. They do show experimentation with the different mediums that are used. For example, her upside down photography piece shows the risk of people not being able to understand her approach. The two pieces I used for giving positive constructive feedback was her upside-down photography piece and her Google Fairy Tail doodle. Her upside-down piece is really colorful and makes it seem as if you’re looking at the world from outer space. I also really like her Fairy Tail doodle and how it shows the different tails in a way that still leaves the Google symbol recognizable.
I think her work so far is really setting her on the right path for succession. She shows progress and that she’s working really hard to achieve her goals. I think to grow she could focus on making the factors in her works more recognizable. She could include more mediums in her concentration but other than that I think she’s on a great path for success.