Five

Select a piece from this semester that you struggled with (either in terms of motivation or technique). Describe why you don't think the piece works, what your specific struggle was, and how you overcame it. Then, tell me how you would change things if you were to be given the same assignment again.

Metaphor project

This was the Metaphor Project. Every person was told to come up with a (personal) story, then tell that story with an image. Within one single image.

I had absolutely no idea what kind of "personal story" I should use for my metaphor project. It took three or four days to come up with the story that I would tell, and Jarod and Mr. Sands helped me come up with it.

The story is this:

There was a lady that believed that solar panels were going to completely suck up and deplete the sun's energy, so she refused to use solar panels.

The explanation of my drawing:

The orange = The sun
The blender = The solar panels
The hand = Other people using solar panels
The lady = The lady

Because the lady thought that the sun would be used up by the solar panels, the "sun" (orange) is on top of the blender, instead of inside it. When the person presses that button and turns the blender on, nothing will happen to the orange. It is just going to continue sitting there, like it always has. The orange is in no danger whatsoever. However, the lady still does not believe this, and she watches on with a skeptical expression. Maybe she will never accept that the sun's power does not get completely absorbed by solar panels. The world may never know.

Struggle:

This may have been my first time using chalk pastels, but the execution for this piece was still very lazy. It was rushed and completed without any feeling or consideration put into it.

I hate drawing blenders.

There is not much I can say about the final product, just that it could have been much better. The perspective is very weird, the coloring is spotty, the shading needs a lot more work.

Overcoming the struggle:

I think the orange, the hand, and part of the lady makes up for all the other errors in the drawing. Actually, the lighting on the orange is wrong, but that is beside the point. The shading on the orange is a lot nicer than the shading on the blender.

After doing at least 10 sketches for a blender to draw on the final piece, I finally came up with one that didn't look absolutely terrible. Therefore, that is my blender.

Actually, I really like how I drew the lady's hair. How it is lighter near the roots and gets darker at the ends gives it a certain appeal.

Changing things:

If I were to re-do this project, I would first come up with a great story. This one did not really apply to me, but I thought it was really great and funny, so I took it and ran with it.

If I had taken this story a second time, I would most definitely do many more rough drafts and sketches for the final product. The perspective is all over the place. If I had taken reference photos with an actual blender and an orange on the lid, maybe it would not look as wonky as it does now. Or I could have gotten someone to stick their hand out and taken a picture of it - I was using my own hand as a reference as I was drawing.

With another chance to create this piece, I would use a different medium. Chalk pastel is not my favorite. I had already used colored pencil during the course, so I could not use it on this project.

Alternatively, with some practice, I could have used chalk pastels on this and not have made it looked so spotty.

Select your favorite piece created in Art 3. Describe how you created it, why it is your favorite, and what you think this piece says about you as an artist. Why do you think this piece is better than the rest of your work? What makes it "good"?

Dinobird project

This is my dinobird head. I am extremely proud of this sculpture.

Creation:

I started this project with a semicircle that was roughly shaped into the shape of my creature's skull. Then I started stacking brown clay on the gray clay to begin the shape of the beak. People were telling me that they had no idea what I was creating at this stage, and I still can't understand why they can't see the general shape of the head of a bird within these pictures.

Next, I put more clay on in general, to flesh out the shape. Clay was added in almost every spot at this stage.

Time for the eyes. To add the eyes on, I made circles and cut them into two separate semicircles. It took a few tries (and a few scrappings) to get the right shape for the eyeballs, but it worked out in the end. Nothing is completely even.
After "scratch 'n' slipping" the eyes onto the head, I quickly added the eyelids, and smoothed out the corners a bit. More clay was added to the brow and to the cheeks to make the eyes fit in better.

There was no real reason as to why I added the spikes/feathers on in this order. That's just how it played out. I took pieces of clay and rolled them into noodles and would then cut them to the right length and scratch and slip them on. The longest feathers on the cheek should be at the back, and the shorter ones at the front to create layers upon layers. The eyebrow also had this, but with the longest feathers in the center and about 7 feathers in total.
The nostrils were added at this stage, with fixing of the cheeks and beak.

The feathers were added to the other eyebrow and cheek at this stage, with a bit of smoothing out and fixing across the piece in general.

Post-firing.

With the little 3D-printed sculpture
Many pictures of this project were taken to turn it into a 3D figure in a program and to then print it using the 3D printer

After the addition of several layers of glaze.

Final Product

Why is it "good" ?

This is my favorite project because of all the effort I put into it. It only cracked/broke 3 times in total (twice while being fired).
It is apparent how much effort went into creating this piece. It took me a bit longer than it took the rest of the students to complete their projects.
I think that this piece shows just how much I like animals and creatures. It is certain that I have a general sense of how their heads are shaped.
A lot of time and effort went into the creation of this, but it still could have been better. I would love to make another one, but there is not enough time left in school to make another one.
This isn't just a one-time project, though. It is almost like a series, to show my improvement. I have actually created multiple sculptures similar to this during my time in school.