Introduction
Art as the main development direction for me is very likely to spend a lot of my time. After seeing my art website after a school year, I can still see a lot of development and current thinking. Art seems to be abstract, but with my study and creation, my concept of art has gradually become clearer and I have found my own method of learning. For me, art has never been a few moments at a certain moment, but something that has been happening as one with life. Therefore, I will mainly divide it into 3 stages to talk about my Art Portfolio as an Artifact. These three parts are thinking, creating and review.
Thinking
During this time, I always think about what art is and express it through articles. Most of these articles are not very academic and are more like random writing, and even some just record my instant inspiration. But from the results afterwards, they are essential for me.
For example, the content shown in this picture is a first-person introduction to Van Gogh. It seems that the writing style is very strong in personal style, but this article represents a milestone that I am very important in art, that is, analysis of artists and works of art. This segment is actually based on Van Gogh’s real experience. Understanding the artist’s personal background is essential to understanding his artwork. Through this personal information, I can have a deeper understanding of the work and the intention of the work.
There are many articles similar to this which you could find on my personal website.
creation
In the creation part, I will select two representative works to illustrate. For example, the following picture is about an artist playing drums on the street in Xishuangbanna.
The creative intention of this work is actually to convey a moment of emotion and state. Many times our lives are full of reason, these minds and analysis often dilute our feelings of a moment of surprise, we slowly don’t care about these things. Although the work is only a person, the meaning behind this person is unlimited, firm, passionate, and the most precious form of humanity. It may not be long-lasting, but this is also the core content of this work-vitality.
—–Stacy，Written in the Decription of the Creation
The core of this painting is to express the expression of art in the surrounding environment. Art in my eyes is no longer works in the palace but appears in life. When I saw the person’s music in the painting on the street, I felt the flow, beauty, and vitality. I think this can be called art. In the process of creating this work, I have a deep understanding of art and a deeper sense of life that I once ignored. Art is never singular but plural. Whether it is a momentary perception or a long time of thinking, it can be completely expressed through creation.
Link to the full introduction of the work: https://my.moonshotacademy.cn/stacy-zhao/2019/11/25/一个打鼓的elp作品/
The painting “The Drummer” was actually modified a lot based on the feedback from the previous series of “illiterate people.” After the “Illiteracy” series ended, Moven offered me many artistic opinions.
It can also be seen from the feedback and the finished product that this creation has a lot of feedback-based modifications compared to the previous creation. The use of color is not thin but thick; the carrier is not just sketching paper but canvas; the background introduction is not just a sentence, but a more complete, written introduction. These all represent that I can reasonably absorb external feedback and adjust accordingly.
Review
In this year’s experience of studying art, I also gained a lot from my way of learning. At first, many of my works were sloppy, they were boring and empty. You can see my early works on my personal website. During that time I felt that I became uninspired and what I created was meaningless. I started thinking about why this is so. I began to realize that the knowledge I possessed was not enough to support my creation. Due to a lack of knowledge, I was unable to get out of my comfort zone. At this time I began to get serious about art history. During this semester of studying art history, I started to try to improve my own works by analyzing and understanding the works of other artists. When reading many works of art, I can see the enthusiasm of other artists and art schools and the ideological principles they uphold. These have opened up my perception of art and let me see the tolerance of art.
All the articles about Art History:
After realizing the progress, I summed up a set of learning methods that fit my own needs. From the summary of the learning methods, it could be seen that I can clearly know what kind of learning method is beneficial and efficient for my art study. I can set measurable goals and set specific implementation methods. Based on current experience, the method is through learning knowledge. This is not necessarily static, it can be adjusted at any time according to Self-evaluation. This is another reason that could show my learning method is very consistent with me, that is, it is a method that can continuously iterate and improve. Self-evaluation is actually a type of article that I always insist on writing, so I can also be sure that this kind of article can help me reflect and improve. （see below）
From the above, it can be seen that I know the best and the most suitable learning state for myself. This is actually the result of my exploration in the art field, but as a skill, I think it can be applied to various fields and subjects.
Self-Reflection
Things I need to improve
- In the art study afterward, I think what I need to improve is actually thinking. I was used to expression and output before. But I rarely seem to think about what expression is and how it can be accepted by others. After thinking about these issues, my art creation will be more complete, which can also ensure that my art is always improving. My “Action Plan” for this problem will answer the question “what expression is” separately in each introduction of the creation to ensure that I am indeed thinking about this question. I also mentioned this reflection in the self-evaluation article
Things I have done Well
- The most satisfying place in the entire portfolio is actually being able to see my own growth. Through the excerpts of works from different periods, one can also see the changes in personal creative style and understanding of art. At the same time, I am relatively complete with artistic expression. I can describe the intentions and ideas behind the work; I can understand the art according to different historical and epoch backgrounds; I can adjust my work based on different feedback. As a whole, the distance between art and me is getting closer.
- In addition, I also saw my way of learning through art. I can realize that I am a person who is very concerned about “knowledge”, so when facing a difficulty, I can find a breakthrough by understanding the knowledge behind it. At the same time, I am also good at reflecting on my learning process. I can conduct self-evaluation clearly, and in the assessment, accurately reflect on the areas that need improvement and take action.
The End
Stacy Zhao
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