1. I really like making art because I think it’s one thing that I’m good at and I love the feeling of finishing a project and being proud of what I have just created. I also like making art because there are endless possibilities as to what you can make. When people make art, their style can tell a lot about their personality. Art is also a creative and fun way that people can tell stories and express themselves.

2. The assignment for this project was to choose two medias and make a creative piece. For my project, I chose charcoal for the portrait and paint for the background. I chose these medias because I had previously done a charcoal portrait that I really liked and I thought it was one my strong points. I chose paint for the background because I wanted it to be very bright and colorful and I hadn’t done many projects with paint. I think my main struggle was making his characteristics look exactly like they were in the picture I used as a reference.

3. The assignment for this project was to create something that represented you and what you like. I put many different elements that play an important role in my life. The top portion represents traveling. I incorporated this because when I grow up, I really would love to travel to many different places around the world. The bottom portion incorporates my love for softball, and how you should live life to the fullest and enjoy your youth while you have it.

4. The assignment for this project was to create a portrait of someone using charcoal. I think my main struggle with this project was making his hair look realistic. He has very curly and wild hair so it was hard to make it look like his hair in real life. Overall, I really liked this project because I feel that I did a good job with the shadows on his face and neck and I thought it turned out pretty realistic.

5. The assignment for this project was to create something that had a western theme. The first pattern I used was the bandana/paisley pattern to show the “western” theme. The second pattern I used was the Aztec print to show the Native American portion of the west. I chose to use the two patterns in the background because I liked how they contrasted each other. In the middle I did a watercolor wash for the background to look like a sunset. Then I put the two silhouettes to represent a boy growing into a man. The main struggle I faced with this project was creating a neat organized paisley pattern for the bandana.

6. The assignment for this project was to take a picture of a place in the school and recreate it to look surreal. I chose a place by the cafeteria because it was very open and had a lot of potential. Every element I chose to incorporate in this project was completely random. I think my favorite part of this project would be either the bricks or the puzzle piece floor because I think that the bricks are very realistic and I think the puzzle piece floor was unique. My main struggle with this assignment was just creating a scene to look surreal because I normally like things to have a theme and a purpose and in this project, it didn’t.

7. The assignment for this project was to recreate a famous piece, but also include plaster on cardboard to make it look 3-D. I chose this piece, “Bristol Fall” by Leonid Afremov because I loved how bright the colors were and how well the worked together. Another reason I chose this was because I thought the tree would turn out really cool after I used the plaster to make the texture and make it look 3-D. I think my main struggle with this project was making the colors look separate instead of blending together. The reason I had this problem was because I was trying to recreate and oil painting with acrylic paint, so naturally the paint is going to blend.

8. Based on this portfolio, my strengths seem to be charcoal and making elements look realistic. I think I definitely need to work on my painting skills because I’m not very good when it comes to creating different values with paint. My goal for next semester is to improve my painting skills and also work on time management. In order to do this, I will need to practice shading different values with paint and also use the time in class to get the most possible work I can done.