Kaitlyn's AP Studio Art

My experience in AP art has let me grow so much as an artist. It helped me develop my own art style and express major issues I believe in. It has helped me realize how much of a procrastinator I am. And has taught me not to give up on a piece you’ve been working on for a long time. AP art has given me a chance to make new friends and strengthen my art abilities as well as myself. I loved this experience and will never forget it. 

For my concentration I wanted represent losing your innocence. Everyone knows as you grow up you lose that innocence you had as a child. As you grow up you find out what the real world is like. Disappointing. Not all your dreams will come true, there will be obstacles, and getting what you want is going to take a lot work. For some people growing up is a lot harder for others. You are no longer in that fairy tale world of happiness and pretend.

As a child we are seen as innocent and that we can do no wrong. But unfortunately we are not. Grown-ups influence what we learn, and we all learn how to lie and tell secrets. Since we are so young we don't know that what we are doing is wrong. But as we age we continue to do it, the only difference is that this time we know it's wrong and that it can hurt people. When we are a child we use our imagination to make us happy. To pretend we are a king or queen, or to make best friends. But as we grow, we lose our imagination. I chose to represent this with the unicorn stabbing a boy’s head, killing his imagination.  As we grow into the teen years we learn how mean people can be. People get bullied daily because they aren't as pretty as other girls, or because they don't have as many muscles as other boys. Society has set standards on how you are supposed to look and act. So people try to fit those norms just to stop the bullying. But for a lot of people it doesn't go this way and the bullying goes too far. Causing depression and anxiety. I myself struggled from depression and anxiety for years because of rumors and lies that can be told. People who struggle with this problem turn to terrible things such as drugs to numb the pain, and self-harm to distract from the pain caused by other people. Sometimes the words and torture get to be too much, and these people think the only way to escape it and be happy again is to end their own life. Escaping to their fairy tale book once again.

Angela's AP Studio Art

This has been a crazy year for me. A lot of personal things happened in the beginning of the year. It was pretty hard to get through. Ap art allowed me to express how i was feeling through my art work. My artwork shows the changes i experienced with myself throughout the year. It also shows how everything has effected me in different ways. Ap allowed me to grow and test my skills with a variety of different art styles. It also allowed me to figure out who i am and who i want to be. It showed me that even though everything around me may suck at the moment it gets better with time. My concentration was the main focus of what i was experiencing throughout the year. It shows everything i was battling by myself in my own ways. It also helped me develop my new art style that I have today. Life may suck at times but never give up.

When you look at someone can you see all they have been through? Is their act pretty well put together? Can you see past their fake smiles and see how deeply they are hurting inside? I’ve always had to put up a front with others to save myself from more hurt, from dealing with how others react to my appearance, seemingly never ending depression and anxiety, to putting others problems onto myself. This broke me down and built me back up, always trying to please the world but not myself.

You can change for the better or worse, depending on how you react to it. i always keep things in & hiding my true feelings, wearing different masks every day just to get by to the next day. Simple anxiety can be very crippling, making simple everyday things seem almost impossible. Like having someone behind you saying “you aren’t good enough” or “Their just lying again”. There’s a little monster inside my head feeding me lies. Making me believe things that aren’t true, making me over think everything & everyone.

Depression, never ending pit of sadness & anger. Fills you up inside until you can’t take it anymore. Having random break downs. Taking it out on the people you love the most without really seeing it yourself. Makes you do things that you normally wouldn’t but you. Sometimes it comes without reason & stays like a leach slowly sucking you dry.

Being a wolf in a world of sheep isn’t easy. Always trying to fit in when you really don’t fit in at all. Trying to please others while destroying yourself. Becoming the complete opposite of yourself. I always tend to put others problems onto myself to make it easy for them. I’m to loving & caring, they just take advantage. Taking everything I have to give but giving nothing in return. It’s a never ending cycle but the world is already bad enough so I try to put good into it.

Katt's AP 2D Studio Art

AP has been a very interesting learning experience. I learned more about myself as an artist and I feel I have improved a lot over the year. Not only in terms of my abilities but also as a person. I still am a perfectionist and a bit of a procrastinator, but I have become more accepting of my mistakes and instead of giving up right away, I have gotten better at trying to solve the problem and incorporate it into the piece. All in all I think AP was a very fun experience and one that taught me a lot and strengthened my friendships with my fellow APers.

My concentration is based on stories. These stories were passed down orally until they were written down after being told and retold for generations. These storytellers would often edit the endings to make them less violent for children. But take Grimm’s fairy tales for example, they didn’t censor themselves; they left the brutal endings as was intended. Not everything has to have a happy ending. I took the child-friendly stories and twisted them back to include the darker themes.

When I was younger I loved to read fairytales and myths. The vivid imagery they brought to mind has continued to inspire my art as I got older. I wanted to explore this passion while taking it in a new direction. I intended to give a darker take on my favorite stories while exploring them through a variety of mediums. Images 2-4 were inspired by watercolor illustrations often found in children’s books. They have a child-like feel to them. As I continued my exploration my lines became harsher and more defined as I explored colored pencil as a medium in images 5-7. Skeletons are also a more prominent symbol from image 7 on. I felt they added a sinister element, contrasting with the rich colors of the acrylic paint. I feel image 8 especially is an exceptional example of this. Several stories are repeated throughout my concentration as I delved into different themes. Image 1 shows Rapunzel turning into her tower from waiting so long, while image 12 shows her having died during the wait. By the end of my investigation I’m pleased with the variety of poses, colors, and mediums I’ve included. I chose each subject matter and composition carefully based on what I intended to convey to the viewer.