AP artists begin work on their concentrations over the summer

Senior+Fiona+Boettner+constructed+a+self+portrait+over+the+summer.+She+is+focussing+on+constructing+portraits+for+AP+art+this+year.+Other+AP+artists+are+concentrating+on+such+things+as+tattoos+and+water+throughout+the+year.+

Credit: Julia Thomson

Senior Fiona Boettner constructed a self portrait over the summer. She is focussing on constructing portraits for AP art this year. Other AP artists are concentrating on such things as tattoos and water throughout the year.

By Julia Thomson, Sports Editor

Similar to the summer work of academic related AP courses, each student enrolled in AP art must choose a central theme or technique to focus on for the year. This then becomes the basis for their portfolios which will optimally include 12 different pieces reflecting the concentration they have picked. Due to the rigor of the course as well as the strict deadline of the AP art showcase, students are recommended to begin working on a couple of their pieces before the school year begins.

 

Senior Jordan Wade focused her concentration on tattoos. She stated, “tattoos are a form of art on the body. I thought this was really cool, so I decided to combine portraits of my friends with tattoos that define them.”

 

Fiona Boettner, another senior, decided to center her concentration around portraits. Although she is only just getting started, Fiona’s goal includes making the portraits using different forms of collage: different shades, colors, and textures. For her first piece, she used charcoal powder to create a black and white self portrait revealing multiple tones to create the collage aspect. For her next couple of pieces, Fiona plans on incorporating different colors and textures to liven up her portfolio and make it more creative.  

 

A third senior, Kit Greenberg, wanted to focus on water: “more specifically the movement of water and how it encapsulates the human body. The relationship that nature has with man seemed like something I would have fun exploring,” she said. Kit has attempted to convey this theme using oil paint in her first piece.

 

Senior Cristina Paz was interested in blankets. She said, “my concentration is on this really colorful Bolivian blanket called Aguayo which is used by indigenous women known as Cholitas. This concentration is definitely a little difficult as it involves people and a lot [of] color which is quite time consuming, but I think it looks pretty cool so far.”