Summer Assignments for AP Studio Art:
Drawing
2016-2017
Ms. Meg Getsinger -Upper School Visual Art -Rocky Hill School
[email protected]
Assignment:
•
You will complete a minimum of 3 projects over the summer as
your AP Studio Art class preparation. You must also keep a
sketchbook that you will continue to work in throughout the
2015-16 school year.
These assignments will be due the first day of class. You will
receive a major grade for your summer work. It is your choice as to
which assignments you complete from the list below. Pieces should
be between 9”x12” and 24”x36” in size—the assignments are about
quality, not quantity. You may use any media or mixed media of your
choice. You are encouraged to explore media, techniques and
approaches you have not used before. These pieces are work for the
“Breadth” section of your AP portfolio. You will need 12 strong
Breadth pieces in your portfolio. The emphasis in this section of the
portfolio is a variety of media, style, approach and subject matter.
The Breadth section of the Drawing portfolio MUST include
observational drawing.
In addition to the 3 projects of your choice that you complete, you
should also be working on the development of your
CONCENTRATION for your portfolio. The College Board
describes the Concentration section as follows. “The concentration
is a body of related works that demonstrate the students
commitment to the thoughtful investigation of a specific visual
idea.” Please refer to the AP Studio Art Description for further
explanation http://media.collegeboard.com/digitalServices/pdf/ap/apstudio-art-course-description.pdf
The development of your concentration should be documented in
your sketchbook.
Project Choices:
• A still-life arrangement of objects representing members of
your family—a favorite pair of shoes, a toy etc. You must have
at least 3 objects and use an unusual viewpoint or angle. You
might put the objects on the floor and stand up looking down
at them.
• A still-life arrangement of 3 or more reflective objects. Your
goal is to convey convincing representation. Sketch and shade
for contrast and drama. Consider doing this as a selfportrait—draw yourself distorted in a shiny object.
• A drawing of an unusual interior—for example, look inside a
closet or cabinet, in the refrigerator, under the car’s hood,
inside the medicine cabinet.
• Café Drawing—go to a coffee shop to sit and sketch. In your
drawing, capture the essence of the place by capturing the
people and things that you see.
• A close-up of a bicycle/tricycle from an unusual angle with
strong light/shadow. Do NOT draw the bicycle from the side
view.
• Expressive landscape—this can be near your home, a place you
visit on vacation. Make every effort to work “plein air,”
meaning drawing or painting outdoors. You will have better
light and will be able to focus on the color your actually see.
• A self-portrait expressing mood. How can you use color to
convey that mood? What style will work best for you in this
work? Do some research online or at an area museum to see
how different artist create self-portraits and what techniques
and media they use. Use an odd/extreme angle and consider
strong light/dark contrasts.
• Create a self-portrait of yourself that is done by looking at
your reflection in an unusual reflective surface—in other
words something other than a mirror. This could be an
appliance (toaster, blender), a computer monitor, a broken
warped mirror, etc.
• Create a portrait of a friend in motion
• Create a still life of a part of your kitchen, or art room
shelves, etc.
Note: If you attend an art class or workshop over the summer at a
college, museum, or arts center, you may submit work from those
programs as your summer assignments.
Sketchbook Requirements:
•
Brainstorm 3 or more Concentration ideas
o You should have a minimum of 36 thumbnail sketches with
brief written explanations to support concentration
ideas.
Contemporary Artist Research:
Explore the work of 3 or more contemporary 2D artists and address
the following areas about the artist and their work.
1. Give some background information about the artist.
2. Describe the artists’ work.
3. React to the artists’ work.
Include printed images/text as well as your own descriptive
drawings/writing of the artists work. Use as many pages as needed in
your sketchbook on each artist.
Museum Visit: You must visit at least one museum and one gallery
or one public art venue this summer. I would like you to document
this experience in your sketchbook. Please choose an interesting
piece within the museum/gallery/public art exhibition and sketch.
You should also take a few notes on the context of the space and the
artist.
Museum Suggestions:
The RISD Museum
http://www.risdmuseum.org
Here is a link to a list of all of the museums in Rhode Island:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_museums_in_Rhode_Island
Public Art in Rhode Island:
http://www.arts.ri.gov/publicart/
If you have not yet taken an AP class, go to…
www.collegeboard.com to register ASAP. You will find information
on the AP Studio Art courses, the “exam”, scoring rubrics, as well as
examples of past student work and how they were scored. It is an
invaluable website.
Under “My organizer” you can create a free user account—you can
use this account to access information about any AP exam and class.
Under the “College Board Tests” section, you can click on “AP”
which will take you to the AP homepage.
The link to the Studio Art homepage is:
http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/sub_studioart.html?s
tudioart
You will receive an AP Art poster at the beginning of the school
year. This provides you with important information on the portfolio
requirement. Take some time this summer to familiarize yourself
with the three sections of the AP Art portfolio: Quality,
Concentration and Breadth. All three are required and carry equal
weight.
Keep in Mind:
• Your portfolio may include work that you have done over a
single year or longer, in class, on your own or in a class
other than one you have take at RHS, such as one at a museum.
• If you submit work that makes use of photographs, published
images, and/or other artists’ work, you MUST show
SUBSTANTIAL and significant development beyond duplication.
This may be demonstrated through manipulation of the formal
qualities of design and/or concept of the original work. It is
unethical, constitutes plagiarism, and often violates copyright
law to simply copy an image (even in another medium) that was
made by someone else. This is true of any and all images on the
Internet!
• Your AP portfolio will be evaluated by a minimum of three and
a maximum of seven artist-educators. Each of the three
sections will be reviewed and independently based on criteria
for that section and each carries equal weight.
• You MUST follow the detailed specifications listed in the
current Course Description and the Studio Art Poster. If the
guidelines are not followed, your score report will carry a
message saying that your score is based on an incomplete or
irregular portfolio. The goal is a 5, not an incomplete.
Please feel free to contact me over the summer, send images for
input or critique. I’ll check in with you periodically. It is easy to
start the summer with the best intentions and then run out of steam
or motivation.
Suggestions: Set a goal of having a work of art done by a certain
date and then make yourself stick to it. It is very important to be
disciplined and have good time management, so that you do not find
yourself at the end of the summer scrambling to create something to
turn in at the start of the school year. This would not be a great
way to start an AP portfolio!
Periodically, search online for art being made by artists in the
media or subject you are working in. It is important to stay current
and it is always inspiring to look at what other contemporary artist
are doing/creating.
Again, don’t hesitate to contact me: [email protected]
Have a great summer! I can’t wait to see all of the amazing work that
you produce over the summer.
Best,
Ms. Getsinger