Project Description:
Using graphite or charcoal, draw an interior FROM DIRECT OBSERVATION from a low or high vantage point (i.e. a "dramatic" angle), with a full range of tonal value and strong contrast.

Provide a printout of a digital photograph you take from the viewpoint you were drawing, for comparison during critique. DO NOT draw based on the photograph, but from real life.


Objectives:

Organize a space into a strong, dramatic composition
Create a convincing sense of depth
     Distinguish foreground, middle-ground, and background via linear perspective
Describe the nature of light and shadow
Improve ability to work from "the big picture" into smaller details

Materials:

Graphite or charcoal
Pink eraser
Pencil sharpener
Drawing paper or charcoal paper - sketchbook size (11 x 14", 60 lb. paper) or larger

Parameters
The interior must be from direct observation (from REAL LIFE, not a photograph)
The interior you reference must have "deep space".
The interior must be viewed from a very low or very high vantage point.
Use the entire picture plane.
Make this a "portfolio-worthy" drawing.

Grading Criteria:

Composition
Range of tonal value; contrast
Convincing sense of space (through linear and atmospheric/aerial perspective)
Realism of light and shadow
Craftsmanship

To Start:

1. Start with a light line to block in the composition
2. Establish the horizon line (although it might be hidden) and the vanishing points
3. Identify the light source, and keep it in mind as you draw.

Tip

Go to a place like the mall or a public library for a really dramatic space.


Self Critique Questions

As you draw, ask yourself if you are doing the following (You should be!):

• Fill the page.
• Consider the entire page as a composition.
• Get the lines right -- Use the vanishing points for all parallel horizontal lines
• Get the tonal values right - Are the shadows and highlights as dark or light as they are in reality?

​Masters Gallery

Look at the work of Charles Sheeler, a 20th Century American Realist and Precisionist

Images were found at the following sites:

www.tendreams.org/sheeler.htm

www.flickr.com/photos/americanartmuseum/3663231518/

The Sustained Investigation (or "Concentration") is an in-depth exploration of a particular design concern. It is presented as a series of artworks. The emphasis is on a coherent development of an idea through a body of work. Eventually, you will be planning and creating a series.

Before doing that, you will now have time to work on an artwork of your choice, which may (or may not) later become part of a series/ Concentration/ Sustained Investigation.

​Have clear objectives for your work. Challenge yourself. Stretch and explore. Do something amazing with your time.

Objectives:

• Develop your own artistic goals
• Take intellectual and artistic risks; Challenge yourself
• Understand and appreciate Quality. What is it? What makes great art great?
• Create a high quality, portfolio-worthy artwork of personal significance

Requirements:

• It must be new.
• It must be original (Do not copy from any photos that you haven't arranged and taken yourself.).
• It must start with a clear idea.
• It must be a stretch for you; challenging.
• You must spend at least 2 - 3 hours working on it.
• It must be complete, developed, refined, finished, ready for presentation.

Grading Criteria:
Studio Habits of Mind, especially the quality of:

• (Idea/Content/Meaning)
• Design/Composition
• Skill
• Presentation

(Examples of A-level, high-quality work are at the links below.)

Consider DESIGN and COLOR choices:

• The Principles of Art (slideshow)
• Elements and Principles of Art (glossary)
• Color Theory

What are the Possibilities?
There are books in the classroom, art school catalogs with student artwork, and online resources that can help spark your creativity. You can check the sample portfolios below for inspiration. It can be drawing, painting, collage, printmaking, mixed media, sculpture, graphic design, etc. What would you love to do?

Resources for Inspiration:

• Art:21 (PBS TV/video series)
• College art school catalogs/viewbooks with student work
• Books of art history and contemporary art in the classroom
• National Scholastic Art Awards annuals (books of winning work, in classroom)

DRAWING & PAINTING:

• AP Drawing Samples 2020
• AP Drawing Samples Archive
• Jack Giles (BHS 2021)
• Michela Giordano (BHS 2021)
• Kevin Buxton - AP Art Show (BHS 2020)
• Nicole Benjamin - AP Art Show (BHS 2020)
• Sarah Schissler - AP Art Show (BHS 2020)
• Martello Cesar - AP portfolio exam (BHS 2019)
• Marley Gainley - AP exam (BHS 2017)
• Anne Zhang - BHS sustained investigation
• Irina Grigoryeva - BHS sustained investigation
• Pablo Aguilar - BHS AP exam
• Jake Ursino - BHS Sustained Investigation
• ​Toula Papadopoulos - BHS Sustained Investigation

2D ART & DESIGN:

• AP 2D Design Samples 2020
• AP 2D Design Samples Archive
• Paul Fauller (BHS 2021 - Photography)
• Danielle Spinosa - AP exam (BHS)

3D ART & DESIGN:

• AP 3D Design Samples 2020
• AP 3D Design Samples Archive
• Kevin Mudoola (BHS 2021)
• A Pinterest collection
• Example AP 3D Design portfolio with fashion emphasis - score 5
• Youtube introduction from an AP 3D class

​OTHER EXAMPLES of high quality high school work:

• The AP College Board’s  2020 AP Art and Design Digital Exhibit showcases outstanding artwork created by students who submitted portfolios for the May 2020 exam. Amid a global pandemic, AP Art and Design students worked with diverse ideas, materials, and processes to create incredible, impactful art. The exhibit features student and teacher reflections on these works, providing compelling insights into how artists make choices and approach art making.

• The National Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is the nation’s longest-running, most prestigious recognition program for creative teens. Entries are judged on: ORIGINALITY; TECHNICAL SKILL; and EMERGENCE OF A PERSONAL VOICE OR VISION, characteristics similar to what the AP College Board is judging in the exams.

Learn from Master Artists
Learn from the best. Visit the websites of or about particular artists and designers to get an in-depth understanding of influences, inspiration, and process.

Start with this Artist List and this folder of masterworks.

Explore Google Arts & Culture. Choose categories to discover well-known artists and masterworks.

Explore these websites:        

• Art 21: Art in the 21st Century (PBS) - video series on working artists. Art21 is a nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring a more creative world through the works and words of contemporary artists. Click the Artists tab to learn about individual contemporary artists, and the Watch tab to explore by theme:
• Art School: PBS Learning Media - a web video series that introduces contemporary artists who discuss their careers and intentions, then demonstrate hands-on techniques or concepts. Art School provides resources for learning how to draw comic strips, create animations, and much more. Engage with contemporary art and discover new ideas for creativity from a variety of professional artists through this fun and engaging series.
• The Art Assignment (PBS) - A weekly PBS Digital Studios production that takes you around the U.S. to meet working artists and solicit assignments from them that we can all complete. For more, subscribe to The Art Assignment on YouTube: youtube.com/theartassignment.

• TED.com: Visual Art
• PBS Learning Media: Visual Art
• Abstract: The Art of Design (2 seasons on Netflix)

Explore art museums from home:

• Boston Sculptors Gallery
• DeCordova Art Museum and Sculpture Park
• Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art
• Harvard Art Museums
• The Institute of Contemporary Art Boston
• Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
• The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MassMOCA)
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art
• Museum of Fine Arts Boston
• The Museum of Modern Art
• Peabody Essex Museum
• The Smithsonian Museum of American Art

For other possibilities for your choice project, view this Choice Ideas list, or page through the books in the art room.