Advanced Arts Resources
Where to find ideas and inspiration:
Potential Ideas for Advanced Level Projects: (these may apply to or be adapted to any medium - e.g. clay, drawing, painting) (Note: these are only potential ideas)
Possible Breadth Topics:
Create a design with a repeated figure that places emphasis on symmetrical, asymmetrical or radial balance using a sharpie marker.
Create a portrait, self-portrait, landscape, or still-life in the style of another artist in which formal aspects of design are emphasized—i.e. Monet/Impressionism, Matisse/Fauvism, Picasso/Cubism, Warhol/Pop, Dali/Surrealism, Van Gogh/Postimpressionism, etc. You may have to do a bit of research to understand the stylistic tendencies of these artists/movements.
Create a self-portrait, or several different ones, that expresses a specific mood/emotion–e.g., anger/rage, melancholy/loneliness, happiness/joy, etc. Manipulate light and color to enhance the psychological atmosphere. Also, consider the development of the environment/setting.
Create some exploration with mixed media. Do a piece (portrait, self-portrait, landscape, or still-life) in which you use at least three different media—i.e., a wet medium, a dry medium and some collage element.
Create a portrait, self-portrait, still life, or landscape using either a complementary, analogous, or split-complementary color scheme (you may use black and white as well as shades and tints of the chosen hues).
Create a drawing of a futuristic cityscape—e.g., Fort Worth in the year 2050 (keep in mind rules of one-, two-, and three-point perspective.
Create a composition with cakes, candies and gumball machines. Look at the work of Wayne Thiebaud.
Create a graphite drawing of a still-life arrangement that consists of reflective objects—your goal is to convey a convincing representation with a full range of values. To add interest to the composition, you might also want to render yourself being reflected in the objects.
Create a drawing of an unusual interior—for instance, looking inside a closet, cabinet, refrigerator, inside your car... use your imagination!
Create a painting/drawing/mixed media combo of a toy. Look at Chris Cosnowski, local artist John Hartley, Cesar Santander and Andy Warhol.
Create a color rendering of a still-life arrangement consisting of your family member’s shoes—try to convey some “sense” of each of your individual family member’s distinct personalities in your piece.
Create a composition that shows progressive magnification of a subject. Select either an organic or inorganic object to draw. Divide a large piece of drawing paper into nine equal sections. Starting in the top-left box, draw a representational, overall view of the object as accurately as you can. In the next box to the right, imagine that you have a camera with a zoom lens and draw a close-up portion of the object in accurate detail. In the remaining sections, continue zooming in on the object and enlarging finer details. The last frame should be an enlarged detail created with the aid of a magnifying glass or microscope.
Recreate an Old Masterpiece Painting. Select a painting, sculpture, or well-known image from art history for interpretation. Redo the work . . . update it, or change colors, media, characters, etc.
Create an Architectural Myth with Photomontage: Collect photographs/photocopies of city skylines, landscapes, and seascapes. Also collect photos/copies of household and technical objects—e.g., eggbeater, toothbrush, toaster, electric fan, automobile grill, etc. Carefully implant the photo of the technical gadget within the photo of the environment to create a surreal cityscape or landscape. (You might want to look at the work of the artist Max Ernst who took printed images and recombined them to create hybrid forms).
Create cut-paper self-portraits, interiors, landscapes.
Create distorted interiors.
Create gridded and distorted self-portraits.
Create Pop-inspired pieces working with personal symbols or words (Robert Indiana, Ed Ruscha).
Create a piece that combines photocopied body parts (face, hands, feet) with anatomical drawings.
Create an acrylic painting using analogous or complementary color scheme.
Create a funky portrait of classmate in environment using thick bold outlines/contours, and areas of flat color (David Bates).
Create paintings or color drawings investigating imitation of metal or glass objects.
Create a tromp l’oeil painting by direct observation of objects placed in a box or glued on a board.
Create pinhole photography utilizing Principles of Design. Create your own camera and develop paper in darkroom.
Create photograms.
Create an Andy Warhol/Robert Rauschenberg Pop Art piece by way of photo transfer. Colorize it with prismacolor, acrylic paint, pastel or watercolor.
Create a social commentary piece involving experimentation with acetone transfers and gloss medium transfers to be further developed with text and imagery—literal, metaphorical, or symbolic. Look at Robert Rauschenberg.
Create text and image piece in which student is asked to physically write (soft graphite pencil) across a surface that has been coated with undiluted gesso an excerpt from an account of a most memorable moment—good, bad, horrific, terrifying. The direction and spacing of the text are up to the student. Within a rectangular (inset) area, the student is instructed to gesso out all text and then superimpose imagery within the space that is invoked by the story—literal, symbolic, or metaphorical.
Create compositions that involve the use of inset imagery (image within image such as details/close up views).
Create a drawing composition that alternates from a simple contour drawing into a fully rendered drawing at student-designated focal points.
Create a three-part piece inspired by work of Jim Dine: In the first piece the students are asked to render an ordinary object or tool, bigger than actual size, making it the dominant aspect of the composition. The students are also directed to blur the distinction between positive shape and negative space. In the second piece, on a larger surface, the students are to create three distinct images of the object, while making the whole piece work. In the third piece, the students have to include an actual object, though it does not have to be the object they have been working with. It can be a different object that is related to it—literally, metaphorically, or symbolically.
Create a composition in which the students use various neutral tones of torn papers (with a variety of textures) collaged on a surface to define areas of a still life. The piece is further refined as the student superimposes a linear drawing upon the collage with black, sepia or white conté.
Possible Breadth Topics:
Create a design with a repeated figure that places emphasis on symmetrical, asymmetrical or radial balance using a sharpie marker.
Create a portrait, self-portrait, landscape, or still-life in the style of another artist in which formal aspects of design are emphasized—i.e. Monet/Impressionism, Matisse/Fauvism, Picasso/Cubism, Warhol/Pop, Dali/Surrealism, Van Gogh/Postimpressionism, etc. You may have to do a bit of research to understand the stylistic tendencies of these artists/movements.
Create a self-portrait, or several different ones, that expresses a specific mood/emotion–e.g., anger/rage, melancholy/loneliness, happiness/joy, etc. Manipulate light and color to enhance the psychological atmosphere. Also, consider the development of the environment/setting.
Create some exploration with mixed media. Do a piece (portrait, self-portrait, landscape, or still-life) in which you use at least three different media—i.e., a wet medium, a dry medium and some collage element.
Create a portrait, self-portrait, still life, or landscape using either a complementary, analogous, or split-complementary color scheme (you may use black and white as well as shades and tints of the chosen hues).
Create a drawing of a futuristic cityscape—e.g., Fort Worth in the year 2050 (keep in mind rules of one-, two-, and three-point perspective.
Create a composition with cakes, candies and gumball machines. Look at the work of Wayne Thiebaud.
Create a graphite drawing of a still-life arrangement that consists of reflective objects—your goal is to convey a convincing representation with a full range of values. To add interest to the composition, you might also want to render yourself being reflected in the objects.
Create a drawing of an unusual interior—for instance, looking inside a closet, cabinet, refrigerator, inside your car... use your imagination!
Create a painting/drawing/mixed media combo of a toy. Look at Chris Cosnowski, local artist John Hartley, Cesar Santander and Andy Warhol.
Create a color rendering of a still-life arrangement consisting of your family member’s shoes—try to convey some “sense” of each of your individual family member’s distinct personalities in your piece.
Create a composition that shows progressive magnification of a subject. Select either an organic or inorganic object to draw. Divide a large piece of drawing paper into nine equal sections. Starting in the top-left box, draw a representational, overall view of the object as accurately as you can. In the next box to the right, imagine that you have a camera with a zoom lens and draw a close-up portion of the object in accurate detail. In the remaining sections, continue zooming in on the object and enlarging finer details. The last frame should be an enlarged detail created with the aid of a magnifying glass or microscope.
Recreate an Old Masterpiece Painting. Select a painting, sculpture, or well-known image from art history for interpretation. Redo the work . . . update it, or change colors, media, characters, etc.
Create an Architectural Myth with Photomontage: Collect photographs/photocopies of city skylines, landscapes, and seascapes. Also collect photos/copies of household and technical objects—e.g., eggbeater, toothbrush, toaster, electric fan, automobile grill, etc. Carefully implant the photo of the technical gadget within the photo of the environment to create a surreal cityscape or landscape. (You might want to look at the work of the artist Max Ernst who took printed images and recombined them to create hybrid forms).
Create cut-paper self-portraits, interiors, landscapes.
Create distorted interiors.
Create gridded and distorted self-portraits.
Create Pop-inspired pieces working with personal symbols or words (Robert Indiana, Ed Ruscha).
Create a piece that combines photocopied body parts (face, hands, feet) with anatomical drawings.
Create an acrylic painting using analogous or complementary color scheme.
Create a funky portrait of classmate in environment using thick bold outlines/contours, and areas of flat color (David Bates).
Create paintings or color drawings investigating imitation of metal or glass objects.
Create a tromp l’oeil painting by direct observation of objects placed in a box or glued on a board.
Create pinhole photography utilizing Principles of Design. Create your own camera and develop paper in darkroom.
Create photograms.
Create an Andy Warhol/Robert Rauschenberg Pop Art piece by way of photo transfer. Colorize it with prismacolor, acrylic paint, pastel or watercolor.
Create a social commentary piece involving experimentation with acetone transfers and gloss medium transfers to be further developed with text and imagery—literal, metaphorical, or symbolic. Look at Robert Rauschenberg.
Create text and image piece in which student is asked to physically write (soft graphite pencil) across a surface that has been coated with undiluted gesso an excerpt from an account of a most memorable moment—good, bad, horrific, terrifying. The direction and spacing of the text are up to the student. Within a rectangular (inset) area, the student is instructed to gesso out all text and then superimpose imagery within the space that is invoked by the story—literal, symbolic, or metaphorical.
Create compositions that involve the use of inset imagery (image within image such as details/close up views).
Create a drawing composition that alternates from a simple contour drawing into a fully rendered drawing at student-designated focal points.
Create a three-part piece inspired by work of Jim Dine: In the first piece the students are asked to render an ordinary object or tool, bigger than actual size, making it the dominant aspect of the composition. The students are also directed to blur the distinction between positive shape and negative space. In the second piece, on a larger surface, the students are to create three distinct images of the object, while making the whole piece work. In the third piece, the students have to include an actual object, though it does not have to be the object they have been working with. It can be a different object that is related to it—literally, metaphorically, or symbolically.
Create a composition in which the students use various neutral tones of torn papers (with a variety of textures) collaged on a surface to define areas of a still life. The piece is further refined as the student superimposes a linear drawing upon the collage with black, sepia or white conté.
Possible Concentration Topics:
A series of works done with encaustic, printmaking, and a variety of other media, concerned with different approaches to the picture plane as discussed in the text Drawing: A Contemporary Approach (Claudia Betti and Teel Sale 2004, Wadsworth).
A series of works done in graphite, colored pencil, and Adobe PhotoShop illustrating aspects of the subject “Roller Coaster.” The investigation increasingly moved away from illustrative renderings to bold, graphic symbols.
A series of works done in 2D and low relief. Look at Jim Dine. The student investigates a tool (hammer) in a body of work done in a variety of media, with a variety of techniques as well as processes. Investigation combined interest in imagery developed from direct observation as well as engaged in issues of formal design.
A series of works from a student’s visual journal. Sophisticated in terms of development, the book included text, personal photographs, collage items—ticket stubs, product labels, fortunes (fortune cookies), netting, bubble wrap. Student enhanced the compositions with intimate illustrations, many figurative and/or based on human anatomy.
A series of black-and-white photos that showed strong evidence of investigation into a number of design elements and principles. Examples included works showing repeating shapes/patterns, geometric division of space, and balance.
A series of photos related by subject—such as portraits, self-portraits, landscapes, architectural details, a family history.
A series of mixed media pieces based on childhood memories using collaged and layered imagery that incorporated text.
Photographic documentary of a subject.
A series of work based on the life of the graffiti artist.
A digital self-portrait series that incorporate digital photos with text.
A series of works done with encaustic, printmaking, and a variety of other media, concerned with different approaches to the picture plane as discussed in the text Drawing: A Contemporary Approach (Claudia Betti and Teel Sale 2004, Wadsworth).
A series of works done in graphite, colored pencil, and Adobe PhotoShop illustrating aspects of the subject “Roller Coaster.” The investigation increasingly moved away from illustrative renderings to bold, graphic symbols.
A series of works done in 2D and low relief. Look at Jim Dine. The student investigates a tool (hammer) in a body of work done in a variety of media, with a variety of techniques as well as processes. Investigation combined interest in imagery developed from direct observation as well as engaged in issues of formal design.
A series of works from a student’s visual journal. Sophisticated in terms of development, the book included text, personal photographs, collage items—ticket stubs, product labels, fortunes (fortune cookies), netting, bubble wrap. Student enhanced the compositions with intimate illustrations, many figurative and/or based on human anatomy.
A series of black-and-white photos that showed strong evidence of investigation into a number of design elements and principles. Examples included works showing repeating shapes/patterns, geometric division of space, and balance.
A series of photos related by subject—such as portraits, self-portraits, landscapes, architectural details, a family history.
A series of mixed media pieces based on childhood memories using collaged and layered imagery that incorporated text.
Photographic documentary of a subject.
A series of work based on the life of the graffiti artist.
A digital self-portrait series that incorporate digital photos with text.