My Final Thoughts for the 2016-2017 School Year

1. Over the course of this year I have created my own style with the use of watercolors to portray the unique image of life coming from something that is no longer living. I've learned different techniques ​when it come to water color washes and I've figured out that building up colors over time is the best way to create layers in watercolor. First I paint a wet base color and let that dry then I move onto another section, slowly getting more and more detailed as I let each section dry.

2. I've become invested in my art by spending more time on creating larger quantities and working with mediums that I'm more comfortable with. A specific example would be that I've spent almost all of this year working specifically working with watercolor and honing my skill instead of trying my hand at a different style or medium. This has been good for me as an artist because it has pushed me to create more work on a bigger scale that has just as much detail and effort put into it as my smaller pieces have. 

3. If I could relive this past year I probably would have tried to make time for more designing the compositions of the different pieces I did, and would have tried to produce even more work. It would have also helped if I had made sure to be consistent about the surface I painted on, considering that the different types of paper that I used were slightly different colors and textures. Some of the paper looked to be thick and textured which I've found to be good for watercolor use, but ended up not holding the color as well. On the bright side testing different papers this year helped me to figure out what works and what doesn't. 

4. One of the pieces I'm very proud of from the past two years is the series of owls I did while studying Killi Murray. I loved how detailed and cute they turned out to be and this year I was able to let that sort of style start to guide my work. 

5. Some of my most memorable experiences from DRHS art are the people I've been able to meet and the advice I have been given. Meeting and getting to know some of the seniors in our class has given me a goal to look towards and has pushed me to work harder. Though doing critiques makes me nervous, I enjoy getting lots of positive feed back and getting to see what everyone has been creating in and outside of the classroom. 

6. I would suggest to make sure you make the most out of your time. If you don't have the materials to work on your project that day make sure to at least be working on something that will build your skills or work on designing or create a plan for a future project. Make sure not to get too caught up in critiques, everyone is just trying to be helpful and give advice for your work so it's okay if they are pointing out flaws and trying to be constructive.