AP Studio Art is made up of three separate studio classes. You have the opportunity to complete nine college hours in art. Each class has summer work assignments. You must complete these assignments before the first day of school in the fall for your grade in your AP Studio Art class. You also must complete the assignments to get a good foundation of the material covered in the class. You will want to complete the projects so you already have some possible projects for your AP 3D portfolio.
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Supplies needed: Sketchbook, plaster (or plaster of paris), sandpaper, flashdrive, recycled/found objects, anything else you would need for your sculptures, something to take pictures.
SKETCHBOOK
This is due to me the first day of class, no exceptions. This sketchbook will be your initial inspiration for an entire school year of artistic investigation. You will, of course, continue working in it the entire school year. You should have enough sketches and ideas to springboard you into working on your portfolio.
Sizeand Specs –no smaller than 5x8 and no larger than 11x17
-hard bound for durability
-good quality paper
-available at most stores, especially arts and crafts stores
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Assignment – At least 8 different ideas for sculptures that you would like to build for your concentration. These should show multiple views if your sculpture in “in-the-round.” They can include things like lists of needed materials, measurements, notes about the inner workings of your “armature,” etc.
- At least three journal entries about your concentration idea and the narrative, meaning or thought process you have behind it. This will form the beginning of your artist statement.
- Four plus pages of full-page sketches of your sculptures you made over the summer. This can be one page that have been drawn, outlined and colored (no crayons) or several pages that show detailed, shaded, pencil sketches of it from every angle.
These assignments do not have to be completed in any specific order. This is the minimum assignment. You are welcome to do any extra painting, drawing, collecting of scraps and writing that you wish. This is a place to record ideas, plan and experiment before you start using materials. The more of that you do over the summer, the better. Find artists that inspire you and make notes about their artwork and life. Sketch their work. All this will help you in the coming year. I do not care what order the pages are in or how it is organized. I just want to see evidence that you are thinking about three-dimensional art.
AP 3D Sculpture Assignments
(You are required to do four. Two are choice and two aremandatory. Doing extra projects is always a good idea.)
First you need to get a flash drive specifically for this class. A small inexpensive one is fine. When you do projects, take a couple good pictures of the process. Try to steer away from photos with cluttered backgrounds. After a project is complete, use a white or black backdrop (poster board or sheets work great for this) and take pictures in front of a window with good lighting. Get your pictures loaded onto the flashdrive. This must be turned in the first day of school.
You must do at least two of the following:
- Recycled/Found Object/Assemblage – Use any combination of found materials to make a visually interesting piece. This can be literally anything. Collect materials. Minimally alter the found objects and arrange them. Find a way to construct the piece. Use an armature if needed. Decide what adhesive would work best if needed. Make it in-the-round. Take photos.
- Texture – Make something have an unusual texture. Make it visually appealing. For example, you make want to glue nails to a teddy bear or be-jewel a piece of technology. Try to “contradict the form.” Yarn bombing is a fantastic example of this project. Take photos.
- Repetition – Make a sculpture that shows the principle of design, repetition. Do this by repeating something. Either objects or colors or ideas. Keep it simple. The power should come from the visual of something being repeated. An example of this could be a collection of similar objects that have all been painted the same color and are displayed in some way that unifies them as one piece. Another example of this would be a yard filled with chairs. Just make sure the product is visually interesting.
- Altered Book – Take an old book and alter it. Use the pages to build something three-dimensional. Cut away parts and add other parts. This can be representational or just another manifestation of a beautiful form through something non-objective. Take photos.
Both of the Following are Required:
1. Installation. Choose a small space and temporarily transform it in some way. This can be anything from a closet or bathroom in your home to a corner in a barn. Think about the other places that you have access to like outdoor sheds, church offices, community centers and parks. The first part is PLANNING. You have to come up with an idea. Start by looking up what other artists have done. Part of this process is ASKING PERMISSION. Have your idea worked out first. Have sketches. Tell people that you are an art student working on an assignment for college credit. Then ask before you alter someone else’s space. (This includes your parents’ home!) The next part is GATHERING SUPPLIES. You can use found objects, you can borrow things, and you can use very inexpensive things. One of the best installations I’ve encountered used nothing but black trash bags and a staple gun. Another used all found and cut cardboard. Do not break the bank on this project. Then you need to INSTALL the project. You can enlist the help of your friends and family, just make sure you are doing most of the work. The last and most important part of this project is TAKING PHOTOS. Take a lot of photos of your work from lots of different angles. Try to show what the space looks like but also take tight shots of details. Take staged photos of people interacting with the space. Be creative.
2. Beautiful form. Get a foam block from Ms. Batson or purchase a small one from a craft store. Sketch the most beautiful “form” you can think of from each angle. Once you have conceptualized the form, use household tools (a kitchen knife and sandpaper work great) to carve out the shape and form. Refine it further with the sandpaper. Use plaster and a brush to put three layers of white plaster on the sculpture. Sand between layers of plaster. Take photos.