AP 3-D ART AND DESIGN
Carmen Casillas
Name of the Artwork
School of The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Height: 13", Width: 10", Depth: 6" | Idea(s): How did little moments from my trip create a deeper sense of connection to family roots? | Material(s): Ceramic Cactus from pinch pots creates space for tiny environments - evoke feeling of home in Mexico | Process(es): Taking different scenery from Mexico travels & photos to create miniature worlds within plant. | Citation(s): Original photos of Mexico, my mini paintings, travel experience. | Curatorial Note: The synthesis of materials, such as pinch pots used to frame miniature environments, processes like combining personal photographs with sculpted scenery, and ideas rooted in memories from a trip, results in a richly layered narrative within a single sculpture.
STUDENT STATEMENT
Does your art connect to or take inspiration from any past or present art styles, techniques, or traditions? If yes, how?
My art relies on and takes inspiration slightly from Fauvism. I love utilizing bright and saturated colors within my pieces, which I picked up from Fauvist artists like Henri Matisse and André Derain. The way that color can make an artwork pop and have a more emotional significance made me incorporate it in my works so prevalently. In terms of technique, outlining my pieces with a black marker is something I utilize heavily, as I find it adds a more whimsical nature to my pieces. Mixing both color and outlining, I find my artwork building character that displays my own personal nature as an artist.
What inspired you to choose the inquiry (big idea or question) for your Sustained Investigation?
The main thing that led me to choose the inquiry I did was my cultural background and the times I have traveled to my hometown in Mexico. I love traveling anywhere, but traveling to Mexico has always had a special place in my heart. I wanted to find out a new way to perceive Mexico that would target the way it felt to me. The way Mexico looks is a big part of my perception, so I began by observing things, like rocks and colors, that I often saw and further developing those visual cues into an abstract vase. I used these things that I perceived and correlated them to my time spent in Mexico within my artworks.
Material(s): Compositional sketches, Various sizes of pinch pots to create form of cactus, a symbol of Mexico. | Process(es): Experimentation with cactus placement and different structures inside. | Use of Digital Tool(s): No | Citation(s): Photographs of cacti on Google. Scenes inside windows inspired by my travel photos from Mexico.
Idea(s): How did little moments from my trip create a deeper sense of connection to family roots? | Material(s): Paint to develop vibrant Mexican colors. Added toothpicks for cactus spikes. | Process(es): Layered dry brush paint to enhance texture, printed mini copies of my own Mexico paintings for walls | Citation(s): Original photos of Mexico, my mini paintings, travel experience.
I create objects inspired by my nuanced observations of the world that may go unnoticed.
How did you make your short, written statements about each artwork (ideas, materials, process, citations) clearer so others could understand your intentions?
In order to make my short, written statements clear, I always made sure to assume that my artwork wouldn’t speak for itself. By using conversational language and digging more deeply into my “why, what, and how,” I was able to provide that authenticity I was looking for to the reader. Mentioning what didn’t work, help from my teacher, and many revisions always assisted me in conveying my ideas thoroughly.
In what ways did your art teacher support your growth as an artist?
My art teachers have been beyond helpful and supportive during my art making process. They were always there for me and always giving me helpful advice that critiqued my work in a way that pushed me toward becoming a better artist. They encouraged me to broaden my horizons by reassuring me that mistakes and experiments were beneficial to my growth. I was pushed out of my comfort zone repeatedly, but it was that very same push they gave me that was critical to my own improvement.
How did your school leaders (like your principal, assistant principal, or counselor) support you as an art student (examples: visiting your class, attending art shows, or talking with you about your goals)?
There were quite a few instances where school leaders supported me as an art student. One of these was when I was given the opportunity to speak on my school’s podcast channel. This experience helped me acknowledge the importance of art in the community and demonstrated that my work was important enough to be showcased. Similarly, having a book that I illustrated put into my school’s library also helped me feel seen in conversations about my future goals and careers. I gained confidence throughout these experiences in the significance of my own art and in the value of being an artist.
What advice would you share with future AP Art and Design students about developing an inquiry?
To prospective AP Art and Design students, I would recommend making your inquiry be about something that you see frequently and that shows importance in your day-to-day life. Your inquiry has to be based on something you genuinely care about; diving deeply into things you care about ends up with the best results. The way I did this was by keeping a small sketchbook close and writing down anything and everything I acknowledged in my day-to-day life, regardless of how mundane it was. Additionally, you should let your failures motivate you. Failing during your process is never a reason to give up, and you need to be prepared to almost certainly face it. You should instead take a deeper look into why you fail and let those failures nurture your growth as you investigate your topic. Finally, and what I believe to be most important, is to try new material and experiment boldly. You need to push yourself to new limits to become the best version of yourself and the artist that you aspire to be.
TEACHER STATEMENT
Katherine Kalus
Art Teacher
Reavis High School
How often did your class meet?
We met five days a week for 55 minutes.
Please describe the structure of your AP Art and Design course.
In the AP Art and Design course, it is AP students from all three portfolios.
How did you guide students in developing and refining their inquiry statements and
portfolio direction during their Sustained Investigations?
We begin the course with self-reflection exercises. Students respond to questions about who they are, what they like, and what’s important to them. We examine all of their past work and identify strengths and interests. From there they come up with a list of possible investigation ideas. They continue to work individually as well as in small and large groups to refine and expand on those ideas. After their first few works in their investigation, students conference with the teacher about their plans along with their personal Padlet (digital bulletin board) of their work thus far. We make connections and talk about where to go next, all while being able to see the big picture of their body of work. This continues throughout the year. Often the initial investigation statement evolves and changes based on observations they make while looking at Padlet.
How did you help students strengthen technical skills and apply design knowledge (elements and principles) while also developing creative problem-solving habits?
Students often come to my class with three years of previous art class experience, so their technical abilities are pretty sound. However, in the AP class, their feedback gets much more specific. We have a large art department of six teachers, and they often go to multiple teachers asking for a variety of feedback in order to improve their work. Another way they achieve mastery is by using their sketchbook to practice and experiment with their material or make mock-ups in the 3-D portfolio in order to practice their surface finish options.
In what ways did you structure opportunities for practice, experimentation, and revision into your curriculum?
Toward the end of the first semester, one of their assignments is to significantly revise a past piece. This work could have been done in a different class or previous year or be an earlier piece in their investigation. I make color copies of their work and we talk about how to evaluate what they have done in their investigation work and how to apply one or some of those techniques or concepts to alter this older piece. Their final exam is an activity meant to inspire experimentation. They create three trading cards that each use a new material and a different approach to their investigation topic. They get very creative and are not intimidated because it is such a small format. The end result has three purposes: First, they are often so good that they are used as evidence in one of their 15 slides. Second, they also commonly become starting points for larger, more complex pieces during the second semester. And finally, these three small artworks are traded using a “white elephant” type of game at our end-of-semester celebration! All participating students take home three original artworks by their peers and they LOVE it!
How did you scaffold writing into students’ art making and thinking processes?
Students write about their work during the planning stages as well as upon the final submission of each work (about 10 to 12 works during the year). The reflection questions are modeled after the prompts they must submit to the College Board in May. We practice identifying the most important aspects of their work and process (practice, experimentation, revision, or visual synthesis) and then practice referencing those within their 100-character statements. We review submission statements from previous successful portfolios and identify how the text directly relates to the visual information on the same slide.
In what ways did you integrate digital tools or technology into students’ creative processes?
My students have access to the Adobe Suite but most of them don’t use it often. They revise and alter the reference photos they take using their camera app or other free app on their phone. One thing I often do for them if they find themselves “stuck” is make color prints of their work in its current state. I give them three copies and tell them to mess it up in three different ways. This takes away their fear of making a mistake and allows them to test materials and processes freely.
PRINCIPAL STATEMENT
Julie A. Schultz, Ed. D.
Principal
Reavis High School D220
What makes you most proud of your school’s AP Art and Design program and its impact on your students and teacher(s)?
The AP Art and Design program includes high expectations demonstrated by our teachers, which lends it to exploration and pursuit of portfolio development. Because of this, I am most proud that all students have access to high-quality instruction and experience a welcoming and inclusive classroom environment, where they are empowered to use their voice to tell their stories and reflect their identities. Each learner can grow their skills and gain confidence in a creative, safe space.
What actions or priorities have you implemented to strengthen visual arts programming at your school?
There are several things we have collectively accomplished as a district to strengthen the visual arts programming, including creating a grades 9 through 12 curriculum that spans multiple disciplines of design; developing an AP portfolio review to use student reflection to guide improvements; hiring highly qualified, passionate teachers; supporting the continued growth of art sections by increasing faculty numbers in the department; providing professional development opportunities; elevating the visual arts with the same seriousness as other core and elective courses; and supporting teacher leadership in many avenues found throughout our professional learning communities.
What advice would you share with other school leaders about building and sustaining strong AP Art and Design programs?
The success of any program starts with your community of stakeholders. Hiring and supporting passionate, qualified teachers with deep knowledge—who nurture creativity, critical thinking, and personal voice in student work—have been foundational to the excellence of our program. Our fine arts department not only represents these key fundamental characteristics, but also comprises excellent human beings who make our school better. In addition to their expertise, we have recruited diverse student voices and levels of experience into our four-year program, fostering a creative community. We celebrate student work publicly through exhibitions, social media, galleries, competitions, and more. The investment in equipment and quality materials to support a studio space has allowed us to increase access to art and provide a space to support students. With our board of education’s support, we continue to champion the art department and remain a highly visible program for our community. My best piece of advice is to listen to student interest—it will take you in the direction you need to go.
Gabriella Hanna
