Consumption ｜ 9 x 6.8 in｜ Procreate, IPad Pro Digital Collage.

Built on skewed perspective and chock-full of detail, this piece is slightly unsettling to look at.

While for my previous piece, I took great care to plan out the composition and establish a nice flow throughout the illustration, I stuffed this one with as many details as possible. As a result, the piece as a whole feels a bit uncomfortable due to the sheer density of visual information. Upon closer inspection, however, many “easter eggs” pop out — every inch is meticulously rendered and thought-out. As a result, out of all the pieces in my portfolio, this took the longest, by far. 

Lucia Li is a remarkable artist with vision and insight. Her artwork is part of her broader investigation of the environment, physical impacts, social, and her personal reflection of it. As a group, we explored the intention of each artist in their investigation as well as critiquing the final result as well as the progressive art as it led up to the final artwork. I feel this was one of the most important elements of our classroom activities. We discussed symbols, changing canvas formats, different perspectives, composition, and visual elements such as more contrast or emphasis and how various students perceived the artwork. Students discussed if it was clear to them or, in some way, the artwork needed more work. The critiques facilitated more revisions and furthered the process. The students had access to many different art materials in class and were supplied with their own sets in either watercolors or acrylics. A cart with art supplies was brought out every day. Different sizes of canvas and paper were made available. Lucia and the other students were encouraged to experiment; most of the class time was studio time, used for independent art-making. Several students, including Lucia, brought their computers to class every day to work on their art. Above all, the students were encouraged to create a portfolio that expressed their own vision and voice. Lucia, with her excellent skill, did that. Her artwork is original; her symbols of using the angry animals mounted as trophies and garments of status create a powerful commentary of her voice. I learned from Lucia and other highly creative students to allow the students the freedom to explore their ideas, have open-ended commentary, and allow the students to revise their artwork by looking at it in a group setting, with the artist making the final evaluation after our class discussions.