Thomas Diaz

My work, “Escondite,” delves into the facet of my sustained investigation that concerns itself with questioning a viewer's assumptions about a work and undermining those preconceived notions through composition and subject context. Although a seemingly simplistic depiction of a game of hide-and-seek, this work explores the complexities of mundane moments and the potential visual tension and irony that can deepen the meaning of any moment. Superficially, the scene portrays a game endemic to childhood, evoking themes of innocence and lighthearted joy. Progressively, the irony of obscuring oneself through transparent or reflective barriers begins to present itself as a sense of naivety, and comedy emerges. Contextually, the figures in the painting share a deep tension that can only be understood when their relationship is considered. For my brothers and me, Escondite, Spanish for hide-and-seek, was, and is, a simultaneously highly competitive yet recreational form of entertainment.

The process of choosing my inquiry followed my workflow. Although the newer portion of my portfolio was, in great part, created with a concrete sustained investigation idea in mind, the initial works in my portfolio informed the development of said sustained investigation. For those first works, the conceptual process succeeded the material process. This way, I amassed a body of work, made up of finished works and preliminary sketches, that in itself began to develop a through line, allowing for an organic and unforced process that remained sincere to my identity as an artist. Naturally, the work I was creating tended to revolve around the same subject matter: my family. Through deep consideration, I realized that in depicting my family and everyday life, I sought to explore the inherent beauty and meaning I attributed to mundane moments. I identified my deep passion for the contradiction of personally momentous yet generally quotidian experiences.

As I continued to investigate my interest in the mundane, I realized my need to expand the confines of my inquiry to accommodate the growing facets my work was beginning to manifest around. Initially, my inquiry focused solely on portraying the circumstantial significance of everyday events, a conformity that arose from a body of work still in its beginning stages. As my work progressed and ideas began to branch off, I created newer interpretations of my original inquiry. My inquiry remained grounded in the mundane but diversified to include the concept of perception as well as the idea of fabricating mundane moments. This flexibility allowed me to create a body of work that was more complex and nuanced in terms of concept and that flowed more naturally.

At first, I approached my portfolio through a widely encompassing inquiry. This allowed me to explore how comfortable I was with said inquiry and whether or not I would be able to naturally create work that justified it. As my portfolio developed, I narrowed down the details of my inquiry and homed in on what facets I specifically wanted to focus on. In doing this, I was able to base my portfolio around an idea that may seem too broad to function as a guide but, in reality, is easily fragmented for more concise exploration.

I aim to assist the students in discovering what they are sincerely interested in investigating for the school year. This can contrast with something that sounds like a good sustained investigation initially, but that they are not actually compelled to create work about. Even if the words are not all there, but there is a real interest in some aspect(s) of art making, I look at that as promising in the development of an SI. I do not expect the students to have a fully formed understanding of what their sustained investigation is very early in the year. Some of the tools and strategies we use early in the year are mood boards, mind maps, and brainstorming. If possible, I look through work they’ve done before and ask students questions about what kind of work they like to make, think they would be interested in creating, or what they’d like to try to get more experience or insight about. I encourage the mindset that, even with there being real criteria as far as what a sustained investigation is and is not, there is very likely a way to turn whatever they are interested in into an SI as we work throughout the school year. Throughout the course, we have class and individual discussions featuring diverse examples of differing approaches to building a portfolio with a sustained investigation. Sometimes the examples are images and writing from the College Board website, former AP students of mine, other visual artists, or even works from other fields, such as music.

I often ask students to think about how specific assignments can connect meaningfully or interestingly to their sustained investigations. I encourage the idea that skills such as technique development or certain approaches to art making that an assignment may emphasize do not need to be ends in themselves. For example, there may be times that it can feel like a chore to practice a certain technique or art-making approach, but if looked at from the standpoint of having more access to skills that can allow for more freedom and range in artistic communication, it can become more interesting. Similar to a writer who learns more vocabulary, ways of putting sentences together, or approaches to describing subject matter, the options for expression grow.