For this project we did an up close part of nature, similar to a Georgia O'Keeffe piece.
I solve problems
While working on this art piece i learned how to use a new art medium, Prismacolor pencils. previously i had never used these pencils and i often had to learn along the way to show the true depth of the art piece. During the drawing process i had a hard time showing highlights, as you can see there is a small difference in one of the highlights compared to another: the farthest left seed with a ring of highlights around it. This was my first attempt and by solving this problem and adapting it i was able to portray more realistic highlights around the seeds on the strawberry compared to the original attempt. As well i started this piece with outlining everything in a solid color that belonged to its specific part, at first this seemed wrong because i had a hard time coloring up the original outline but as i continued to layer the color over the out line i was able to hide the original mistake and show a true depth of color and value.
I reflect
During the process of this drawing there were many instances where i had to step back and critic my own drawings. Specifically the first time i had to step back was during the outlining process i had originally started to shade the outline all in one color as if in blocks, but stepping back i had used the wrong shades of color, upon further reflection i was able to add layers and hide the mistake. secondly i had to step back and analyze the shape and color of the seeds by adding more highlight i was able to capture the shape and the likeness of the seeds and now it is one of my favorite components of the piece. Lastly i had to step back at the very end and discover that there was not enough highlights in the leafs of the strawberry as well as the strawberry itself, by adding this it gives the strawberry a rounder dimension and reflects the light well. During this process i started out not really thinking before i made a new mark on the drawing i typically just went for it but as the piece continued on i realized i needed to do more planning before i make a permanent mistake. by stopping and reflecting on how to do the seeds before i did them permanently i was able to make them look more realistic and less muddy.
We collaborate
while doing this project i collaborated with many of my peers and teachers about my next decisions to further the piece. During the beginning stages of this piece i asked my table mates there opinion on what medium looked best for the topic i had chosen, by doing so i was able to affirm my own opinion with theirs to do the final piece in color pencil, they agreed with me that color pencil was a good medium to use with a strawberry because you could easily get a good range of values as well as allow the highlights to truly pop off the page with contrasting colors. At the end i also spoke with my teacher to decide whether or not to add highlights and brighter colors to the leaves and middle of the strawberry. By talking about this i made the decision to continue working and adding a more extended orange color through the piece stepping back and looking at the piece now i can say that doing this really helped my piece look more realistic. Also seeing other prismacolor pieces from the last project inspired me to do one of my own. I had never previously worked with prismas so discovering them was really fun, and seeing that it could be used in amazing ways influenced and inspired me to try and tackle it as my next project medium.