Here are my final thoughts on this 2D exploration...
I was both afraid and excited going into these medium investigations. As someone who mainly works in black and white with charcoal, there were mediums like chalk and oil pastels that I hadn't touched since high school. However, it was incredibly fun revisiting them with the mind of a curious student. I'm glad that I got to dive into diverse art media and create notes for my future self to use when teaching children. I've learned the importance of mark-making, color palettes, and composition to create visually exciting pieces. I also discovered the potential of digital mediums like photography and digital art that students can engage in with a limited budget. For more specific reflections on individual mediums, please refer to my "Personal Thoughts" sections of each of my blog posts.
Finally, having the freedom to choose my own theme was a dream come true and extremely helpful. Because it's a topic that I love, I went into my explorations deeply to create (hopefully) successful pieces that showcase the capabilities of the mediums. Researching artists like Tianying Wang (charcoal), Yael Maimon (oil pastel), and Gina Palmer (printmaking) who also make animal art was valuable for inspiration because they're all expressive artists specializing in value, color, and texture. They never draw the same animal in identical poses. Each portrayal through marks, color choices, or texture aids in reading the emotions of the animal. I also think this would be a great topic to use when teaching children about expressive art. Cats don't have our human facial expressions (except maybe for anger haha) to indicate their moods, therefore students should rely on mark-making and color schemes/combinations to convey the feelings of their subjects. That was my biggest takeaway from this theme exploration, and I noticed that my artwork kept getting progressively more expressive up until mixed media where I was able to let myself completely loose! For that, I am very grateful. Exploring makes everyone a better artist :)
Click on slideshow images to expand the kitties!
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