How to get good marks in visual arts major work? (1 Viewer)

[#RoadTo31Atar]

Title basically says it all, I don't really care what I need to do to get a good mark, I'll do it.

 

[sahar0]

- Make sure that there is a lot that the audience can take from your final piece.
- If audience engagement is shallow and your concept is lacking, you won't get good marks.
- Choose a medium you're most skilled at and draw something you will enjoy drawing, you're gonna be creating it for a whole year.
- Don't try something new at this stage, stick with what you know.
- Honestly just continually refine your concept into something you're passionate about and something with depth and complexity.
- If you do multiple pieces of work make sure that you don't fully complete one piece then move to the next, do each piece gradually at the same time. That way if you run out of time you'll have multiple pieces that are partially complete rather than just one or two fully completed pieces.

 

[sil3ent]

Hey #RoadTo31Atar,

PhD candidate here, also full-time photographer, felt like popping on here for no reason after a long time.

I have no idea what the criteria is for HSC anymore but here's some advice and ideas from an arts philosophy university/artist perspective. Take it with a grain of salt or feel free to ask your teacher for confirmation.

If I had to boil it down to one sentence, it is that the concept is more important than the technicality. Sure, technique/skill is required and it helps to get your message across.

Get a good concept, research the relevant context to reinforce your idea, and make sure to put that in your artist statement or whatever you need to write about. Research context backs up the statements you make so it looks like you know what you are talking about. E.g. If you want to do and talk about surreal work that looks dream-like — research surrealism, look at the concepts that the surrealists employed such as voyeurism, fetishism, trauma. If your idea has nothing to do with them, consider putting or linking them to your concept. Just make sure that the link is clear and relevant, BOTH visually (your actual work) and textually (your statement). This is a point I think a lot of students do not understand in high school. You need to be able to research a concept on your own that your teacher may not have taught you.

Remember that art movements like Dada existed? Found objects / readymade objects were the primary subject of the exhibition or photograph. But why, and for what purpose did those objects serve? There was a whole concept and reason for it that aligned with the Dadaist's line of thought, that made it a prime medium to investigate for that movement. Capitalise on the idea, research it well, and you can make any form of art related to it. SPIN WORDS!! Found objects have already been done by Dadaists? Well guess what, it is 2019 and you are in the contemporary era. Make a 3D model of a found object and call it a contemporary investigation of the Dada legacy. Obviously there is more to it than that, but that's the kind of stuff you need to think about, like is your object-of-choice really a found object, and is it still considered a found object if you 3D print it etc?

In my opinion, it is better to do something closer to the contemporary era as it will be more impactful and relevant in the current age. Have your work talk about current issues. Photography is not limited to simply taking a photo of something that already exists. Go do a temporary installation that relates to a topic you have concerns about, take a photo and make a photo documentation series.

Relevant to sahar0's comment, multiple pieces of work, such as a diptych or triptych, are primarily there to serve as a reinforcement of your work and concept. More work can prove a point. Sometimes it is not necessary to get into too much detail when talking about each individual work, but giving a final statement that encompasses your work as a series.

On a human-level perspective, do not forget that all examiners and art teachers are/were, at some point, artists themselves. You need to think of them as artists who can read and understand art, and target that.

Good luck.

 

[#RoadTo31Atar]

Hey #RoadTo31Atar,

PhD candidate here, also full-time photographer, felt like popping on here for no reason after a long time.

I have no idea what the criteria is for HSC anymore but here's some advice and ideas from an arts philosophy university/artist perspective. Take it with a grain of salt or feel free to ask your teacher for confirmation.

If I had to boil it down to one sentence, it is that the concept is more important than the technicality. Sure, technique/skill is required and it helps to get your message across.

Get a good concept, research the relevant context to reinforce your idea, and make sure to put that in your artist statement or whatever you need to write about. Research context backs up the statements you make so it looks like you know what you are talking about. E.g. If you want to do and talk about surreal work that looks dream-like — research surrealism, look at the concepts that the surrealists employed such as voyeurism, fetishism, trauma. If your idea has nothing to do with them, consider putting or linking them to your concept. Just make sure that the link is clear and relevant, BOTH visually (your actual work) and textually (your statement). This is a point I think a lot of students do not understand in high school. You need to be able to research a concept on your own that your teacher may not have taught you.

Remember that art movements like Dada existed? Found objects / readymade objects were the primary subject of the exhibition or photograph. But why, and for what purpose did those objects serve? There was a whole concept and reason for it that aligned with the Dadaist's line of thought, that made it a prime medium to investigate for that movement. Capitalise on the idea, research it well, and you can make any form of art related to it. SPIN WORDS!! Found objects have already been done by Dadaists? Well guess what, it is 2019 and you are in the contemporary era. Make a 3D model of a found object and call it a contemporary investigation of the Dada legacy. Obviously there is more to it than that, but that's the kind of stuff you need to think about, like is your object-of-choice really a found object, and is it still considered a found object if you 3D print it etc?

In my opinion, it is better to do something closer to the contemporary era as it will be more impactful and relevant in the current age. Have your work talk about current issues. Photography is not limited to simply taking a photo of something that already exists. Go do a temporary installation that relates to a topic you have concerns about, take a photo and make a photo documentation series.

Relevant to sahar0's comment, multiple pieces of work, such as a diptych or triptych, are primarily there to serve as a reinforcement of your work and concept. More work can prove a point. Sometimes it is not necessary to get into too much detail when talking about each individual work, but giving a final statement that encompasses your work as a series.

On a human-level perspective, do not forget that all examiners and art teachers are/were, at some point, artists themselves. You need to think of them as artists who can read and understand art, and target that.

Good luck.

Very interesting feedback to confirm what I have been thinking about technical application vs concept, my teacher actually recommended not to talk about current issues because she as a marker says that a lot of people try to do that (politcs, famine, racism, etc) and it very unoriginal.

 

[sil3ent]

Very interesting feedback to confirm what I have been thinking about technical application vs concept

Would you rather an advertisement with a really great message and okay execution, or poor message but great execution? A great message speaks for itself, while the execution reinforces the message and idea. On the other hand, great technical skill can only do so much to reinforce a message that doesn't have much weight or foundation. A successful work will be a combination of both.

my teacher actually recommended not to talk about current issues because she as a marker says that a lot of people try to do that (politcs, famine, racism, etc) and it very unoriginal.

By all means, take on board your teacher's recommendation. At the end of the day, it is only a recommendation to minimise failure in case you don't hit the right notes. If you do it well, it will be really successful. Art can target the littlest details, and is in fact the premise of many artists' work. It may seem mundane to others, but fascinating for yourself, and you need to be able to show that.

Politics, famine and racism etc seem like very weighty subjects to use for a concept. If you do choose to go down this path, you may consider breaking down these issues into minor concepts, such as cultural identity for race. Being political doesn't have to be necessarily obvious and grandiose, but can be like making pop art of a particular subject and align the concept with corporate greed and consumerism etc, or you can branch into politics of the object or the body. I won't give you any ideas as it is something you will have to explore for yourself. Just research carefully before you make any statements.

 

[L_L]

things i would suggest from someone doing the HSC right now.

Collate a bunch of lists of your favorite artists, drag them from anywhere and everywhere and list what you like about their works individually or their styles, from there link the things you like and try to find a pattern between each artist

for me i found i was fascinated by video art and artists who blended the psychedelic with the real so i mixed those with a personal story to make my work.

second thing is to choose a medium. what are you good at or interested in essentially. throughout year 11 you probs got a lot of time to experiment so use that as the basis for what you do, enjoyed painting? practice more and see what you can do with it. also don't be afraid to step out of the bounds of 'traditional art' such as painting as sculpture, video, installation can be just as rewarding.

Third to choose a concept. try to get a concept up and running before the end of year. with those artists you collated also look at their themes and what themes you like from them. Also make lists of things YOU want to talk about, what interests you? what concerns you? My work discussed my mothers childhood in a war zone and its lasting effects on her and her children (me lol). It doesn't have to be personal but i find its easier to work if it is, art should be a reflection of you in some sense.

finally don't be afraid to chop and change, art is about experimentation. However i would suggest continually experiment with your form and concept no good art is completed with a single idea, treat your art as you would a tree you need to pot it, water it, nourish it to see it grow and where it leads welcoming change is difficult but in my opinion important to the process

good luck! you'll crush it I'm sure.