AP SKETCH JOURNAL

Summer Work: at least 10 complete spreads (20 pages). Due on the first day of school.

Picture

ORGANIZATION

Everyone thinks differently, so everyone will want to organize his or her sketchbook differently.  However, all sketchbooks must include each of the following components:

Range of Approaches:  Start looking for inspiration to accomplish your summer work and the work in the upcoming year.  Look at books, magazines, art journals, popular magazines, websites, album covers, and children’s picture books.  Spend a morning at the library or local bookstore.  Visit the AP Central Website and look at other student work.  Cut out, print, or sketch images and begin stuffing your sketchbook.  Include appealing images, even if the reason is not clear; maybe it’s the style, color scheme, use of media, or message.  Research the work of famous artists.  Visit a museum.  Sketch, take pictures and make notes.

Experimentation:  Test out what happens if you try new things.  Give yourself a chance to fail, because your sketchbook is the place to do it.  Paint up the pages before you draw on them.  Try unconventional materials.  The worst thing you can do in your sketchbook is be predictable, so BE ORIGINAL.  You might discover something great!
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Sustained Investigation:  As you do the above, begin to think about what you might want to explore for your Sustained Investigation (Concentration).  You can keep track of ideas any way you choose.  You should come to the first class with multiple ideas for possible investigations and what you might do for the first three pieces.

REQUIREMENTS:

Size: No smaller than 5x8” with good quality paper (mixed media recommended), available at art supply and craft stores.
Finished Pages:  Your sketchbook should be filled with research materials, observational drawings, journal entries of your summer experiences with images drawn/painted over them, experimentation and investigation of mediums, concepts and ideas.
Composition:  You decide how to compose each page.  Will they look more like finished works of art?  Or will they look more like pages in a notebook, filled with writing and sketches,  Will you glue in envelopes stuffed with inspirational images, create collages of imagery, interesting textures, and swatches of color.  Keep anything and everything that you find interesting and use it in your artwork.  Play with media and see what the possibilities are.  You never know until you try and this sketch journal is all about experimentation.  
Media - You decide what media to use. I do want to see you experimenting with mixed media and layering materials throughout your sketchbook journal.  Keep in mind you may want to a cover sheet or fixative over pastels and charcoal (wax paper works well).  Painted pages should be dried thoroughly before closing.

NEED SKETCHBOOK IDEAS?

Consider looking for the following specific images or sketch from observation or imagination.  
  • Design Elements and Principles: lines and shapes, interesting patterns and textures, evocative and unusual color and value, dynamic movement and rhythm, focal point, unity, balance, repetition.  
  • Personal Artistic Challenges:  Choose a subject matter (hands, feet, faces, animals, nature) or medium that you do not feel confident with and fill a few pages with practice in this area.
  • Appearances:  Surfaces, reflections, shadows, textures, etc.
  • Personal Issues:  Future plans, appearance, health, relationships, beliefs, passions, fears, aversions, etc.
  • Social Issues:  Uses and abuses of technology, war, politics, power, religion, money, drugs/crime, the environment, poverty, patriotism, etc.
  • Psychology/Potent Environments:  Empty streets, objects in places where you wouldn’t expect to find them, lonely rooms, etc.
  • Miscellaneous Content: Conflict or contrast; dreams; a favorite quote, motto, bumper sticker, or song lyric, poetry, mystery, ambiguity, or hidden meaning.
  • Contrasts and Similarities: ​Natural and man-made objects with similar shapes, forms, patterns​ or textures.