Category: General

Six weeks of progress into my self portrait

1. Evaluating skills

Although my artwork is still a work in progress, I’m delighted with the significant progress I’ve made throughout this course. I’ve managed to execute shading quite well, effectively highlighting the distinctions between different skin tones and shadows, although there is room for improvement in achieving smoother transitions. One of my main challenges has been capturing prominent facial features, such as the mouth and eyes, without relying on harsh lines that detract from the overall aesthetic. Additionally, I’ve encountered difficulties in shading the lighter areas of my face. Instead of leaving them blank, I attempted to darken them slightly by smudging the pencil, but I’m not entirely satisfied with the outcome.

Considering my historically poor drawing skills and limited artistic abilities, I’m actually quite pleased with my efforts. Previous attempts at self-portraits have been far from satisfactory, making my current work pleasantly surprising. While it may not be a masterpiece, I acknowledge that a more skilled artist could have produced something even better. However, based on my personal standards, I consider it a success and a testament to my progress.

2. Techniques

Throughout this course, I’ve had the opportunity to acquire a plethora of fascinating and invaluable techniques that have significantly elevated and advanced my artwork. I’ve gained a comprehensive understanding of shading techniques, mastering the art of using an eraser to create reflective light effects. Additionally, I’ve honed my skills in capturing various elements, including intricate hair, expressive mouths, and noses, as well as accurately depicting different perspectives and scaling in my drawings.

Among the myriad of techniques learned, the most captivating and beneficial to me has been the exploration of perspective drawings. Although it remains an area in which I face considerable challenges, the lessons and dedicated practice we engaged in proved to be remarkably helpful. As evidenced in my self-portrait, I’ve successfully implemented some of these techniques. Moreover, I’ve skillfully applied the rest of the acquired knowledge throughout numerous drawings completed over the course of this semester.

3. Process

The initial step in creating my self-portrait involved capturing a reference photo. To ensure optimal lighting, we conducted multiple attempts within a well-lit closet in the art room until we achieved a favourable angle. Once obtained, I printed the photo in A3 size and proceeded to mark the back of it with a thick black pencil. Placing the marked photo on top of the paper I would be using, I meticulously traced the outline of my face. This transferred a pencil outline onto the paper, providing a reliable reference for the placement of facial features.

Starting with the shading of my skin, I established the desired darkness for both the highlights and shadows. Progressing further, I focused on each individual facial feature, employing the techniques I had previously learned in class. Although not depicted in the photo above, I have recently commenced work on the challenging task of capturing the intricacies of my hair. This involved creating a darker base layer using a variety of pencil strokes, smudging it slightly with a blending tool, revisiting it with another pencil to refine the strands I had missed, and ultimately incorporating highlights using an electric eraser.

Throughout this intricate process, I confronted numerous choices regarding the level of shading, the order in which to approach different facial features, and where to initiate the work on my face.

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RAC bstreetsmart excursion:

The RAC bstreetsmart excursion was an event which hosted schools from across the city which aimed to show future drivers the hazardous and dangerous behaviours they have to look out for when they are driving, and teaches them how to avoid them.

To me, the excursion really helped me visualise and identify dangerous driving habits and the lifelong impacts that can occur from them. While I knew what dangerous driving habits were the life re-enactment really helped show how these situations could arise in real life.

Dangerous driving habits:

Driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol: After parties sometimes people can drink more then they mean too, or take something they know they shouldn’t. If this situation ever arises make sure you do not get behind the wheel of a car, instead call your family and friends to come pick you up or call an uber of taxi. Drugs and alcohol seriously reduce your reaction time, which drastically increases the risk of a car accident. The RAC crash enactment discussed this detail in accident, and showed us how slow your reaction time can become and the damage it caused.

Mobile phone distractions: Looking at a mobile phone while driving can significantly increase the risk of accidents as it diverts your attention from the road. It takes only a split second of distraction to cause a catastrophic incident. By keeping your eyes off the phone and focused on driving, you prioritize your safety and the safety of others sharing the road with you. To limit the risk of distraction always place your phone in a holder and set your phone to do not disturb before driving. If you need to use a feature on your phone, use voice activation and keep your eyes on the road.

Fatigue driving: Driving while tired can impair your reaction time, judgment, and ability to stay alert, putting yourself and others at risk. Fatigue can cause microsleep episodes, where you momentarily doze off without even realizing it, leading to dangerous situations on the road. Prioritizing rest and ensuring you are well-rested before driving helps maintain your concentration, decision-making skills, and overall driving ability. Always make you get at least 7 hours of sleep before driving, and don’t drive after being awake for more than 17 hours.

Speeding: Speeding increases the likelihood of accidents and reduces your ability to react to unexpected situations, as it limits your stopping distance and control over the vehicle. It also magnifies the severity of injuries sustained in a crash. To avoid speeding, it is crucial to obey posted speed limits, stay mindful of your speedometer, and practice self-discipline by consciously choosing to drive at safe and legal speeds at all times.

Reflection:

The most impactful part of the entire excursion to me was the highlighting of the serious effects car accidents can cause. Various powerful emotional testimonies from surgeons, police, first responders, and victim accidents all opened my eyes to the severity of road accidents. If you are behind the wheel during an accident you can lose your licence for a very long period of time, sustain serious life long injuries, end up in jail or have to pay a very high fine, and potential deal with the emotional guilt of seriously injuring or killing your friends. The testimonies of people who were in accidents was particularly powerful. I will never forget the man who was the only survivor in his group of friends and who ended up losing both his legs, or the man who ended up paraplegic after being sent flying from a car.

If I could pass down one piece of advice I learnt from this experience it would be to fully understand the risks and responsibilities of driving before you start driving because the effects of road accidents can ruin your life, and the lives of your passengers.

When I start driving I pledge to drive safely, empathetically, and patiently. I will always follow road rules and government guidance. I will always drive carefully, with the lives of my passengers and myself in mind. I will not make rash decisions, or let myself get angry, or let myself get emotionally influenced by my passengers. I picked these commitments because the RAC Street smart excursion really hammered home the effect of not adhering to these beliefs. I will do my best to never let this happen to myself or those in my car. I will stick to these commitments by getting my family and friends to hold me accountable. I will remind myself of the consequences of not adhering to this pledge, and I will constantly remind my family and friends to do the same.

Road Safety Campaign:

Following the eye opening experience of the RAC excursion we were assigned with creating an informative poster/ad about one of the dangerous driving habits we learnt about. I chose to structure my campaign around fatigue driving as I think it is an extremely important topic which is not discussed nearly as much as it should.

This was the final design poster I decided to go with. I chose this because I thought that it was shocking and memorable, and that it would grab the attention of a viewer really easily. After all of the research and planning I did around this issue I would highly encourage everybody to do some further research into the impacts and effects of fatigued driving, and to learn how to effectively prevent crashes.

In conclusion the RAC Arena bstreetsmart excursion was an extremely helpful and informative excursion which was engaging, interesting, and fantastically run. The testimonies and stories told are not ones that I will soon forget and I would highly encourage everybody my age to attend this wonderful event if they have the opportunity.