<p>I'm a sophomore in HS and I want to major in either graphic design or digital photography (I have more passion for photography but also like graphics, haven't' chosen yet) and I need advice on composing my portfolio. The school year isn't over yet, but I really want to get an early jump on my portfolio so I can get even more done in the summer and not be stressed junior/senior year. My question is, what should I put into my portfolio and how many pieces should I do? Is it okay if they have a running theme?</p>
<p>I attended night art classes this year with a working painter and art teacher and he says that I should do some of everything: drawing, painting, graphics, photography, to show versatility. He also says I should do most of my pieces from observation. Yet, he specialized in art education and painting, so I'm not sure if I should cater more towards graphics pieces incorporating photgraphy. Help!</p>
<p>I completely agree with your art teacher. At this point, you should be working on producing pieces of varying media.<br>
My D submitted portfolios to 7 of the 10 schools she applied to and was accepted to 6 of the “portfolio” schools so far. Each school request a different format for the submitted portfolio. It varied from # of pieces to type to dvd to hard copy. She had a horrendous time trying to get them all done correctly. However, nearly all schools wanted to recent, ie, last 18months, work.<br>
So my advice is to produce, produce, produce so you can select your best work when the time comes. Catalog all of your work: date, media, size, 1-2 sentences about the work, done in school or private art class. Photograph your work now and create a file for them. All these details will be needed. She thought RPI had the most detailed instructions for portfolio preparation. Syracuse’s Visual/Performing Arts was also very detailed. Take a look on their sites for more info.</p>