<p>Ok, so here's my problem. I want to go to Parsons. A LOT. I mean I'm really thinking ahead here (i'll be a sophomore in high school this fall), but I would like some feed back. I have taken many, many visual art classes in the past, and I plan to continue doing so. I fear that I won't be up to the standards there. I plan on majoring in Fine Art, and I do know about Foundation year. I would LOVE to hear back from any student/s going there (or anyone else). Is it really hard to get in? Does your GPA matter to them very much? (I hope not!)
Any other suggestions for prospective art schools? Oh, and, I am aware of the costs (that's not a huge problem).</p>
<p>You’ve just finished your freshman year in H.S. Oh my goodness, please do not be distressed. You are young. Continue to create art because it inspires you. Don’t worry about these sorts of things already. Just live and love life. </p>
<p>About your portfolio…you are off to a fine start. Do not worry. :-)</p>
<p>Most art is made withing the confines of rectangular dimensions (aside from sculpture, etc). Photography will help you to frame, structure, and capture your vision, but I generally tell students to avoid including it in a portfolio unless it is very unique and accomplished.</p>
<p>Thanks! I’ll try not to worry (: I hope to take Parsons Summer Intensive next summer to help better my drawing skills.</p>
<p>Artyboi, </p>
<p>Nice work for a start. Might pick up a copy of Peck’s “Anatomy for the Artist” and start refining your knowledge of artistic anatomy. One of the troubles many have in fundamentals year (at good institutions) is structural anatomy. So a little practice there and you’ll be ahead of your colleagues/competition. </p>
<p>About the Motherwell type of abstraction, it could serve well on an admissions portfolio if an older prof of that generation is on the committee. But don’t get too entranced by that style, outside of university and college art departments its often a dead letter. </p>
<p>And since your still in HS don’t get too stressed about some dream school at this point. One of the aspects to artists who do make it is flexibility. </p>
<p>Incidentally when you do go, take as much art history as possible. And some marketing courses. Both are quite useful in the long term. </p>
<p>And concerning your worry about not being up to the standards, well that can be learned. Plus many art programs tend to hype the standards, but in reality most are not as lofty as what is implied. It’s part of the game, plus unlike the programs building missiles art programs are somewhat harder to promote and defend. So at times they take their own hype too seriously. </p>
<p>What you might do however is give some thought as to what career path you intend to pursue in the arts. Academe and art often promote as ‘you’re here to do your art’ which is fine at that time, but having a general long term plan is considerably more useful.</p>
<p>Dear Brennan, </p>
<p>I commend you on beginning to consider your future and on setting goals for yourself. It actually is not too early, although don’t stress or become consumed with anxiety. Consider yourself ahead of the game, because you are giving yourself extra time to prepare. </p>
<p>I think your portfolio is a good start and you have a lot of time to work on it and perfect it. Taking summer classes in art is a great idea. Also Parsons has some info sessions where they show prospects samples of accepted students’ work and talk about the Portfolio. This will give you a good idea of what they look for and what they like to see in the Parsons Challenge. At some point, ask Admissions about making an appointment for that session. </p>
<p>My daughter just went through the art school application process and was very happy with her results. I can say that her portfolio had quite a few photographs in it-- in fact, about half of it was photos. She made sure to only include her strongest photographs that made some kind of statement about her thought process and her eye for composition. In most cases, she was accepted into the first year foundation programs but at Parsons, she was accepted into the Photography program (the school’s decision, not hers). She also had about five drawings/paintings from life, and several conceptual paintings or drawings. </p>
<p>So art wise, keep doing Photography if you enjoy it. But remember, many art schools will want to see at least five drawings from life in your portfolio, so continue to hone your drawing skills. Make sure to do work on your own outside of art class, as schools don’t want to see only classroom based assignments in your portfolio. </p>
<p>As for GPA, try to keep your grades up and take some intellectually challenging classes. Artists make creative and intellectual statements in their work all the time. And artists often need to explain their work or write coherent artist’s statements that capture the public’s imagination. Your verbal and written skills will be important to you, not only in your academic classes at art school, but when applying for internships, interacting with galleries or possible employers, or selling your vision through your own words. So pay attention in English class! However, some art schools place more emphasis on academic achievement than others, so there’s pretty much a school for every level of student. </p>
<p>In general, JUST DO IT. Meaning just make art.</p>
<p>Hah well I gotta say it doesn’t hurt having good grades. No school is going to accept you if you have really low grades, and good grades can be a deciding factor. I mean you don’t have to excel in your grades but grades are a way to show that you are a dedicated responsible student <-the type that any art school wants cause it shows you’ll commit. An easier way to get good grades if you aren’t the studious type is take the easier classes… i did not do that… i had to cram for ap classes when i was getting ready for portfolios and stuff. </p>
<p>I commend you for starting figure drawing so early. I didn’t even start until the end of junior year. Some tips other than trying to make it more proportionally accurate, is that art schools when they look at figure drawing they want to see line weighting(thicker and thin lines) which makes the drawing flow better and more dynamic. They also look at hands and legs and faces because those are the parts most students skimp out on. I’m not saying put alotta detail since figure drawing is more about getting the figure, but at least give an impression its there. </p>
<p>Right now I am comparing you to the art students my school has. You are above average for your age in photograpy, the ones you’ve taken are very beautiful. However your art work needs to be more finished. You are applying for Fine Art so you need to have lots of finished work which means you need backgrounds for your work (not white unless it MEANS something). You also need more conceptual pieces. Pieces that give a statement about the world or about you. One of the pieces that I did that every art school rep I talked to liked the best was one I did that connected gender inequality in the Victorian age and the very early beginning of the women’s movement. Conceptional doesn’t mean having hidden meanings that need you to explain them. They should be deep but clear so that you don’t have to explain every piece of your work. And if you want to stand out from other students that do send in figure drawing, try showing a back story or try including the people in the background.</p>