<p>Hello!
I'm an international student applying for a BFA program for the fall of 2012. I've visited this site a few times, and based on what I've read, I know that a lot of you can help me out.
I love, live and breathe art. I focus manly on painting and drawing, and my style is extremely eccentric. I hardly do any traditional media, and even if I venture into it, I somehow make it a bit more me (I'd do watercolours with milk and photoink). Most of my work is on huge walls, and my portfolio isn't for everyones eyes. My question is, that is it okay that I have work that will be hugely different from others'? and should I just do what I think is right and go with my gut, or do a little, uhhh conventional stuff? There aren't any NPDs in my country, so I've never had my portfolio reviewed. Only after reading some stuff on the site, I'm quite freaked out about my approach. What do I do?</p>
<p>I would suggest contacting the admissions offices of the schools you are interested in and asking if they do online portfolio reviews for international students. I believe some schools do visit overseas, so that might also be an option for you. Usually the portfolio requirements are on the college websites as well. If they can view some of your work it will tell them a little bit about your understanding of space, color, value, etc. Do you have any representational pieces or is everything abstract? Check out the websites and see if there are links for international students that you can follow for more info. Good luck!</p>
<p>Hi Colcon! I do have representational work, but that having been said, most of my stuff plays around with complete abstraction.And no, Ive checked on the college websites, none of them visit my country for portfolio reviews. But, thank you for telling me to contact them for an online review- I hadn’t thought of that. And even though I meet their generic , vague descriptions of portfolio requirements and their need for observational work- I still have them drawn/painted/installed in a way that’s well, abstract; I’m just not into any sort of realism.
Thank you for your reply!</p>
<p>You’re probably going to want a few pieces of foundation and realism in the form of still-lifes and figure drawings, but otherwise I think abstractions and non-traditional art is great. These are art colleges you’re applying to, not cookie-cutter academic schools. Innovation and freshness is what they search for. They WANT to see creativity in your portfolio. Naturally you should follow the basic guidelines each art college lays out, but be as open as you want. Your portfolio should show who you are.</p>
<p>Try not to assume you’re going to be the only one with a portfolio of abstractions though - there are a good number of seniors this year I’ve met whose portfolios focus on abstract and have very little realism in them.</p>
<p>Hey Languidness! Thank you for that reply; It really made my day. I’m so worked up that I’ve given up all hope of getting into college- let alone getting a merit scholarship. And at this point, I’m not assuming that I’m the only one with abstraction; I’m assuming that my beloved abstraction is going to fail me miserably and leave me surrounded with incoherent blankness.
Sorry for the rant! Thank you again for the reply; Best of luck for wherever you’re applying. Ehh, I’m assuming you’re a student who’s applying, I would’ve accessed your profile(?) to confirm that, but I’m too technologically challenged to do so (It took me 38 minutes to figure out how to post a new thread). But, anyhoo, good day :D</p>
<p>where you are applying to, is the key.
SMFA, SAIC or maybe Cooper would love you if you got “stuff”
I don’t know how they’d give out merit money to internationals.
Could you afford it anyways?
Is there any school you like locally, or have to be US?
How did you get interested doing style of art you do now?
Who is your favorite artist if you got one?</p>
<p>Hey Bears! Cooper’s my top choice; I’ve already applied ED. Second is SAIC. Other than these two, I’m not really crazy about any other colleges, though I have developed a weird liking towards KCAI and SMFA(but getting a degree from tufts seems fishy to me).
I’d like you to please elaborate on ‘stuff’, if you may
Umm, they have a lot of merit scholarships that internationals do get at SAIC and some at MICA. Cooper’s Cooper, and I think there is some stuff given at KCAI and SMFA; I’m sorry I don’t remember the details very clearly.
I, I mean my parents, can afford it, but I can’t afford taking the money from them- just wont do it; If there’s no option then I might, but it’d kill me for all my life.
I wouldn’t mind UK, but their art schools have taken a major dump: it really is about having a particular setting at a particular time, and uhh, I’m guessing Im okay with the states. If I’d learnt how to speak German, then Germany, but sadly I’m stuck having an affair with the English language for now.
See, I keep doing things and experimenting; so, my ‘style’ becomes very ephemeral, because I subject it to so much change all the time.So, I’m guessing that I kept doing what I felt like and it just took me to my present me; I’ll be a lot different a year from now.
Going by what I said before, I’d have many that I’d like at specific points in time. From Lucian Freud to Pollock to Cezanne to Picasso to Chuck Close to Basquiat to Duchamp to I dont know, me? I’m sorry that question can’t be answered correctly. I hope you’re happy with my replies; love the fact that you’re nosy, atleast you’ll have an idea of who I am before giving me advice.Thank you!</p>
<p>I think Bear just means if you’ve got the talent.
It’s kind of hard to give specific advice on your artwork itself, though, if we don’t have any examples. It might be helpful if you showed us a piece of two. Colleges do appreciate applicants pushing the boundaries and showing themselves in their artwork, but if we’re talking about a completely portfolio standpoint, there does need to be a technical strength to your abstractions. I’m not sure where you stand, though; it’s really hard to get a sense of what your actual artwork is like just from your descriptions.</p>
<p>yes SMFA/Tufts is shady, SMFA itself is quite shady compere to SAIC.
I looovvveed KCAI, for its people, attitude and costs, but my kid opted out art schools in the end. we’ll see what happens later on. he adored Basquiat when he was bit younger, and this particular naked man’s back painting by Lucian Freud at the Met.
you are my kind of art-kid, open minded to these boring weird dead/half dead artists—I feel much better now.</p>
<p>Haha, I’ve raided those two threads a lot of times, and they’ve been really helpful.
I like how you say that your dream is over because your kid didn’t cooper; it captures why I love cooper so much and always will, even though I’ve never been there- I know its right.
I’ll try-for both you and me. Don’t worry:)
I like KCAI because Robert Rauschenberg graduated from there, and I love Robert Rauschenberg. If you can, please tell me more about how it was/is: I’d like a real persepective on it.
Is it this one that you’re talking about?
[Lucian</a> Freud: Naked Man, Back View (1993.71) | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art](<a href=“http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1993.71]Lucian”>Lucian Freud | Naked Man, Back View | The Metropolitan Museum of Art)
I like it too; but my favourite is this one: [Freud:</a> Painter and model](<a href=“http://www.artchive.com/artchive/F/freud/painter_model.jpg.html]Freud:”>Painter and model (1986-1987) by Lucian Freud – Artchive)
and this too: [lucian</a> freud | Flickr - Photo Sharing!](<a href=“http://www.■■■■■■■■■■/photos/50487705@N00/15723171/]lucian”>lucian freud | gregg chadwick | Flickr)
Check out Maria Lassnig; I loovvee her. At one point of time, I was a huge Cy Twomby and Anselm Keifer fan. I think I still am. There are so many more that I like and didn’t mention, but aaaaaahhhh. its okay.
P.S: sorry for only words and no visuals, but I have a weird aversion to online portfolios-which does go against my asking for advice but well, sorry; I just needed to know if abstraction is okay.
P.P.S: bears, where did your kid go? i think he’ll finally come back to art;its a haunting obsession thats wrongly termed as a ‘hobby’ :D</p>
<p>You should look at each school’s art departments [or at least the websites] to get a feel for what kind of art they do.</p>
<p>For example , I live in a large arts city and there are two large arts schools downtown. California College of the Arts, and Academy of Art. CCA is more conceptual and abstract while AA is heavily technical. </p>
<p>When I showed a school similar to AA, my semi-abstract portfolio at a NPD, they pretty much said “we don’t want you”. I showed CCA my portfolio and they were about to grant me admission into the college immediately… but i was a junior then… </p>
<p>Schools like to see that you have the technical skill to produce realistic paintings, but they also want to see that there’s something happening in that head of yours! They love to see how students take simple or complex ideas and translate them into a piece of art.</p>
<p>I don’t think your portfolio could be that out there that they would turn it down. </p>
<p>Of course, if you have rather shocking gory pictures like Gericault’s paintings/studies of severed arms… those would count as still-lives… in some morbid sense. </p>
<p>I guess what I’m trying to say is, your portfolio should be more of a happy surprise to admissions portfolio readers. It’s something for them to mull over and be interested in, not reel away from. </p>
<p>If 'it isn’t for everyone’s eyes" just means a bit of blood and nudity. It shouldn’t hurt to include those pieces. I know this girl whose portfolio was AMAZING. She was already in a few gallery shows before graduating high school… and most of her paintings were very sexual and explicit.</p>
<p>By any chance could you photograph part of your portfolio for us to see? I’m intrigued by your descriptions of you art :> I’ll link mine if you want!</p>
They love to see how students take simple or complex ideas and translate them into a piece of art.</p>![http://www.artchive.com/artchive/F/freud/painter_model.jpg.html]Freud:](http://www.artchive.com/artchive/F/freud/painter_model.jpg.html%5DFreud:){kind=link}
