CREATING A PORTFOLIO DOCUMENTATION CURRICULUM

Colleen Brennan ~ University of Minnesota

This Is What You Make of It!

  an Art Club, Art Society or Art Honors Society activity

  a curriculum unit for upper-level/elective art classes

  a curriculum component of an AP art class

  a series of after- or in-school workshops/classes for:   students interested in pursuing higher education in art   students interested in attending art summer camps

or pre-college summer art programs   students interested in pursuing art apprenticeships

or internships after high school   students interested in participating in MCAD’s

National Portfolio Day in mid-October

Purposes of a High School Art Portfolio

  FRESHMAN / SOPHOMORE   Required for pre-college summer art program acceptance

and scholarship applications

  JUNIOR / SENIOR   Required for art/conservatory college applications  Often required for liberal arts college applications when

declaring an art or design major   Required for art college scholarship applications   Recommended for liberal arts college scholarship

applications – whether student intends to pursue art or not!   Required for art competition entrance – national and local   Required for participation in MCAD National Portfolio Day

The Portfolio Process

  Steps of facilitating successful student portfolios:  Collection   Selection   Photo Documentation   Photo Preparation   File Saving and Naming   File Organization  Description: Digital Slide List   Submission

Collection: Getting Organized

  Start working with Junior/Senior students early in Fall term – mid-September

  Start working with interested Freshman/Sophomore students early in Spring term

  Create/find a secure space for students to store their collected work

  Set firm deadlines for students to have their portfolio photo-ready

  Organization and attention to detail are crucial skills students need to sharpen or develop when it comes to their portfolio

Collection: Where Should We Start?

  Compile work that is no more than 2 years old

  Don’t let students self-edit!

  Students should collect everything they can locate:   sketchbooks   2D work   3D work   digital video/

animation work   photo (traditional

and digital) work

  Include class projects and independently created work

  Remove work from frames, mattes, shrink wrap, etc.

  Clean up heavily smudged/damaged pieces

  Trim ragged/crooked edges

  Don’t forget about arranging to document work that is permanently installed off-site

Collection: Drawings

  The best drawings are familiar objects, people, nature, and architecture drawn from life

  Also include conceptual/abstract drawings   Include work in a wide variety of media:

  graphite   pastels (oil and chalk)   colored pencil  marker   ink   charcoal   conté crayon  mixed media

Foundation

Include a wide variety of realistic and conceptual/abstract work on canvass, canvass board and paper painted with:

  acrylics   oils  watercolors   combined painting

mediums

Include work that shows ability to combine a variety of elements digitally:

  posters   publicity flyers   brochure layouts  website designs   logo designs

Paintings Design

Collection: Paintings & Design Foundation

Collection: Other Artworks

  Printmaking   Screen printing   Etching   Lithography   Block Printing/Linocuts

  Sculpture   Pottery/Ceramics   Photography

  traditional and digital   color and black/white

  Performance Art (captured)   Mural Art/Graffiti

  Fashion Design   Fiber Arts/Textile Arts   Mixed Media & Assemblage   Book Arts   Metals/Jewelry   Glass Art   Architecture   3D/Furniture Design   Interior Design   Video   Animation   Installation Art

Extension

Collection: What The Best Portfolios Show

  strong evidence of original and conceptual thinking

  in-depth examination of concepts and subjects from a developing point-of-view

  an emerging artistic voice

  experimentation with a wide variety of media and subject matters

  rigorous problem exploration

  student’s interests & aptitudes

Collection: Tips

  Try to include at least one series of (interrelated) artworks exhibiting exploration of a concept from several different perspectives or with several different mediums

  Quality is far more important than quantity

  Avoid having work that only reflects classroom assignments

Collection: Tips

  Originality and creativity can not be stressed enough!

  Consider including something that exhibits less than perfect skill if the piece shows ingenuity, imagination and/or experimentation

  Copies of published work are unacceptable

  An interpretation of a masterwork could be considered ok, but check before submitting the portfolio

  Artworks copied from magazines or photos taken by anyone but the artist are just not acceptable

Selection: Plan for Optimal Flexibility

  Work with students to rate each piece collected on a scale of 1–4 (1=1st choice, 4=last choice)

  Students are often their own worst critic and tend to rate harshly

  Students should not rate their portfolio alone – this is best done in consultation with their art teacher

  Different applications, schools and programs list different requirements and have different preferences

  AND, the purpose and audience for the portfolio constantly shift, so:   photograph everything   organize the photos by

rating in the students’ master portfolio file on the computer

•••• 1 2 3 4 ••••

Photo Documentation: Necessities

  A space where overhead lights can be turned off

  A smooth, non-distracting, neutral background treatment   Black, white or neutral

grey – black is most common

  Best option: hang fabric or a large, ironed bed sheet over a bulletin board – work can be tacked up through sheet

  Two adjustable-height photo flood lights with neutral or cool light capacity

  A table covered with a fabric drape to match your neutral background

  A digital camera where you can control flash settings

  A sturdy tripod   Sewing pins and clear

push pins are optimal for hanging work

Photo Documentation: Set Up the Shoot

  Always use a tripod

  Never shoot with a flash

  Block out all overhead and sun light

  Always use both flood lights – one on each side of tripod aimed at piece – to eliminate distracting shadows

  Pin 2D work up levelly and make sure it lays flat on the background

  Neutralize the surroundings  Make sure hanging

drapes are smooth/taut  Make sure all drapery is

clean/free of debris

  Make sure the piece fills as much of the view finder on the camera as possible

  Make sure the piece is:  Centered in the frame   Square at the edges   In clear focus

Photo Documentation: Set Up the Shoot

  Make sure your camera is absolutely parallel with the wall/piece so your perspective is square   It’s impossible to correct

perspective using photo editing software

  The only fix is to re-shoot   Shoot series works both

individually and in grouped arrangements

  If shooting work off-site or outside of your doc studio, try to minimize background distractions

  Be patient

  Take your time

  Pay attention to every detail!

  Place your piece on the table as close to the wall as possible

  Make sure your table draping isn’t distracting

  Watch for weird shadows and distracting blow-outs or glares

  Take close-up/detail shots as well as composites

  Use your macro lens and/or manual focus whenever possible

  If small work is jewelry/metal bounce lights off background slightly above piece vs. aiming lights directly at piece to avoid glares and strange reflections

Shooting 3D Pieces Shooting Small Work

Photo Documentation: 3D & Small Work

Photo Documentation: General Tips

  It’s worth it to take your time

  Be particular and methodical

  Precision is a virtue!   When getting a lighting glare off a piece,

bounce the lights off walls slightly above or to the sides of the piece to correct

  Horizontal or vertical? Turn the camera to mirror the piece

  Sketchbooks and small work can be scanned for better detail

  Work that is originally digital can stay digital, can be formatted to the proper size, and can be digitally placed onto a background block matching the rest of the portfolio

Photo Documentation: General Tips

  Remember: when competition is stiff, portfolio review committees have been known to eliminate portfolios from consideration because they are sloppy!

  You won’t have a second chance to make a first impression where portfolios are concerned

  Do it right the first time in the shooting phase to save yourself the headaches during the photo preparation phase

Photo Preparation: Editing Considerations

  Open original images in Photoshop and examine your photos for clarity, debris, composition and proper lighting

  The objective of any editing is to make the photo as closely match the original work as possible

  Airbrushing or touching up photos turns them into digital artwork in the eyes of a portfolio committee

  Too much editing will be evident to a committee even if it’s expertly done and could be considered fraudulent behavior

  Fraudulent depiction of work = disqualification

Photo Preparation: Photoshop Editing Do’s

  Adjust Image Level   In digital photography

sometimes the greys get muddy and Auto Levels can correct this

  If Auto Levels is too harsh, adjust Levels manually

  Adjust Contrast for black blacks and white whites

  Adjust Color if necessary   Correct any minor rotation/

squaring issues if necessary

  Crop the image so the border space is equal on all sides

  Touch-up any minor flaws using the rubber stamp or band-aid tool   Remove dust/debris from

draping   Remove distractions/folds

from drapery   DO NOT TOUCH UP

THE WORK USING THESE EDITING TOOLS

File Saving: The Golden Rules

  Adjust Image Resolution and Size   Adjust using the Pixel

Dimensions not Inches

  DPI = 300   Longest dimension = 2100

pixels   File size should not

exceed 10 MB   Save files as JPG not

Photoshop (PSD)   Save your edited files

separate from your originals  Creates natural backup   If editing goes awry you

won’t have to reshoot

File Saving: Don’t Forget the Thumbnail!

  After saving each edited portfolio image, create a thumbnail version for use in your slide list

  Adjust the Image Size to be 1” in width

  Save each thumbnail JPG in a thumbnails folder   File name should

correspond to the portfolio image name (see next slide)

 ArtPortfolio1TB.JPG

File Naming: Essential Details

  Name each file as ArtPortfolio (no spaces or special characters) with a number:  ArtPortfolio1.jpg  ArtPortfolio2.jpg

  Keep/show the .jpg extension in the name   This is essential for

proper file reading between PCs & Macs

  Use A, B, C, D, etc. for 3D work detail shots

File Organization: Next to Godliness!

Each student should have a Portfolio file containing sub folders such as:

  Originals with sub folders of original images named by date

  Thumbnails

  Master Images w/edited, properly named images sorted into rating folders:  Group 1, etc.

File Organization: Custom Compilations

  From the Master Images folders students can make custom compilations of specific images for each of their different portfolio submission desires:   Example: MCAD

 ArtPortfolio3.jpg  ArtPortfolio6.jpg  ArtPortfolio10.jpg  Etc.

  Students create custom compilations by copying images from their Master Images folder into new folders and renaming files numerically according to desired order of viewing

File Organization: Viewing Order Tips

  “Book-end” your portfolio with the two strongest, most memorable and/or most unique pieces

  Order your third strongest piece as your middle anchor   Work your way in from both ends from strongest to weakest

  People often remember the first and last things they see

  Keep series works together in sequence or consider showing them compiled on one slide

Description: Digital Slide List

  Create/use a template for students to use if possible

  List slides in intended order of appearance corresponding w/file names

  Include thumbnail of each image and descriptive details:   Title of Work  Name of digital file   Size of original (inches: W x H x D)  Media used   Short description of concepts  Date completed – month, year

Submission: General Tips & Tricks

  Include your slide list on the portfolio disk and include a print out with application materials

  Document new work regularly to stay current  Once per month or 2-3 times per term

  Keeping a prepared Master Images file allows students to be prepared for quickly turning around portfolio submissions

Submission: Each One Is Different!

  Most require an average of 12 images but some could require as many as 20

  Some require students to show specific types of work, specific mediums or things like:   breadth of skill   thematic organization   depth of medium or subject matter exploration

  Pay close attention to the file selection/file naming/file size/disk labeling requirements for the submission you are working toward

  Watch your deadlines and leave plenty of time for yourself to do the work – a rushed job is never a good idea here

A Successful Curriculum

  Takes time to practice with students

  Prepares students for documenting independence

  Helps students engage in “real world” processes used by professional artists

  Helps students develop their critical eye and organizational skills

  Teaches a range of digital photography skills

A Successful Curriculum

  Can help students generate tangible financial rewards to help them work towards future goals   Portfolios can be very

valuable: a full-ride scholarship to MCAD can be worth $200,000 +

  Can increase recognition for and visibility of your art program   Student scholarship

awards and college acceptance can be big news

 Great for advocacy!

Resource Links

  Tips for compiling professional portfolios – great reading for students: http://www.portfolioseries.com/edu/tips/port/

  Great advice for preparing art school oriented portfolios: http://www.artschools.com/articles/portfolio/

  List of schools offering pre-college summer art programs: http://www.artdesignea.com/resources.html  NOT a comprehensive list, but it’s a start!  Opportunities are always listed on school websites

if programs are offered

  Link to MCAD National Portfolio Day information: http://www.mcad.edu/showPage.php?pageID=1377