12th Grade AP Art Summer Assignment

1. Read and Study the packet on the Principles of Design- you will need to know
them very well to do any great works of art!
2. Choose 5 selections from the assignments below, plus the mandatory assignment.
Please have them for the 1st day of class in the fall. These works must be done
with ample time and effort! Their quality should be the best you have ever done!
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1. Create an Urban image where the illusion of space is distorted. The distortion

should be extreme. Look at the work of M.C Esher as an example of distorted

perspective (www.mcesher.com). This work should be in black and white ink,

charcoal, or any other colorless medium. You may do this on the computer as

well.

2. Depict an urban scene using an assortment of cut papers of different colors,

patterns, and textures. Look at artists like Romare Bearden for inspiration.

3. Wassily Kandinsky once said: “Color is the keyboard, the eyes are the harmonies,

the soul is the piano with many strings. The artist is the hand that plays, touching

one key or another, to cause vibrations in the soul.” Create a painting where the

color in the painting echoes a song so strongly that you can visually see the music

in your work.

4. Look at Piet Mondrian’s early representational works. (Specifically

Chrysanthemum and Gladioli) Create four watercolor studies of flowers on

watercolor paper. Limit your color scheme to the primary colors experiment with
 their interplay in each piece. (Do not forget your composition. Make sure your

flowers are not floating on the page when you are done. )

5. Create fantasy characters based on the traditional place setting at a dinner table.

(Mr. Spoon, Mrs, Fork etc…) Draw or paint these characters engaged in an

activity that highlights their personality. This may look like a newspaper cartoon

sketch, a still from an original TV show or movie, or a surreal painting.

6. Paint a self portrait in a cubist style.

7. Draw a series of figure sketches that focus specifically on size and proportion.

Don’t forget composition on the page and their interplay.

8. Create a large abstract painting using only repetition of patterns and selected

design elements from your wardrobe.

9. Design 5 different color garments that reflect the Yin/Yang five–element

balance: Water, Wood, Fire, and Earth and Metal.

10. Draw a pyramid (or other interesting construction) of interesting looking goblets,

mugs, or glasses in pencil. Make sure to make use of the grayscale to increase the

illusion of reality.
 11. Create an advertisement for a new up and coming band (create your own) Think

of typography, images, color, composition etc. This should be done on the

computer and the final work printed out.

12. Take four digital photographs illuminating the following:

• “A space within a space within a space, “

• “Texture.”

• “Distance and motion.”

• An aerial perspective.

13. Look up Mola designs by the Kuna Indians. Create your own Mola focusing on
repetition, pattern, rhythm, and movement. Make sure the color is strong as well.

14. Create a modern day “African mask” using collage and focusing on the symmetry in
the work. Try to draw from the tradition of the African Mask aesthetics, but
introduce a modern edge through the material and prints on any material you use.

15. Paint your own reality that is very personal. Show the duality within yourself- using
symmetry. Look at the work of Frida Kahlo for inspiration.

16. Create a sequence of 3 different patterns that express a musical beat, using only
rectangles, to illustrate the music. Use color to visualize every beat or review other ways
to use emphasis in the pattern.

17. Photograph one interesting Architectural space from 5 different angles. Focus on the
line and angles you see in the space. Be creative in how you choose to take your
photographs. Try to get above the building, below it, in a crevice, on an angle etc…
18. Look up the work of Wassily Kandinsky, create an original work of digital art using
the computer in his style. Begin with a quilt like backdrop of color and then layer the
piece with geometric designs that may or may not connect to any sort of reality.

MANDITORY - Create a box of things you have collected over the summer that have
significance to you. They may be anything from gum wrappers, movie stubs, beach
shells, sand, labels, coins, maps, etc…
For your last assignment, create a large painting that uses all many of the things you
have collected with in the painting. You may glue, sew, staple, paint, collage etc.. on to
the canvass. The objects do not need to be fully visible. (Please look up Jasper Johns,
and Picasso/Braque for reference.)

PLEASE treat your artwork with respect. Do not hand anything in to me in the
fall that is crumpled or dirty- that is simply unacceptable. Please use the appropriate
paper or canvas for the materials you are using. You can find everything you need at
Pearl Paint on route 17 in Paramus, or A.C Moore right near Frisch on Route 4.
If you have any questions over the summer feel free to e-mail me at
ahuvamantell@verizon.net

Looking forward to seeing you after the summer. Have fun and enjoy!

Mrs. Mantell