Introduction
The Reflections unit was all about, obviously- reflections. We were challenged to dive into who we are as people, what is important to us, and what experiences shaped us to be this way. In my English class I wrote essays on my struggles with leadership as well as my core values. In Digital Media, I created countless pieces including mandalas, paintings, and videos about what is important to me. In Design, I created a PSA on a topic I am greatly impacted by and super passionate about.
Digital Media
Mandala
In Digital Media, we created various mandalas in Adobe Illustrator. We learned how to create them in both black and white and in color, and they were eventually printed on our medium of choice.
Artist Statement
The process of creating the Black and White Mandala was extremely peaceful, yet difficult. I really enjoyed creating it and seeing it come together as I was working on it, but I found that sometimes it was really hard to come up with new ideas for strokes and shapes that fit with the theme I was going for. However, I liked that it pushed me. It did take a really long time, but I ended up with a piece I was really proud of. The colored mandala ended up being a lot more difficult than I anticipated, but I liked coming up with a color scheme and I felt I had more options to create a piece I would be satisfied with. For both the mandalas, I valued having full creative control of my work- there were basically zero guidelines I just got to draw.
I think this experience made me realize how detail-oriented I am. I went in with the intention of covering as much space as I possibly could, and make even the white spaces look like shapes themselves. I also realized how much I enjoyed just drawing, creating shapes, and experimenting with colors- it felt kind of therapeutic.
Perspective Opinion
We were given the option to create a piece either based on our This I Believe essay from English or create a new perspective opinion piece. I chose to create a perspective opinion piece about a topic I am heavily impacted by, the lack of authentic Asian representation in the media. After writing a script, I recorded it using my Tascom Audio recorder, and put together a video in Adobe AfterEffects. This was one of my first times diving into the world of video editing and having a lot of creative control. I thoroughly enjoyed creating this piece and have a newfound love for editing videos!
Script
I grew up watching Disney films and TV shows with beautiful princesses and quirky characters. Like every other girl in my elementary school, I wanted to be Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty for Halloween. But everyone told me it was weird for someone with brown skin to dress up as someone with white skin. So my only options were to be Jasmine or Pocahontas, both of which are misrepresentations of BIPOC culture. I decided to be Sleeping Beauty anyways, but I was ridiculed for it at school. I felt inferior and ugly compared to my friends- solely because of the color of my skin. We tend to glorify white people by highlighting their gorgeous features and ability to navigate social situations with poise and grace. Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s with her enchanting Trans-Atlantic accent and charming demeanor. Cher Horowitz from Clueless, the most popular girl at Bronson Alcott High school and most voluminous straight blonde hair . Or Troy Bolton from High School Musical, captain of the basketball team and sparkling blue eyes. In reality, beautiful features and your ability to “charm others” aren’t traits defined by your race, but the media implies otherwise. The only Asian people I saw on TV were Ravi from Jessie or Baljeet from Phineas and Ferb or even Nelly Yuki from Gossip Girl. They all played that stereotypical role of the nerdy kid who knows nothing about socialization- just doing their computer science homework or playing with their pet lizard. At least no Asian person I know romanticizes studying for the SAT, but that’s all film producers seem to think of us. Were portrayed as one type of person. If we get “representation” it’s a white actor mocking our accents and mannerisms or an actual Asian person confined to being an antisocial nerd. This is problematic because it teaches people from a very young age that the color of their skin defines who they can become. I didn’t know I could be the beautiful girl that embarks on a journey to find herself and through it all meets her soulmate and lives happily ever after. I always thought I was the comedic relief: the girl who’s only personality trait is pleasing her parents and not being able to find love. But that’s not true- I am a complex, multi-faceted, beautiful human being with hundreds of interesting stories and so is every other Asian person I know. We need more authentic representation in American Media, so it doesn’t take seventeen years for us to realize we are much more than what we’re told to be.
Photoshop Art
In this unit, we also created a variety of digital paintings in Adobe Photoshop. The extent of my digital painting knowledge was very limited, so I learned a lot from this part of the unit and could visually see my growth as I went on.
Photoshop Painting
Artist Statement
As someone who has an affinity for fine art and specifically painting, I found that transferring the medium to a digital format was quite difficult. At first, I was having trouble choosing where to go into detail on specific colors and where to do large chunks of colors. Since I used a photographic base, my tendency was to go a more realistic route, but artistically it made more sense to use implied strokes. After many false starts, I recognized that and began to paint freely.
I chose to paint a photo I took of my friend when we were watching the sunset. In the photo, she is jumping, and I wish I spent more time perfecting the way that motion was portrayed in the painting. I am most proud of, though, the details of the trees. I aimed to emphasize the various tones of green within each tree and made it as detailed as possible.
Though the process may have been difficult, I enjoyed overcoming obstacles throughout. I learned the significance of persistence in digital painting. If you spend more time on it, even if it looks wrong at first, it will eventually take the form you want it to. I will remember this for future digital paintings and even regular paintings I create.
Watercolor Paintings
Photo Conversions
360 Viewing Gallery
English
College Personal Essay
We had to the opportunity to write our personal statement for our college applications on our English class. This was definitely an extremely difficult writing process as I had to be introspective and impressive.
This I Believe Essay
Based on the NPR series, we wrote This I Believe essays in our English class. We were challenged to look at our values and figure out what is truly important to us. I reflected on an experience I had in middle school and recognized that some of my biggest core values come from there. I wrote this essay on that experience and how it came to be.
Design
PSA
In Design, we created a Public Service Announcement based on our This I Believe Essay/Perspective Opinion Piece. I chose to do it on my Perspective Opinion piece and focused on the feelings of inferiority an Asian American experiences with little authentic representation growing up.
Artist Statement
My PSA is of an Indian girl staring at herself in a mirror in a bathroom, putting on lipgloss. However, her reflection isn’t really of herself- it’s her, but white. This piece is inspired by the feelings of inferiority that often comes with being Asian-American because of the media’s lack of authentic Asian representation. Oftentimes the media portrays Asian people as geeky and socially inept, and they’re never really seen as popular, charming, or beautiful. I had the girl in the piece putting on lipgloss to defy that stereotype of Asians being considered unattractive and geeky.
This piece was made in Adobe Illustrator. I took a photo of my sister in our bathroom putting on lipgloss, and brought the photo into the program. I primarily used the pen tool, so I could get the accurate proportions and shapes from the photo. I changed a lot of the colors that were originally in the photo to fit the style of the illustration. The background was particularly difficult and more time consuming. I specifically had a hard time with the glass shower doors, as it was difficult to get the glassy looking effect. I spent a lot of time finding the right colors, and playing with different opacities in order to get that effect. I really enjoyed creating this piece and am inspired to continue creating more pieces in this style about topics I am equally passionate about.