SEMESTER 3
These are some of the questions we explored this semester:
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How can art reshape or recontextualize an understanding of our (individual and societal) learned history, biases, and beliefs?
Art can act as a universal language of expression, giving us the opportunity to explore different cultures and histories beyond the ones have grown up with. Since artistic mediums remain similar in nature across the world, we can experience a new culture in a familiar medium. I specifically experienced this through this semester’s field trip, where I got the opportunity to learn how to play an authentic djembe and explore community through percussive and rhythmic music. Even though the field trip was virtual, we still found a way to make music as a group and experience a part of African culture that many of us were unfamiliar with previously.
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What are the theoretical models and practical strategies for initiating the creative process?
One of the strategies for initiating the creative process is the use of a “mind map”. When brainstorming for a creative project, you organize your thoughts using this structure, which includes your central idea/question in the middle and more specific thoughts branching off. This allows you to visualize your project as a whole and evaluate and test the permeameters and limitations of your concept. I explored this through “Capstone I: Ideation”, where I used this technique to begin developing my concept for my capstone. Through this exercise, I discovered I wanted to explore art as therapy, leading to my current concept of designing an adult coloring book.
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How can we effectively incorporate feedback to revise and refine our ideas with greater depth and clarity?
First of all, we have to know the kind of feedback that will be most effective in refining our work and make sure we communicate that to our peers. We also have to be willing to accept that feedback and allow criticisms to be constructive. By allowing our work to be viewed by an outside party, we gain new perspective and insight into aspects we may have been stuck on or confused by. I learned a lot about the “critical response” process throughout the development of my capstone, as I met with my fellow Art Scholars and had them give verbal or written feedback on my ideas so far. My peers also answered some of the questions I had along the way on certain aspects of my project and gave me ideas on how to most effectively approach certain areas I may have been uncertain about.
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I, like many others, was dealing with living amidst the COVID-19 pandemic this semester. This really took a toll on my mental health and one of the ways that I coped was through my art. Being at home a lot more gave me more time to draw in my sketchbook, learn how to play the ukulele and bake: all activities that gave me a creative outlet to de-stress and keep myself productive. Through my capstone project this semester, I was able to take many of the doodles in my sketchbook and turn them into a concept for an art therapy coloring book. This project will not only allow my audience to develop more positive mental health skills but will be therapeutic and informative for myself.
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In my fall semester of my freshman year, I took an Arts supporting course called Art and Activism, that discussed certain activist movements throughout history that utilized art as a form of protest, rebellion or catalyst for change. As someone who is very passionate about social justice issues and loves to express themselves visually, this course really appealed to me and allowed me to learn the ways that art has succeeded and failed over time to bring about change in a community. This related to a lot of the material discussed in the “Art and Activism” panel this semester and helped me further visualize how art can change the world.
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I enjoy the way that Art Scholars has allowed me to find a community of people that enjoy the arts as much as I do, allowing me to make some very meaningful connections and relationships. Heather and Kenna have both been very supportive as I continue to struggle through my college years, and I learned that I could always turn to them in times of conflict. Unfortunately, I did struggle to make friends in Bel Air in my freshman year, since many of my floor-mates were introverted and tended to stay inside their rooms a lot of the time. Also, this semester has been especially hard since class was virtual and I was really lacking the physical and social community that Scholars usually provides. Even so, I really appreciate the efforts that the Art Scholars community has been putting forth to create a close community, even though we are physically distanced from one another.
I contributed to the Arts program this semester through being an active member of my TA group during colloquium. The class as a whole felt a lot less personal since we were meeting on Zoom, but TA Time every class gave me a chance to connected with my fellow students and our TA, Josh, did a great job of keeping us engaged. I enjoyed sharing my art, ideas and experiences with the group and experiencing my group members’ contributions as well. I wish that I could’ve participated in more community service through the Scholars program this semester. I know that service opportunities were limited due to COVID, but next semester, I hope to find the time to explore some ways that I can contribute despite the current limitations.
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Through Art Scholars, I have encountered many artists who enjoy writing, whether it be stories, poetry or other forms. Since I have a lot of previous experience in visual arts and have mostly used literature in an academic setting, I am not as accustomed to using writing as a form of expression. However, being exposed to this type of art has really opened my eyes to the beauty of creative writing and urged me to explore more poetry and literature, beyond the books I am required to read for school.
SEMESTER 4
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Review your ePortfolio (pentathlons, semester reflections, capstone, bio/resume) and provide one or more example(s) of how these assignments demonstrate your growth in presenting your ideas through oral, written, and/or artistic forms of communication.
Looking back at my ePortfolio, I would say my First and Second Look presentations showed my growth when it came to oral communication. I have never been good at public speaking and being able to record these presentations did put my nerves at ease in that sense. However, I am a perfectionist and when recording presentations, I often spend too much time recording over and over again until I feel like I get the "perfect take". This habit proved to be quite time-consuming as well as frustrating. Over the course of the semester, I learned how to prevent myself from taking too much time recording these presentations and present my information in a concise and efficient manner. I often found that writing myself out a script beforehand eased my nerves when it came to knowing what to say, and reminding myself to slow down my speech allowed for my ideas to flow better. Overall, I think I made some great progress when it comes to oral communication skills and I hope to translate these skills to an in-person format once I return to campus.
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Provide two or more examples of how your perception of art has been influenced, challenged, or redefined as a result of your program experiences. Be as specific as you can and consider interactions with guest artists through class discussions or activities, field trips or pentathlon events you’ve attended, or collaborations you’ve encountered as part of your coursework.
The first example that comes to mind is learning about art's role in activism throughout my time in Scholars. I took ARTH260: Art and Activism as a Scholars supporting course the fall semester of my freshman year, and I also participated in an art and activism panel that was a part of my CPSA200 class. Both of these experiences influenced my ideas on how art can be used as an agent for social change, which is something I am very passionate about achieving with my own art. I hope that my art can have an impact on the world around me, and both the class and the panel have provided me with concepts, examples, and material that I can use in my own artisitc career moving forward.
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Another example is art's ability to faciliate community, even in an online format. I do feel that a good chunk of my Scholars experience was inhibited by the unfortunate COVID-19 outbreak, but I also have learned many valuable lessons and met some incredible artists even during this time of digital learning. For example, my Zoom event for my capstone project brought together family, friends and classmates alike and I highly doubt that I could've had the diverse turnout that I did if the event was limited to being on campus. Even though I do not prefer online learning to in-person, I do appreciate the internet's ability to make things more accessible to wide audience, which is more important now than ever. Even though I cannot wait until in-person activities resume like normal, I hope to keep using skills I have learned such as online curation and building a website to make my art accessible to as many people as possible, regardless of a worldwide pandemic.
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In what ways did your capstone project draw upon what you have learned throughout your two years in the program (including colloquiums, supporting courses, and co-curricular activities)? How did concepts or techniques introduce to you through the program translate to or support your capstone project development?
When doing research for my capstone project, I came across a research study titled "Can Coloring Mandalas Reduce Anxiety?" This research study explores the effectiveness of certain coloring patterns on the reduction of anxiety. Participants were either given a mandala, a plaid design, or a blank piece of paper to color and their anxiety levels were measured before and after the activity. I was quite excited to find this study because I recognized the mandala and plaid design from an exercise I did in my art therapy workshop freshman year. My workshop leader had us color both a plaid design and a mandala, and then polled us after both coloring exercises to see which reduced our stress levels more. Since the study itself found little difference between the mandala and the plaid design, I think that it was quite interesting that my workshop leader decided to test the theory herself. If I remember correctly, the mandala was more effective among the small sample of college students she polled, which along with the information from this study, helped inform the most effective kinds of designs for my coloring book.
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Throughout the development of my capstone project, I found the concept of "killing your darlings" to be very helpful. This concept revolves around the idea that your first idea is not always your best one, and it may take multiple iterations to find what works the most effectively. When designing my mandalas, I was often very spontaneous, doing little to no planning beforehand and allowing myself to make up the design as I went. When introduced to this concept, I started creating multiple iterations of each mandala before finishing it and I noticed a significant improvement in the quality and creativity of my designs.
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Arts Scholars recognize that all artistic disciplines have intrinsic value (e.g., theatre, dance, visual art, music, design, etc.). In what ways have you deepened your existing artistic talents and interests through participation in Arts Scholars? In what ways have you expanded your creative abilities and interests?
I have dabbled in all artistic disciplines throughout my lifetime, but I would say my strongest artistic talent is visual arts. My capstone project helped develop my visual art skills, taking an artistic technique that started out as a doodle I would do during class time and evolved into mandala-like coloring book designs. I created several paintings and drawings throughout my time in Art Scholars, especially during my freshman year, which also helped me to strengthen my skills. I would say I expanded my creative abilities through the poetry workshop with Sami and Pepe we took part in freshman year. I was one of few students who brought a musical instrument, my clarinet, and I ended up performing along with Amy's poem. I had played clarinet in a band setting since 4th grade and in college, I played for Catholic mass for Catholic Terps, but I never performed improv with my clarinet before. This workshop gave me the ability to experiment with this type of musical performance and expanded my creativity when it came to playing a musical instrument.
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Looking back on your experiences in Arts Scholars, in what ways have you demonstrated an ability to collaborate effectively with those holding diverse artistic perspectives, interests, and abilities? Please describe at least one, specific example.
When thinking about this question, the example that stood out to me the most was the curated exhibition I created with my Art Scholars peers in our freshman year colloquium. Our exhibit was titled "Dreamscape" and all of our artistic works fit into this theme of dreams and otherwordly places. I remember the people in my groups having vastly different talents, which allowed our final product to have a fair amount of creative diversity. Even within similar mediums such as paintings, the artistic style and technique were still unique to each work of art. That being said, this experience allowed me to collaborate with artists with vastly different talents and perspectives than my own, and learn how to work together efficiently in creating a successful art exhibition.
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Finally, how do you think your Scholars experience might inform your future? Are there lessons, methods, events, or other aspects of the Arts program you expect to draw upon academically (as a junior and senior, in post-undergraduate education), professionally (as you consider your career path), or personally (with respect to your own growth)?
With respect to the rest of my time at the University of Maryland, I feel that the Art Scholars pentathlon assignments really opened up my eyes to all the artistic resources I have available to me, on-campus or online through the university. I hope to continue using these resources in the coming years and allow them to aid in my creative journey, both personally and professionally. I also believe that my capstone project gave me helpful insight into my future career as a possible art therapist or illustrator. For my professional life, I hope to find an option that will allow me to follow a career path that allows me to express myself creatively as well as aiding other people in doing the same, and my capstone project has been a great step in the right direction for me.