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STEPHEN F. AUSTIN HIGH SCHOOL

AP STUDIO ART SYLLABUS
(DRAWING, AND 2-D)
2014-2015 Guide for Student Success




Instructor: Mr. Kevin Bell
Room: 336
Phone: (512) 841-1982
Email: kevin.bell@austinisd.org
Website: http://kevinbellart.weebly.com/
Tutoring Hours: Monday-Friday: 4:15-5:00

Prerequisite
The AP Studio Art Portfolio course is designed for students who are seriously interested in the practical experience of art and
wish to develop mastery in the concept, composition, and execution of their ideas.
Requirements: Current or previous teacher, counselor, administrator, or parent recommendation, or review of past student
artwork. Students must have successfully completed Art I and/or II Studio Art courses.

Grade Placement: 10-12

I. Course Description:
AP Studio Art is a college level course taught in high school. Students will study Drawing, 2-D or 3D design. Students will have
the opportunity to compile a portfolio of their best work for submission to and review by the College Board. Students will
submit this portfolio in the first week of May; submissions will be in the form of digital images uploaded to the College Board
web site and actual work. Students will decide whether to submit a Drawing, 2-D or 3D Design portfolio; the finer distinctions
between the two portfolios will be discussed in class. Students should be aware that the 2-D Design portfolio may include
photography and digitally produced designs with an emphasis on compositional components, while the drawing portfolio is
limited to mark making techniques such as drawing, painting, or printmaking. The 3D portfolio has an emphasis on sculptural
aspects. All portfolios consist of three sections:

Breadth: This section of 12 works in slide form shows a variety of drawing or design approaches using different techniques,
compositions, and media. The students work in this section should demonstrate understanding of the principles of design,
including unity/variety, balance, emphasis, contrast, rhythm, repetition, proportion/scale, and figure/ground relationship.
Successful works of art require the integration of the elements and principles of design; students must therefore be actively
engaged with these concepts while thoughtfully composing their art. The work in this section should show evidence of
conceptual, perceptual, expressive, and technical range.

Concentration: This section of 12 works in slide form shows the development of a unifying theme or idea. A concentration
is a body of related works describing an in-depth exploration of a particular artistic concern. It should reflect a process of
investigation of a specific visual idea. It is not a selection of a variety of works produced as solutions to class projects or a
collection of works with differing intents. Students should be encouraged to explore a personal, central interest as
intensively as possible; they are free to work with any idea in any medium that addresses two-dimensional design issues.
The concentration should grow out of the students idea and demonstrate growth and discovery through a number of
conceptually related works. In this section, the evaluators are interested not only in the work presented but also in visual
evidence of the students thinking, selected method of working, and development of the work over time.

Quality: This section consists of five actual best works. These works may not exceed 18 by 24 is size. Quality refers to
the total work of art. Mastery of design should be apparent in the composition, concept, and execution of the works,
whether they are simple or complex. There is no preferred (or unacceptable) style or content.

II. Overall Goal:
To encourage creative as well as systematic investigation of formal and conceptual issues in the Quality, Concentration, and
Breadth sections of the AP studio art portfolio. Also, this course includes group and individual student critiques and
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instructional conversations with the teacher, enabling students to learn to analyze and discuss their own artworks and those of
their peers.

III. Specific Objectives and Learning Outcomes:
Choose which exam portfolio program is appropriate.
Drawing Portfolio: Students will expand their drawing and two-dimensional design skills and advance their visual
communication skills by exploring a variety of design processes and techniques, and compositional and aesthetic
concepts.
2-D Design Portfolio: Students will expand their two-dimensional design skills and advance their visual communication
skills by exploring a variety of design processes and techniques, and compositional and aesthetic concepts.
3-D Design Portfolio: Students will expand their three-dimensional design skills and advance their visual communication
skills by exploring a variety of design processes and techniques, and compositional, aesthetic concepts and sculptural
form.
Show an understanding of the focus of the portfolio selected.
Demonstrate a breadth of high-quality work, 12 pieces.
Develop a personal Concentration of 12 pieces.
Select five top-quality pieces for presentation, submit to College Board.
Discuss and record the development of the Concentration.

IV. Course Content:
This course has been developed to accommodate students who have expressed an interest in completing either the AP Studio
Art Portfolio. Therefore, all content meets the requirements as stated in the student exam poster. Through direct teacher
instruction, emphasis will be placed on the production of a volume of quality pieces of art work. Students will address all three
sections of the portfolio: Breadth, Concentration and Quality.

Students will be challenged to develop their own personal work. Students will develop mastery of concept, composition, and
execution of their personal ideas and themes. Students will also understand that art making is an ongoing process that uses
informed and critical decision making to determine outcomes to problems. Students will be expected to develop a
comprehensive portfolio that addresses each of these issues in a personal way. Formulaic solutions to problems are
discouraged.

V. Instructional Goals and Strategies:
Students will use a variety of mediums, techniques, and approaches in drawing to develop concepts and ideation.
Critiques and displays of work are ongoing. Students are expected to participate in class critiques of their personal
work as well as the work of their peers and master artists. The vocabulary of art will be used to engage in written and
verbal critiques of these works.
Individual Student Critiques with the teacher will help students learn to analyze and discuss their own artworks and
artworks of their peers.
Individual Conferencing will assist students in the development of their Concentration work. Students will develop a
body of work that is an investigation of an idea or theme that is of personal interest to them.
Ongoing instructional conversations with the teacher will help students develop their work. Assessing the strengths
and weaknesses in their images, and will provide feedback on how they can further develop their drawings. This will
also help students learn to analyze and discuss their own artworks and the works of their peers.

VI. Curriculum Outline:
First Semester: Students will focus on completing the Breadth section of the portfolio. The instructor will provide a list of ideas
that serve as starting points for works to be included in the portfolio. Students will compile twelve accomplished works of art
that show the breadth of each students ability.
Week 1 Drawing Portfolio
Individual Portfolio Reviewsign up for a time to meet with the instructor
to discuss previous work that may be used for the AP portfolio.

Drawing
Portfolio
2-D Design Portfolio
Individual Portfolio Reviewsign up for a time to meet with the instructor
to discuss previous work that may be used for the AP portfolio.
2D Design
Portfolio
Week 2 Movement through Mark-Makingexperi ment with a variety of mark-
making tools and techniques to establish a sense of rhythm and
Brth 1
Drawing
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movement in a nonobjective drawing (resources: Cy Twombly, Franz
Kline, Alma Thomas, etc.).
Portfolio
Contrast Positive/Negative Space Studyusing Contrasto, create a
composition with a visually interesting and balanced use of positive and
negative space (resource: Jazz by Henri Matisse).
2D Design
Portfolio
Week 3 Mark-Making Study still in progress, Create 2
nd
Picture, 2
nd
Media
Emphasis Composition and Balance
Brth 2
Drawing
Portfolio
Contrast in progress. 2D Design
Portfolio

Week 4 Subtractive Charcoal Self-Portraitwith a combi- nation of vine and
compressed charcoal, use the dark field method to create a self-portrait
(lay a field of charcoal over the entire surface of the page and use an
eraser to create a range of values).
Emphasis - Effective use of Light and Shade
Brth 3
Drawing
Portfolio
Cyanotypesuse found objects to create an interesting composition on
photosensitized paper and place in the sun to achieve a print (resource:
Breaking the Rules: A Photo Media Cookbook by Bea Nettles).
2D Design
Portfolio
Week 5 Dramatic Lighting/Portraits
Emphasis Contrast/Dramatic Lighting/Mass
Massiveness are found by the Modern French painter Toulouse-Lautrec,
and by the Dutch master Rembrandt
Emphasis High Constrast
Brth 4
Drawing
Portfolio
Cyanotypes in progress. 2D Design
Portfolio

Week
6
Gesture Drawingcreate a pen drawing of a person in his or her
environment demonstrating your ability to capture reality and
movement with relative speed and accuracy.
Emphasis Line Quality
Brth 5
Drawing Portfolio
Photocopy Transfer Collageusing black/white imagery and text to
create a composition with a range of value and an interesting narrative
(use safety with essential oils to transfer images).
2D Design
Portfolio
Week
7
Cross Hatch or Cross-Contour Drawingexperiment with cross-
contour drawing using a variety of subjects includ- ing still-life objects
as well as the human form.
Brth 6
Drawing Portfolio
Photocopy Transfer Collage in progress. 2D Design
Portfolio
Week
8
Sharpie on 18x24 paper - Media
Cross hatch or scumbled spatial perspective - Process
Brth 7
Drawing Portfolio
Text and Image Collagecreate a traditional or digital collage that
communicates both a visual and a literal statement (resources: Barbara
Kruger, Kurt Schwitters, Augusto de Campos, James Rosenquist, etc.).
2D Design
Portfolio
Week
9
Fruit/Vegetable Drawing Seriescreate a series of drawings using
colored pencils or pastels that capture the fruit or vegetable as it is in
varying stages of ripeness to rottenness (or begin with the whole fruit
and draw various stages of it being eaten).
Brth 8
Drawing Portfolio
Digital Anti-Self-Portraitusing a digital photo of yourself and Adobe
Photoshop, portray yourself as a stereotype (resource: Cindy
Sherman).
2D Design
Portfolio
Week
10
Drawing
Conte on 18x24 brown paper
Brth 9
Drawing Portfolio
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Still life study of similar forms
2D Digital/Hands-On
Adobe Illustrator/Gouache
Text as Shape, Figure/ground reversal/activating ground
Study of Dine, Noguchi, Indiana, Still, Johns, Motherwell
2D Design
Portfolio
Week
11
Perspective Drawing or Painting
Emphasis Unity, The illusion of three dimensional forms
Brth 10
Drawing Portfolio
Perspective Drawing 2D Design
Portfolio
Week
12
Perspective Drawing or Painting in progress. Cont. Brth 10
Drawing Portfolio
Perspective Drawing in progress. 2D Design
Portfolio
Week
13
Drawing
Student Choice
Markmaking/sgraffito
Brth 11
Drawing Portfolio
Perspective Painting 2D Design
Portfolio

Week
14
Student Choice in Progress.
Markmaking/sgraffito
Cont. Brth 11
Drawing Portfolio
Perspective Painting in progress. 2D Design
Portfolio
Week
15
Figure Drawing Unitmake a series of drawings utilizing a variety of
tools and techniques.
Brth 12
Drawing
Portfolio
Figure Drawing Unitmake a series of drawings utilizing a variety of
tools and techniques.
2D Design
Portfolio
Week
16
Figure Drawing in progress. Cont. Brth 12
Drawing
Portfolio
Figure Drawing in progress. 2D Design
Portfolio
Week
16
Drawing Portfolio
Individual Portfolio Reviewsign up for a time to meet with the
instructor to discuss class critiques and previous work that may be
used for the AP portfolio.

Drawing Portfolio
2-D Design Portfolio
Individual Portfolio Reviewsign up for a time to meet with the
instructor to discuss previous work that may be used for the AP
portfolio.
2D Design
Portfolio
Week
17
Taking Breadth slides. Drawing Portfolio
Taking Breadth slides. 2D Design
Portfolio
5
Week
18
Breadth Slides Dueportfolio review, slide show, and celebration of
the first semesters work.
Drawing Portfolio
Breadth Slides Dueportfolio review, slide show, and celebration of
the first semesters work.
2D Design
Portfolio

Week 19 36 II Semester
Concentration
Second Semester: Students will choose a unifying theme for his/her Concentration by focusing on personal interests and
building on personal artistic strengths. This is an opportunity for the student to develop his/her artistic voice. The main focus of
this term will be the development of specific personal imagery (beginning, change, conclusion). Considerable time will be
devoted to defining and describing successful approaches to the highly personal nature of Concentration work through
individual and whole-class assignments. Early in the term students must attend a mentoring appointment at which time they are
individually counseled about their choices of plan for a Concentration study. By term end, student will not only have completed
a significant portion of the Concentration pieces, but will also have initiated a written statement to describe the intent and
development of the project using accurate artistic language.

Semester Project: Portrait in a Box, or Students may choose Theme of their choice.
Objective: Illustrate twelve pieces of artwork that relates to one theme/subject, idea, or concept that demonstrates best skills,
growth over time and cohesiveness.

Concentration Growth in Discovery (Beginning, Change, Conclusion), an In-depth Exploration of a Theme
Tools for Creative Thinking (Manipulate and Alter Image of one Theme)
Add, Subtract
Combine
Altar
Transfer
Change Scale
Fragment
Isolate
Animate
Empathize
Repeat
Simplify
Delete
SCOPE and SEQUENCE SEMESTER I & II

Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May
Week 1 B2 due
Self Eval

Class
Crit
Crit B5

Crit
B8
Wed- B11 &
12 due

Class
Crit
Sign up for a time to meet
with the teacher to
discuss
Concentration
Crit
C4 due

Catch Up Framing/Mounting
Self Evals
Cont.
Unfinished work
Final Exam
Due

Digital
Processing
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Week 2 Cont. B2 Self
Evaluation
B
Slides
Due
Crit
C1 due
Crit
C5 due
Framing Mounting
Rubrics


Begin Next
Years Breadth

Sketchbook
Entrees
Week 3 Sign up for a time to
meet with the
teacher to discuss
Concentration
Tu-B3 due
Crit
Tu-B6
due
B9 due

Class
Critique
Crit
C2 due
Self
Evaluation
C6 due Crit
C8,
C9 due
Conc
Wksheet

Fr-Crit
C11 C12due
Week 4 B1 Due
Self-Evaluation

Class Critique
Th-B4 due Th-B7
due
M-Crit B10 due

Self
Eval
Crit
C3 due
Self
Evaluation
Crit
C7 due
C10
Due
Last Slide Day
Key: B=Breadth Project, C=Concentration Project, Crit=Class Critique session

VII. Assessment and Evaluation:
Portfolio Development (75%)
Based on finished work as per term quota.
Graded using the evaluation rubrics as established by the College Board
Both volume and quality will be taken into consideration for final grade

Lab Conduct (25%)
Regular attendance is mandatory.
Use of in-class time and extra classes.
Attention to lectures, directions, and demonstrations.
Participation in critical discussion.
Proper safe use of materials and equipment.
Cleanup duties and storage of work.
Preparation of finish artwork framing and submission.

VIII. Breadth Keyword Mini-Rubric:
AP Rubric Descriptor Grade equivalent
6 EXCELLENT AMBITIOUS RISK-TAKING INVENTIVE 96
5 STRONG COMPLEX CONFIDENT DIVERSE 90
4 GOOD CLEAR EFFORT EMERGING 84
3 MODERATE INCONSISTENT OBVIOUS TENTATIVE 78
2 WEAK LITTLE ENGAGEMENT SIMPLISTIC MINIMAL 72
1 POOR CONFUSED TRITE CLUMSY 66

IX. Written or Oral Peer
Written or Oral Peer Critique Form
Critique ____ Reviewer_____________________________________
A: Describe the work in as much detail as possible (Is it a painting, drawing, graphic design, collage, sculpture, etc.)?
Media (made from what)? Technique(s) (how is the imaged constructed)?
B: Discuss 5 positive or negative aspects of craftsmanship in the work.
C: Discuss the formal qualities of the image. (How do the Elements and Principles interact?)
D: Discuss the narration of the image. (What kind of story does the work tell? Metaphor? Analogy?
Symbology?)

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X. Artistic Integrity:
Students are expected to use artistic integrity throughout the course. Work that is based on published photographs or the
work of other artist must move beyond duplication to illustrate an original idea.

XI. Homework and Sketchbook:
As in any college-level course, it is expected that students will spend a considerable amount of time outside the classroom
working on completion of assignments. Ideas for projects or solutions to problems should be worked out in a sketchbook both
in class and outside of class. The sketchbook is an essential tool in recording ideas, capturing visual information, working on
compositional issues, and/or just exploring. Sketchbooks will be checked frequently for progress.

*DO NOT DRAW FROM PHOTOGRAPHS, magazines, etc. The use of published photographs or the work of other artists for
duplication is plagiarism. Draw from observation, things you see in the world. Learn to translate the dynamic three-dimensional
world into a two-dimensional world.
More Ways to work in your Sketchbook will be further discussed in your STUDENT HANDBOOK. However, Express
yourself! Work to develop mastery in concept, composition, and execution of your ideas.

XII. Student Readings, Visual Research, and Art History
Participate in class presentations, discussions, and research of artists, art history, art periods/styles, alternative
approaches, past and contemporary cultures, and underlying visual issues.
Research self-selected artists and visual issues
Present the research and resulting art products to the class as a teach-back.
AP Studio Art Poster
AP Scoring Guidelines

XIII. Selections from texts
Mittler, G. Art in Focus. Mission Hills, Calif.: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 1994.
Mittler & Howze. Creating and Understanding Drawing. Mission Hills, Calif.: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 1995.
Discovering Drawing. Worcester, Mass.: Davis Publications, Inc., 2000.
Stewart, M. Launching the Imagination, A Guide to Two-Dimensional Design. Third Edition, New York: McGraw-Hill
Companies, 2008.
Goldstein, N. Figure Drawing, The Structure, Anatomy, and Expressive Design of Human Form. Seventh Edition, New
Jersey: Pearson Education Inc., 2011.