Landscape Final Reflection

My intentions for this piece was to make a minimalist drawing of a single vantage point drawing of a railroad track going into a tunnel with empty space surrounding it.  I addressed the theme of landscape by drawing a continuation of land and not separating them.  My work is representative of my "artistic voice" because my work conveys a message/a deeper meaning within my painting instead of just painting something aesthetically pleasing or realistic.  My ideological intention for this project was to show a transition between a barren land and "the American Dream".  I wanted to write the American Dream on the sign next to the railroad track, but I ran out of time and space on the sign, so there are squiggles there instead, making my painting harder to comprehend ideologically.  I used the railroad track to show a specific way to achieve the American Dream and I made the ground next to the railroad tracks a desert-like color.  Also, I drew graffiti on the side of the tunnel and a vibrant sunset on the other side of the tunnel to contrast the difference between both sides involving color.  I also wanted to make the train tracks leading to a light source, like the sunset, to incorporate a little bit of transcendence, which goes hand in hand with the American Dream.  I didn't incorporate much texture because I wanted a minimalist look.

List of words in discussion:
- values of color are bright
- good use of space/extending far away
- symmetrical
The phrase about my use of space makes me feel successful about my intentions because I wanted to portray minimalicity and have a lot of "empty space".  The phrase about my color value also reflects my intentions because they draw the eye to specific parts of the painting and contrast the ground.  "Symmetrical" resonates with me the most because I never thought about my painting being symmetrical, nor did I strive for a symmetrical composition, but it ended up like that in the end. I developed a skill of the amount of water applied to watercolor paints to affect the color of the paint.  Since it's hard to mix a lot of different colors together unlike acrylic paints, adding water helped a lot to add a variety and depth to the colors.  This project reflects my developing craft throughout the year because I learned how to work with the materials that are available to me and I learned how to use them in an effective way on paper towards my overall goal of the composition.  I feel as though I did "stretch & explore" during this project because I incorporated a specific ideology in my painting and I feel as though I portrayed it well, besides the sign next to the railroad which I would've finished had I budgeted my time better.