Many art schools set a range of required pieces so applicants can focus on quality over quantity. At CCA, we require 10—15 examples for most undergraduate applicants. Art school admissions departments would rather see a portfolio with 11 high-quality pieces that are thoughtful and expressive than one with 15 where the quality of work was uneven. After interviews with admissions officers from several art and design colleges, Format magazine reported that schools would rather see work that shows you have your own ideas and the ability to realize them.
In other words, that you can achieve technical ability and creative thought. If you plan to study sculpture, observational drawings may not be as relevant as they might be for a student who wants to study illustration. Do this instead: Share your journey as an artist. We want to see the range of your observational and technical ability as an artist.
Select works for your portfolio that showcase your strengths, as well as your unique perspective of the world around you. Additionally, explain the thought process behind how and why you chose your method, medium, or concept.
Describe your process and share your inspiration. Admissions teams want to learn about your interests and see that you can articulate your work.
You can do it yourself by investing some standard photography equipment. Purchase a kit with 2 stand lights with umbrellas , with photo flood bulbs that are watts to watts each. Regular lights will not produce the color accurately, and you will not get good focus because the lights are not bright enough. Set up the two stand lights so that there is one on the left, and one of the right, with your artwork on the wall in between the lights. Having the lights directed from the left and right of the artwork creates lighting that will move evenly across the artwork.
Three-dimensional artwork is especially difficult to photograph well, and are the most problematic photographs for most students. First, get a wide roll of paper that is a neutral color. Depending on the colors in your sculpture, choose either white, grey, brown, or black to create contrast so that the sculpture is visible against the back drop. In the case of the student sculpture below, the white background is a poor choice because the sculpture is also white.
Therefore, the photograph lacks contrast and the sculpture is difficult to see. In this photograph below, the grey background allows the white sculpture to be much more visible. Additionally, the shadows are much darker and the contrast of the overall photograph is much crisper and stronger. Tape the top of the paper roll to a board behind the artwork, and then gently pull down the paper roll so that it falls on the surface of the table.
Tape the paper to the table so that it is secure as you photograph. The roll of paper provides a smooth, clean, neat background for the sculpture to sit on. Too often students shoot photographs of 3-D work with distracting backgrounds. A chronic problem is placing the sculpture on a table against a wall, creating an ugly horizon line between the table and the wall which looks terrible.
Use natural light from a window if you can to light the sculpture, this will create soft shadows to articulate your piece well. When the shadows are too harsh, they can make your sculpture look flat and they will lose their sense of volume in the photograph. Avoid these problems: 1 uneven lighting where cast shadows visible, 2 glare on oil paintings, 3 have distracting background behind the artwork, 4 have inaccurate color, 5 be out of focus, 6 taken on a smart phone.
Creating a portfolio should not be an effort that you have to do entirely on your own. Think about it this way, would an aspiring concert pianist who is trying to get into Julliard try to figure out how to play a Rachmaninoff piano concerto on their own with no piano teacher?
Visual arts is no different from any other field, you have to get an outside opinion to improve. Take the initiative to get a critique to an art teacher whose opinion you trust to get a thorough portfolio critique. Or even better, ask a professional artist, or a an art professor who has experience helping students get into an undergraduate program. Watch the video below to get a sense of what a professional art critique involves, and what to expect.
An art teacher can aid you in weeding out the weaker works, and provide invaluable advice about what direction to head in.
There are techniques you can use to self-critique , but that will only take you so far and is very limited in effectiveness.
Another eye will provide a fresh perspective and objectivity to the evaluation process. Purchase a portfolio critique on Artprof. Another option is to take a weekend or night class at a local art school, museum, or art center.
The instructor at one of those classes might be able to help you with your portfolio. Below are 2 video critiques I did featuring art school portfolios by high school students Andy Wei and Becca Krauss , you can watch many more portfolio critiques here in our Complete Art School Portfolios Guide. Many art schools and colleges also offer summer courses at the college level, and you might consider attending a residential pre-college program at an art school like the six week RISD Pre-College program.
For every high school student, trying to do prepare a portfolio entirely on their own is daunting, and having the structure of a class or summer program can be enormously useful to stay on track.
National Portfolio Day. Finally, the real test of the strength of your portfolio is attending a local National Portfolio Day event, where representatives from art schools and colleges with solid art programs across the country are available to critique your portfolio in person. Hear about the ups and downs of attending National Portfolio day from the Art Prof staff below, and read much more about the experience in our Complete Art School Portfolios Guide. I recommend going in the fall of your junior year, just to get a feel for things, and then again in the fall of your senior year.
Watch the video below for what an art critique can be like:. Be ready for very long lines and huge crowds, especially at the big name schools like RISD. The second year I went, having learned my lesson the year before, I went to wait in line for the doors to open two hours in advance.
I was the first person in when the doors opened, and raced immediately to the RISD table. At this event, brace yourself for harsh words. Rather, be glad that you got the feedback you needed to get yourself headed in the right direction. Be prepared for a wide range of different opinions, and critiquing styles.
Some reviewers are concrete and helpful, while others can be less so. This post I wrote talks about tips for how to present your portfolio, and how to interact with admissions officers at the event. Keep in mind that a portfolio review from any school is valuable, especially the ones that are critical and offer feedback and how to improve.
Need more help? Have more questions? Contact us at Artprof. Links on this page are Amazon affiliate links that Artprof. I only drew and painted from photographs. I think working from direct observation severely limits the range of themes or subject matter in your work.
The quality and manipulation of the photo and various other aspects, can also hinder the quality of your drawing; like a xerox of a xerox.
Depends on who and where you will be presenting your portfolio. What context will you be showing your work in? Just buy a portfolio that has nice plastic sleeves that you can insert your work into, that should work fine. Is it really important that all the students apply for an art school must need to submit a protfoilo , will the school give you any offer before submission , I am quite concerd about this point ,since it is not really clear compare to other subjects which only look at your grade.
Thank you for your reply therefore art school are really depending on the protfoilo more than grade? Both grades and the portfolio are important.
Yes, but make sure the photographs of your clay pieces look professional; have good lighting and a clean background. Can we not even use a photograph for guidence? Draw from direct observation. Simply put I have been out of school for over a year and have none of my old art work and have about a month until my interview for the college course and am expected to have a portfolio, I have a couple pieces of digital art that and that is about it any advice on what I could do?
Will a limited portfolio suffice My printed digital work and the stuff I can get done will little more than sketching pencils. I think a limited portfolio is not ideal. I would give yourself at the very least, 6 months to create substantial, finished works for your portfolio.
For people who want to do illustration, is it ok to have fan art in a professional portfolio and not a portfolio for college application? For example, in one of my design classes we had to make a book cover for a pre-existing book…could I include that? And some of the people I know in illustration classes also had to illustrate from books that already exist as well.
In your portfolio you want to show whoever you are catering to your talent, what makes you stand out from the rest, and why they should choose your portfolio over someone else's. To make a digital art portfolio, start by taking high-resolution photos of all of your artwork, making sure there aren't any glares or shadows. You can also scan your artwork depending on the medium you work with.
Then, upload the images of your artwork onto a computer, and assemble them in a digital portfolio using Indesign or another program. Or, you can upload your artwork onto your own website and use that as your portfolio. To learn how to make a hard copy portfolio, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No. Log in Social login does not work in incognito and private browsers.
Please log in with your username or email to continue. No account yet? Create an account. Edit this Article. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. By using our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Cookie Settings. Learn why people trust wikiHow. Download Article Explore this Article parts. Tips and Warnings. Related Articles. Article Summary. Part 1. Look up the requirements for your portfolio. Every organization is different and so they may require different things within your portfolio or a different format for your portfolio.
Your portfolio will also depend greatly on the type of study or career you are interested in pursuing. On the other hand, if you are applying to an architecture school or to an art gallery you may have more sketches and drawings. Some institutions suggest only using about 10 to 20 pieces in your portfolio. If you have really strong pieces, fewer is better because the more pieces you have the more likely it is that the quality of the pieces will drop. You don't want to waste time creating a portfolio one way, and then have to redo it because it's not in the right format.
Choose finished or unfinished pieces, based on the requirements for your portfolio. Many schools in the United States require that all of your work be finished, but some in other areas such as the United Kingdom want to see your process and development. Check the requirements for your portfolio before you do one or the other. If you are allowed to use unfinished pieces, do so. This reveals your skills, commitment, and depth of knowledge as well as gives context to the creation and thought process behind your work.
A piece of art is often more than just the finished product, but greatly depends upon the process and experimentation of the piece. Remove any smudges, fingerprints, or defects that have been left on the piece. Include observational drawings. These pieces prove that you are able to observe something in real life and create your own replica of it on paper.
Observational drawings or paintings can make up a substantial part of your portfolio. The purpose of these drawings is to show those looking at your portfolio that you are able to record shape and form, detail, perspective, proportion, and surface qualities. It may help to select a subject that's important to you, because you'll begin to think about the themes and motifs behind the drawings, rather than what's right in front of you. Highlight your best pieces. If you have been an artist for awhile you likely have an array of pieces, from the best, to really good, to mediocre, to poor.
It may be tempting to choose your really good work along with your best work. However, these two need to be separated. You don't want to just showcase your really good work.
You want to showcase only your best, the pieces that you are certain without a doubt show quality, ability, artistry, and creativity. Be selective with your work and don't choose pieces just for the sake of variety. It's better to have solid pieces of art that vary less in medium or style than it is to have a lot of different mediums and styles but mediocre art. It could also be helpful to find a mentor in your own field. Look for someone with artistic talent who has been in your shoes before who can help you make difficult decisions like these.
And, the good thing is you know you can trust their judgement because they have experience in artistry as well. Never choose art that is an imitation of someone else's art. Admissions offices and employers have seen thousands of portfolios and will likely be able to recognize if you have created artwork from a photograph or another piece of art.
This also reveals your lack of creativity and inability to create art from real life. Ask a friend to look over your art.
After you have picked out a significant body of work, have a friend or mentors look over it, asking them to give feedback on the different pieces you have picked out. Some of your art may need to be redone or improved, so give yourself enough time before the portfolio needs to be submitted to improve your artwork.
Build in time after you've chosen your pieces to reflect and come back to those pieces once you've been able to process. It's important to give yourself this time because you will be able to better evaluate your work and will come back to it with less bias. Sometimes friends can be biased towards your work as well, so it may be more beneficial to bring in someone that doesn't have a personal relationship with you.
It may be easier to receive constructive criticism from them as well. Learn to take constructive criticism well and know that it's not an insult or derogatory comment, but given so that you can improve as an artist.
Include supplemental articles, publications or awards. Some institutions will not ask for this, so once again, check the requirements for your portfolio. However, this can be helpful to show that your work has been recognized by others and that it has has previous exposure. Part 2. Use other portfolios as examples. The best way to begin a project like a portfolio is to find other successful portfolios online and use those as your guide. This doesn't mean copy the format, or follow the portfolio piece by piece, but it means to use it as a reference as you being making yours.
Note how the artist organized his or her pieces. Pay attention to the style and design of the portfolio. Are your eyes drawn more to the design of the portfolio or are you drawn to the art?
Art is made up of technical skill as well as creativity, so even if your technical skill isn't as advanced as those you see, your creativity can make up for it. Tailor your portfolio to the institution. A university and an art gallery may have very different ideas about what they would like to see in your portfolio or the design of your portfolio. It's important that as you begin assembling and organizing your portfolio that you keep the audience in mind.
For example, if submitting your work to an art gallery, visit the gallery and make sure your work will fit in well in the gallery. Choose pieces, design, and organization of your portfolio that show you are familiar with the gallery and are aware of the art they carry.
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