Marianne Daubersmith, junior
As many artists will tell you, making art is a struggle. From the pressures to make so-called “good” art, or trying to live up to a certain standard, artists face immeasurable challenges to create pieces. Marianne Daubersmith, a junior in AP art, shares this struggle.
“At the beginning of the year, I had a certain idea about what ‘good art’ looked like,” said Daubersmith. “Over time, I realized that to me, good art means art that I feel proud of and that I enjoy making.”
The process to accepting the natural imperfections of art has gone hand in hand with Daubersmith’s portfolio theme; reflection on and reconciliation with childhood experiences. For Daubersmith her art is a way to start accepting the ups and downs in the past, and the present. As well as this, art is a way for her to play around and experiment with new materials and styles.
In addition to this, Daubersmith is an avid thrifter and spends her time thrifting with her family.
“Thrifting is my passion,” said Daubersmith. “I go to thrift stores with my grandmother and buy things and giggle about it.”
Besides wandering the local thrift, Daubersmith enjoys nature, learning Spanish and performing in many LHS productions. In the future, Daubersmith plans to continue creating art in her free time, and to attend college to study developmental psychology.
While creating art has taught Daubersmith many lessons, the biggest one is that art isn’t perfect. It is messy, silly, serious and everything in between.
“Just start making art. It doesn’t have to be something you can hang in a museum; doodle on your math notes, draw stupid things in your sketchbook, and start sketches that you won’t finish. You’re already an artist; the hardest part is believing it.”
Kylie Jensen, junior
Has art ever made you cry? Realize something about life? For many artists, that is the goal of their art; to make people feel things and to express themselves. Kylie Jensen, a junior at LHS in AP Art, makes this goal real.
Jensen has numerous pastimes; singing, acting and performing are all in a steady rotation in her schedule. In school, Jensen has filled her schedule with art classes of all mediums, from painting to drawing. To culminate a year of hard work in AP Art, Jensen has put together a portfolio for the college board. The theme of this portfolio is stories throughout history. This theme focuses specifically on WW1 and the familial and romantic impacts of soldiers leaving for war.
“My portfolio is story-based, so finding stories to use for each project can be a little difficult,” said Jensen.
However, the care and detail put into each art piece is evident at one glance. Jensen’s pieces aren’t just eye-candy though. Jensen’s work reflects the most emotional parts of humanity, from war and poverty to love and desire.
“War is not all violence, and there are people within wars,” Jensen says.
She hopes this message will reach the audience of her art, and beyond. AP art has been an integral part of Jensen’s creative process, from giving her freedom to explore her ideas and providing a space for feedback.
“I am planning on taking AP again next year, so I am planning to make another portfolio,” said Jensen.
Besides another creative year in AP art, Jensen is anticipating the upcoming release of her latest book, The Romanov Trials, a sequel to her first book The Romanov Affair. The release date is set for May 9. She hopes that in the future, she can keep creating art that makes audience feel and experience new things.
