my love and hate relationship with visual arts
hello everyone, m26 student here. i wanted to share my experience with visual arts and some advice for upcoming cohorts.
a bit of background: i'm going to be studying architecture at university, so that's the main reason i chose visual arts hl. i'm currently hoping to get a 6 as i wait for my results, which is also my university requirement.
1. please HEAVILY consider whether it's worth taking or not 😞
if you don't need it for university requirements, please think very carefully before choosing it. if you're choosing it because you have a deep passion for art, keep in mind that the course is SO time-consuming that it can honestly make you hate art at some point. be prepared for how heavy and time-consuming the syllabus is.
also, if you don't need hl specifically, please take sl instead. from my experience, there is a huge difference between hl and sl in terms of workload. i've compared my workload with my friends who took it at sl, and theirs was significantly lighter and much more manageable from what i saw.
2. if you do decide to take it, here are some of my biggest pieces of advice:
- finish your comparative study and at least half of your artworks during the summer between dp1 and dp2. this will make your life soooo much easier. you'll be able to spend dp2 refining and polishing everything with your teacher (if you have a good and experienced one) rather than rushing to complete major components. i spent a huge amount of time refining my process portfolio and comparative study before the deadlines.
- be aware that this course does require talent and skill. don't get me wrong, i'm a firm believer that artistic skills CAN absolutely be developed over time through practice, effort, and consistency. however, with five other ib subjects and the already heavy workload of the diploma, it can be difficult to dedicate enough time to improving your skills while also keeping up with coursework. at least in my class, we started our first artwork within the first month of dp1. i'm someone with a deep interest in art, but i personally need time and practice to improve my skills. i was not particularly good when i first started, and honestly, i didn't have much time to spare to practice and improve as we headed straight into producing artworks.
- don't underestimate the importance of experimenting with different mediums and sources of inspiration in your process portfolio. look carefully at what examiners are looking for in a 6 or 7. the same applies to the comparative study. definitely avoid sounding descriptive and focus on being analytical in your writing.
- for hl students specifically: when choosing your three artworks for the comparative study, think ahead about your own artwork. make sure you'll be able to create your hl connection piece by drawing inspiration from all three works. this can have a significant impact on the final quality of your study. for example, i based mine around urban art and how it is represented. however, i was also considering romantic relationships and choosing artworks such as The Kiss. what ultimately made me choose the urban art idea was that it would make my job much easier when creating my own artwork afterwards, and it also tied into my interest in architecture.
- choose/brainstorm your theme FIRST. please please dont underestimate how helpful this will be. my teacher always told us that we could somehow relate all of our artworks to one theme even if we didn't start with one, but i don't think this always works. choose a theme that genuinely interests you and make sure you can actually create that many artworks around it.
what was very helpful for me was listing out all 11 artwork ideas (the hl amount) and creating a rough sketch for each one from the very beginning, or at least by the middle of dp1. that way, later on, the main thing i had to focus on was technique and the overall quality of the artwork itself.
that said, if anyone has questions, feel free to reach out! i'd be happy to help.
good luck to all the upcoming cohorts. you've got this!