eminemfloop

This thread will be a portfolio critique thread.

I'm a sophomore currently, and am taking ap studio art next year.

This is my current portfolio- well, my deviantart. Keep in mind that not everything is in chronological order, but here you go!

emollience's deviantART gallery

post your portfolios for critique and general discussion about how we all want to go to RISD!

goodfornothin

Just remember that for RISD. There are certain requirements they want in your portfolio. For example the infamous RISD Bike draw and also the daily journal etc... Keep in mind that RISD is one of the best if not number one art school in the nation.

eminemfloop

I understand that! I'm only a sophomore in high school obviously I have not done by bike drawing yet!

stevie2014

i can't see anything on your deviant
and i just finished my sophomore year too
lol, i wanna go to RISD too

taxguy

Let me give you a bit of a secret: RISD is somewhat academically oriented. Many kids , with great portfolios, get rejected from there if the academics don't stand up. You generally need at least a 3.4+ GPA unweighted and probably around 1250+ (CR and Math). Although it is possible to get admitted with lower academics, you would need an amazing portfolio by RISD standards, which is no easy feat!

spokes

I guess here's some advice/tips on how to get in. Remember that your hometest drawings are just as important, if not more important than your portfolio. Just keep improving your technique and skills for another year, so you can communicate your ideas more easily in your future work. It also saves a ton of time later. RISD says that they like breadth, but that also does not necessarily mean variety in mediums (although that is nice too). For instance, I used all charcoal, but I had realism, abstractions, and conceptual work. Essentially, I had breadth within my medium, if that makes any sense. The NPD representative did say that he wanted me to have a piece of color in my portfolio, but I ran out of time, being the procrastinator I am... Go to a national portfolio day though! and do not procrastinate.

Bowman

spokes has some great advice, but when I talked to an admissions officer they told me not to spent ten billion hours on your hometest. They are not more important then your portfolio. By far. There is no right or wrong answer to them, and they want you to treat them as experiments and take risks in both subject matter and technique. If you've seen a bunch of hometests, they tend to vary. He actually told me to spend around three hours each on them. I spent maybe 4 or 5 on one and a lot longer on the other. Depends on what you are doing. But I don't care how much effort you put into that hometest your portfolio is waaay more important. Put your focus there but don't slack on your hometest. Give those some thought.

You'll want some technical work in your portfolio and WORK FROM LIFE. You'll do better work that way. And as taxguy pointed out, they do, as a lot of art schools do, care about grades. When I was getting reviewed she asked me if my grades were good.

But most importantly make your portfolio because you are dedicated to good work don't tailor it to a school. Try to expand your horizons, experiment. Do both conceptual and technical work. Do work in a series. Write down ideas and concepts in your sketchbook. Treat your sketchbook as the outlet of your mind. You are probably going to apply to more than one school and so you want a strong varied yet concentrated portfolio. Put in works than line with your interest or showcase your skills. Get digital photos early. When I was applying for schools, I customized what pieces to put in to what school out of my portfolio of works. Only put in your strongest pieces and only the work that you yourself are proud of.