GCSE ART STUDENT INSPIRATION

When I was doing my GCSE art I was in constant search for inspiration and so I thought i'd try making it a little bit easier for others currently in the same position by posting some of my own art work.

Looking back now, having finished my art A Level, I can definitely say I've improved significantly and to anyone out there partaking in their own form of art training i'm sure you will experience
the same form of progression as me.

But I suppose that's all beside the point. I completed four books during the two years of my GCSE and was fortunate enough to come out with an A* grade. I have already made a video about this topic, which I will post down below, but for now here's some extra tips for anyone reaching for the star.

TOP TIPS FOR GETTING AN A* 

1. Development 
2. Experiment 
3. Primary Research 
4. Lots of effort 

Beyond the conventional artists that your teachers will tell you to look at (you know Vincent Van Gogh, Picasso, Andy Warhol maybe even Damien Hirst) there are some really great contemporary artists out there that are just dying to be explored.

Stella Im Hultberg is one of my favourites.


Doing studies of artists's work is great for development but what's better, and this is something I did in my A Level sketchbook, is making your own work inspired by a particular artist. This is not something I really did in my GCSE books but it would definitely impress the examiners if you do that alongside your artist's observational studies.

 STELLA IM HULTBERG

Do you know what else is also really important when doing your GCSE Art?Experimentation. At first I think everyone in my class had a pretty naive and superficial understanding of what good art was. To us anything that was hyper realistic, something that looked like a photo (photorealistic), was what we interpreted as amazing art. This is for sure not always the case however in the beginning of my book it is something I was interested in.

Although my study of Chuck Close's work is relatively rough and no where near any form of professional standard at the time I was proud of myself for free drawing this.


 A lot of the time I would trace images so the proportions would be perfect and I don't necessary think this is cheating (depends on your perspective) but occasionally doing some free hand is great practice and not such a bad thing.





This study above was done using charcoal. When it comes to experimenting it doesn't necessarily have to be a difference in style, it could be a change in material i.e acrylic (often considered default paint mode in schools right?) oil, pastel, water colour, printing, photoshop, chalk & charcoal or even good old graphite.

Not every page needs to be a full blown artist's study. A professional artist's sketchbook is filled with little rough doodles and tests.

You should try it.

Again this comes under the umbrella of experimentation but examiners love to see you try out different tones, shades and even different techniques. Sometimes it's not always fun because you want to be producing beautiful art work on every page of your book but you gotta do it for the grade!


Sylvia Ji is another favourite artist of mine and one day she may be one of the greats i'm sure. Tumblr may not seem the most legitimate of places to find artists because it feels like something very recrational and a bit 'hipster' but trust me Tumblr is a grand library of amazing artists, new and old.

SYLVIA JI

Sometimes it can feel quite embarrassing going to an art gallery and doing sketches of paintings, particularly if you suffer from extreme anxiety like me. It often feels like people are looking over your shoulder and checking out how good you are. In this case I'd be lying if I told you it's just your imagination because people do look over your shoulder. It's natural, simple human curiosity, I do it to be honest so I can't deny other people. However, even if you feel nervous bite your tongue cause you just gotta go ahead and do it because examiners LOVE it. Get post cards as well to anywhere you visit and do studies of them too!

Here are some great art galleries you should go visit, particularly if you live in or around London, the best city in the world. They are all very central and easy to get to once you're in London.





























Sometimes it can be hard to find models for your art work so it's not too bad to use yourself. Costume experimentation counts too!

In the second unit for my GCSE art I made a film as my final piece but also a movie poster which I painted in the two day exam (not as bad as it sounds).

Art can be found in all sorts of places and doesn't always have to be a portrait or landscape painting. Some of these world war II posters really inspired me!

BRETT HELQUIST

 Brain Viveros is another great artist. Dark, sexual and seductive what is there not to like?

BRIAN M. VIVEROS

These paintings are all done in acrylic which sounds a bit hypocritical considering I was telling you to experiment with alternative materials. While it's important to do this for the grade I think it's also important to practice frequently in a particular material for the sake of improving your own craft.

I hope this blog post has given anyone reading inspiration and just remember it's hard work and you will learn to love art and hate art but ultimately art is our only salvation from the horror of existence and it is the most rewarding subject I think you can do.