INVESTIGATING
Defining a Topic and Goal
When assigned the task of creating a project that would challenge my skills and also allow me to explore my passions I was apprehensive. I had so many ideas that didn’t correlate together and I knew that I had to choose one. I chose painting, something that I am very passionate about, and decided to go beyond my boundaries of painting in the same style every time, and learn something new. But there were so many options to choose from. I really wanted to learn hyper-realism in more detail, where you paint or draw something so realistic that it looks like a photograph. But I had already learnt this style in the past and I knew I wanted to learn something I had never tried before. My other options were learning stylism or impressionism.
I finally decided to choose impressionism as it not only involved doing a lot more research but also had a finite structure that would enable me to define a criteria for it. Stylism, on the other hand, is a purely personal experience where there is no right or wrong and no guidelines. But after having settled on this topic selection, I learned that there were multiple forms of impressionism and I needed to choose something more specific than just learning impressionism. As I researched, I found there was a distinct difference in impressionism that occurred between the Renaissance and the 20th century. So I designed my project in such a fashion that we would be able to see a distinct difference in artwork as the forms transitioned over these two centuries (see Extract 1).
In order to develop a base for my criteria, I had to perform detailed research on the topic and contact several artists and museums who had far more knowledge than I on this subject. After developing the criteria that outlined the outcome of the project, I went more in depth into what I would actually be doing in the project. I discussed this with my art teacher. Together we came up with the idea of choosing the same subject or scene to paint in both forms, so anyone could distinctly see the stylistic differences between the two forms (see Extract 2).
While defining my goal, I chose the global context Personal and Cultural Expression, which according to the IBO, states, “students will explore the ways in which we discover and express ideas, feelings, nature, culture, beliefs and values; the ways in which we reflect on, extend and enjoy our creativity; our appreciation of the aesthetic,” (IBO). I chose this global context because it has been rooted within me since my childhood and has always been a part of my life and has enabled me to become who I am today. Art is my passion and a vehicle I use to express my deepest thoughts and feelings. Applying this global context to impressionism, something completely new, forces me to understand myself in a different way. Just like realism depicts my feelings in a realistic way, impressionism depicts my feelings in a slightly distorted way, a way that I had never expressed myself through before.
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Note: all sources will be listed in the Works Cited page.
Being in the IB MYP program from the sixth grade has taught me to be both reflective and inquisitive and has instilled in me good communication, research and organization skills. Before I began my research, I made a list of the topics I needed to research on and the possible sources I could derive that information from. First, I needed to research what exactly impressionism is. Then, having understood
that, I needed to research the two forms: traditional and modern. Each form had their own specific techniques and subjects, even the paints used in both forms were different. After having compiled this list, I embarked on my research.
My prior research experiences came handy and I could easily find the information I needed. Breaking down the topics into smaller sections proved very helpful. It was easy for me as an interviewer to ask simpler and smaller questions, and it was easy for others to quickly and precisely answer my questions. Since much of the research topics of the two forms overlapped, by grouping similar sections together, I was also able to efficiently complete my research. Throughout my research, I kept track of sources that contained good and relevant information in a document along with their citations and evaluations.
Once I had completed the notes and evaluations, to easily find specific information, I also organized them by division of topic. As my research progressed, I not only became more efficient and more organized in taking notes, but was also able to research with more accuracy by looking for the right key words within books, articles and websites. The skills like time management, being organized, taking notes, and source evaluation developed through this project are helping me at other school projects. I also find myself using some of these skills for my personal art projects. For example when I want to research the anatomy of a specific animal I want to paint, I can now find the right sources more efficiently and not rely only on the first few sources that show up when one does a google search. I will continue to use both my gained knowledge and skills that I have developed as I continue on into the IB Diploma program and eventually college. I have also found it useful to keep task lists like the ones I have made for this project, which maximizes my efficiency to complete a given task.
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