The material I used for this project was pencil. I chose this material so that I could work more on my shading, which is one aspect I have struggled with throughout the semester. I portrayed the theme of identity by showing that what others say and/or think about you does not have to shape or determine what you think about yourself. The image below shows some of the brainstorming I did when deciding how to depict the theme of identity. My inspiration for this artwork is that I myself sometimes struggle with not conforming to what others think of me, and instead staying true to my values and how I view myself.
In my artwork, I want people to notice that the values in the persons head are not the same as what is being said by the other people. I want people to notice that this person is not succumbing to what others think about them, but instead having positive thoughts of their identity. They are happy, strive to do well in school, and value family and their faith. If they chose to believe in their values and have confidence in themselves than they do not need to be affected by the hateful words and thoughts of others.
I thought my artwork was successful, both in portraying the theme of identity and my work on shading. In regards to the theme, I thought I did a good job showing that others view of you does not have to impact your view of yourself, and that your identity does not have to be determined by others words or thoughts. I was also very pleased with my shading. As I mentioned earlier, I have struggled with shading the entire semester which is one reason I used it in this image. I used slightly darker shades around the chin to bring shape to the face, and also around the shoulders to show the shadow from the head.