ONLINE WALL ART POSTERS

 Threads and textiles: natural fibers, such as cotton, silk, flax, or raffia; wool and other animal hair, furs, or leather; synthetic threads, such as nylon, acrylic, or polyester; textiles of different weights, weaves, patterns, prints, or colors; upcycled fabric, including from non-traditional sources such as repurposed woven plastic bags; elastic; sewing threads; embroidery threads; string; rope; beads.

 Sculptural materials: glues or adhesives; papier-mâché; salt dough; modelling clays or ceramics; feathers, bone, or other animal materials; food; seeds, leaves, cane, balsa, or other woods; sand, earth, pumice, rocks, or stone; wax; plaster; latex; Styrofoam; plastics; resin; concrete; fiberglass; wire, foil, or other metals; ice; light; other organic and manmade found materials.

 Tools and technology: brushes; airbrushes; sponges; paint rollers; palette knives; craft knives; scissors; stencils; engravers; sandpaper; chisels, pliers, or other woodworking tools; metalworking tools; paper trimmers; pottery wheels; crochet hooks, needles, sewing machines, or overlockers; looms; traditional or digital cameras; darkroom equipment; kilns; printing presses; photocopiers; scanners; computer-aided design (CAD) software such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, or SketchUp Pro; computer-aided manufacture (CAM) equipment such as 3D printers and laser cutters.

 The techniques, processes, and practices explored in your sketchbook should be appropriate for the project and area of specialty. Try to use both traditional and contemporary approaches. These should be informed by the study of relevant artists and first-hand practical experimentation. Complex processes can be documented using diagrams, annotated screenshots, or photographs of work in progress (this can help to prove that the finished pieces are your own work). Don’t document every technique at every stage of production. This is a space-filling device that pushes out more relevant content.

 This IB Visual Art sketchbook page is by Allison Ho from Sha Tin College. Note how screenshots of work in Adobe Photoshop (top right) document stages of progress. This helps to verify authenticity of work, so that examiners are clear that the work was produced by the student. Allison received the highest grade (level 7) for her IB Visual Arts course. You can view more of Allison’s excellent sketchbook pages here.

 The sketchbook is an excellent place to document learning from the work of artists. This might include whole or partial copies of relevant artwork accompanied by critical analysis and practical experimentation where appropriate. Artists should be selected purposefully and offer valuable learning opportunities in their approach to subject-matter, composition, technique, or use of media. Aim to study the work of both historical and contemporary artists from a range of different cultures. Avoid bulking up the sketchbook with gallery pamphlets, fliers, brochures, or other printed material from secondary sources.

 These A Level Art artist research sketchbook pages by Nikau Hindin show analysis of paintings by Janet Fish. Nikau has created drawings and acrylic copies of part of Fish’s paintings (there is rarely any need for students to slavishly replicate an entire painting – a small portion is enough for students to gain an understanding of the techniques and processes used). You may wish to view more of Nikau’s A* Cambridge A Level Art project.

 These sketchbook pages are by Pallas Yiu, completed while studying Edexcel GCSE Art and Design at Sha Tin College, Hong Kong. Pallas contrasts and compares the work of Albrecht Dürer with Zhao Fang. Imitations of artist work accompany detailed critical analysis. You can view more of Pallas’s A* GCSE Art sketchbook in our publication: Outstanding High School Sketchbooks.

 A high school sketchbook should be reminiscent of the kind of document that an artist or designer might create. It does not need to be overworked, perfect, or polished. The following tips provide broad guidance in terms of page layout and presentation style.

 Avoid intrusive lettering, elaborate front covers, decorative borders, over-the-top backgrounds, or unnecessary framing or mounting. Fold-out tabs add an interactive element but risk examiners missing work, so are best avoided.

 Use small, legible handwriting—this way, any spelling or grammatical errors are less distracting. Write with graphite pencil or black, grey, or white pen.

 Do not spend weeks dreaming up inventive layouts or researching presentation ideas on the internet. Focus on what matters: producing quality art and design work.

 Your sketchbook can be a straightforward, ordered presentation of your work, research and insights: Let your images do the impressing. Overly designed pages can often take too long and be a distraction to the viewer.

 These sketchbook pages by Leonardo da Vinci provide a great example of what a quality high school art sketchbook page should look like: overlapping, incomplete sketches, surrounding by handwritten notes.

 Some students favor hard-edged, ‘cleaner’ presentation methods; others prefer a messier, gestural style. Neither is better than the other: both can be executed well. Jumping from one presentation style to another, however, may result in a submission that is distracting and disjointed.

 Some sketchbook pages should have many illustrations, others a single artwork, and the remainder something in between. Vary the positioning of images and text on the page. Don’t be afraid of white space.

 Although a sketchbook is an informal, free-flowing document, it is important to remember that an examiner picks it up and ‘reads’ it in a short period of time. Structure the sketchbook in a way that reflects the overall development of your project.

 Weak work sets off alarm bells for an examiner, alerting them to be on the lookout for weaknesses elsewhere. This does not mean that anything ‘less than perfect’ should be discarded. Mistakes provide valuable learning opportunities and cues for how subsequent learning took place. However, you must discriminate. If an image is glaringly worse than others, consider improving or eliminating it. Seek your teacher’s guidance before removing any artwork; improving existing work is often much faster than starting afresh.

 The sketchbook offers an opportunity to remind the examiner that you are a dedicated, hard-working student, and that you care about the subject. This does not mean you must cram your sketchbook with intense, labored work (sometimes an expressive two-minute charcoal drawing is all that is needed), but rather that the sketchbook should speak of your effort, commitment, and passion.

Gallery Wall

 You may also be interested in reading How to annotate a sketchbook, which contains illustrated examples from high-achieving students around the world.

 For convenience, most students select a sketchbook that is A4 (8.5 x 11 in) or A3 (11 x 17 in) in size. An A4 sketchbook fits in a schoolbag and is thus less likely to be lost or damaged during transit. An A3 sketchbook fits more work per page and provides space for larger artworks. If the sketchbook contains all preparatory material without any additional sheets of developmental work required, an A2 (17 x 22 in) sketchbook may be appropriate. Non-conventional sizes or electronic submissions may also be possible. Remember that format requirements are often set by an examination board, teacher, or school.

 Regardless of the sketchbook size, it is best to work consistently in portrait or landscape orientation, rather than alternating from page to page. Consistent page orientation makes it easier for an examiner to flip through the sketchbook and view your work. Landscape orientation is preferable for electronic submissions, as this displays well on digital screens.

 Pre-bound sketchbooks should contain quality artist paper suitable for both wet and dry media. A minimal appearance is best: choose a sketchbook with a plain cover, without distracting logos or ornamentation. A spiral-bound book allows you to remove pages easily.

 The main disadvantage of a pre-bound sketchbook is that it is difficult to work with wet media on several pages at once. (Moving quickly between pages saves time, aids the development of ideas, and facilitates connections between pieces.) Nonetheless, pre-bound sketchbooks are the most popular format due to their convenience and wide availability.

 Two examples of pre-bound sketchbooks are illustrated above. These brands have been thoroughly tested in a classroom situation, by experienced teachers. The left-hand mage is a NAS Workbook available from National Art Supplies in Auckland, New Zealand. This sketchbook has 50 pages of 140gsm wet-strength cartridge, suitable for both wet and dry media. The NAS Workbook is white, plain and minimalist in appearance, with no distracting logos. The heavy, cardboard cover is durable and resilient – able to withstand being dragged around by students – and can be drawn or painted upon if desired. It is spiral bound, allowing pages to be removed easily. The NAS Workbook is available in A4 portrait, A3 landscape and A2 landscape sizes. This product is used year after year by many high schools in New Zealand. The low cost means that this sketchbook is suitable for use with stationery kits and class sets. The example illustrated is an A3 art sketchbook (landscape in format) and was part of an A* International GCSE Art and Design coursework project completed by Manisha Mistry, ACG Strathallan College. A photograph of the final artwork has been laminated and glued to the sketchbook cover to create a simple title page. You may wish to view more of Manisha’s A* IGCSE Art project. The right-hand image shows an A4 Moleskine sketchbook. Moleskine folio sketchbooks are top-of-the-line artist sketchbooks, with 160gsm acid free pages, suitable for painting or drawing. The thickness of the paper means that wet mediums rarely bleed. Moleskine sketchbooks are well-made and beautiful, with a plain black cover. They are a durable, premium line of sketchbooks and are available as both an A4 sketchbook and A3 sketchbook. If you are a senior high school students who is considering pursuing Art and Design at university or college level, you may feel able to justify the expense. There are many other inexpensive options available.

 Another popular presentation method is to store loose sheets of paper in a refillable display book. The plastic sleeves protect the work and reduce smudging from one page to another. This method is less daunting than using a pre-bound sketchbook, as there is no fear that each page must be ‘perfect’—pages can be removed, added, and re-ordered with ease. Creating a sketchbook from individual sheets also allows easy integration of different paper types, encouraging the use of a broad range of media. In addition, you can work on multiple pages at once without waiting for work to dry.

 Another popular presentation method is to store loose sheets of paper in a refillable display book. The plastic sleeves protect the work and reduce smudging from one page to another. This method is less daunting than using a pre-bound sketchbook, as there is no fear that each page must be ‘perfect’—pages can be removed, added, and re-ordered with ease. Creating a sketchbook from individual sheets also allows easy integration of different paper types, encouraging the use of a broad range of media. In addition, you can work on multiple pages at once without waiting for work to dry.

 A disadvantage of this method is that loose sheets are more likely to become lost or damaged. The plastic sleeves also hinder the viewing of surface quality and texture, particularly if the sleeves become crumpled or dirty. For this reason, you may wish to change to a clean, non-reflective display book immediately before assessment.

 Many schools own a manual binding machine. This punches a series of holes along one side of a document so that a spiral binding can be inserted to hold the pages together. A clear plastic cover can be added to protect the work. Binding usually takes place once the submission is complete, with sketchbook pages stored as individual sheets of paper beforehand. Other binding methods are also possible if these allow the sketchbook to lie flat when open.

 As with refillable display books, different paper types can be used, and working on more than one page at once is possible. Pages can also be removed, added, and re-ordered with ease.

 This method is more time-consuming than others and is prone to user error (such as holes punched along the wrong side of an artwork). Nonetheless, it is an inexpensive way to create a high-quality, personalized sketchbook.

 An example of a self-bound student sketchbook: The student name, school, ID number and other information is printed on white paper, along with a photograph of the accompanying final piece, creating a professional title page for the sketchbook. The cover is protected using a clear plastic sheet and bound to the A4 sketchbook. This is part of an A* A Level Coursework project by Nikau Hindin, ACG Parnell College.

 A digital sketchbook typically takes the form of an online portfolio created using a website design platform such as WordPress. A digital sketchbook relies on access to high-speed internet and an appropriate laptop, computer, or other device. Images, videos, and typed annotations are presented on website pages using hyperlinks, menus, and categories to organize content.

 The primary advantage of an online portfolio is that you can include digital images, audio, and video footage with ease. Digital sketchbooks are growing in popularity, particularly for students who specialize in film, photography, and digital media.

 If you opt for a digital sketchbook, make sure you have backup copies of files stored on a memory stick or cloud server (an automatic backup service, such as Dropbox, is recommended) with digital files stored in labeled folders on your device. It is also wise to print a copy of each online portfolio page. These printouts can be bound and submitted so that examiners have a physical copy in case of technological difficulties.

 Before opting for a digital sketchbook, it is worth remembering that long hours online and the distraction of social media can affect mood and sleep, compromising your productivity and quality of work overall.