All students applying for admission to North Fort Myers High School Center for the Arts and Media must submit a digital portfolio prior to the day of their audition and most importantly, have a desire to be a successful art student.
Practicing for the Portfolio
- Practice drawing from observation (i.e. still-life). Focus on value scales and composition.
- Practice a new drawing each week; give yourself a goal and challenge yourself.
- Ask your art teacher, if you have one, to critique your work and provide feedback.
PART ONE: DIGITAL PORTFOLIO SUBMISSION (link to submit below)
Portfolios must be in a digital photograph format. We will not accept a physical portfolio. Your portfolio should consist of at least 12 pieces of art (4 required pieces) plus a personal statement and a headshot.
We will be looking for understanding of principles and elements of design and creative thought process. Any portfolio that does not meet these basic requirements will be considered incomplete and therefore disqualified. Title/Labels of the portfolio will be helpful in monitoring your artist growth and progression. Be considerate of your submissions, the quality of a piece is just as important as the quantity.
Personal Statement & Headshot
- Include a recent headshot of yourself. This will help us connect the artist to the art work.
- Write a personal statement of 500 words or less describing your previous art training experience and your personal interest in the fine arts or the goals that you hope to accomplish as a Visual Art student over the next four years. Include this statement with your digital portfolio.
Digital Portfolio
Total of 12 pieces of work. Please provide the following 4 required artworks in the portfolio, the remaining 8 works will be judged for ambition levels, understanding of basic principles and elements of design, and creative thought processes.
You may also include examples of other media that demonstrate the diversity of your talent; any 3D piece please photograph and include in the portfolio (2 angles).
*WE DISCOURAGE PORTFOLIOS CONSISTING SOLELY OF ANIME, CARTOONS OR SUPERHERO IMAGES.*
Required Portfolio Pieces: It is strongly recommended that you fill a minimum of 75% of the page with the self-portrait. Please do not use lined notebook paper.
1. A self-portrait done in graphite. Your self-portrait should reflect a minimum of 2 hours work. It can be created using a mirror or a photograph. The drawing should be believable or realistic, original and at least 9”x12” in size.
2. An observational still-life drawing including a minimum of 3 or more items. This will be drawn in graphite and/or colored pencil. This drawing should reflect a minimum of 2 hours work. Objects should be drawn realistically, include varying degrees of shading and should be drawn in a close grouping to challenge your observation of depth. Your chosen objects can be anything such as food, toys, bottles, shells, plants, shoes, etc. The drawing should be original and at least 9”x12” in size. Please include a photograph of your still-life along with your final product for validation.
3. One piece in color. Applicants can use any media, subject matter, and style. The product should show your understanding of color, be original and at least 9”x12” in size.
4. Study of Perspective. We are asking applicants to provide us an understanding of perspective [either city or landscape will suffice], the minimum requirements is 1-point perspective, but we highly encourage applicants to try 2 or 3 – point perspective if they feel as though they would like to challenge themselves. The finished product should reflect an understanding of space and proportions in perspective, minimum 9” x 12”, either graphite or color pencil will be acceptable.
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Submitting the Portfolio:
To provide an equal opportunity to all applicants we have shifted our submission process to a digital platform. Applicants will follow the prompt on the school website to submit. The google form platform will allow picture and we ask the applicant to ensure that their digital submissions are either JPEG or PNG to allow the system to open the file successfully.
PART TWO: ON SITE INTERVIEW-AUDITION
The audition will last 90 minutes and consists of 2 drawing exercises, with a 10 min break in between. You do not need to bring any drawing materials as they will be provided. Audition drawings will remain in the application file.
If you have any questions about the requirements detailed above please contact Felipe Maldonado, [email protected] and/or Special Programs Coordinator Nancy Eskay, [email protected]