AP 2-D Art & Design (Studio Art)

The Advanced Placement program in Art & Design is intended for highly motivated students who are seriously interested in the study of art. Students should be made aware that AP work involves significantly more commitment than the typical high school art course. Students can submit one of the Advanced Placement Studio Art Portfolios – Drawing or Two-Dimensional Design. The AP Portfolio consists of two sections – Selected Works and Sustained Investigation. The Selected Works section provides the student the opportunity to show their actual ability and “permits the student to select the works that best exhibit a synthesis of form, technique, and content.” The Sustained Investigation section “should show a body of related works that demonstrate an inquiry based sustained investigation of materials, processes, and ideas through practice, experimentation, and revision.” For the Selected Works, the students send in five actual artworks. For the Sustained Investigation section, students submit 15 digital images each. The two sections are scored separately by different evaluators but are weighed the same. The two scores are then combined and the average becomes the score of the portfolio. It is advisable for all candidates to take supportive courses in History of Art and other visual arts offerings. Knowledge of artistic trends, movements, methods of interpretation, and representation would be most beneficial.