Stencil Project

The picture above is of my artwork for the cutout stencil project.

The process for creating this piece of artwork involved multiple phases. During the design phase, I selected an expressive photo of my friend that included a variety of values. In Photoshop, I edited the brightness and contrast to emphasize facial features, and divided the values of the photo into four different layers, or colors. The layering process split the photo into four distinct colors, for which I chose white, orange, pink, and purple.

The stencil phase involved transcribing the layers of my photo onto large sheets of posterboard. To do so, I took a picture of my edited photo and projected it onto the wall, where I traced the different colored layers onto sheets of posterboard. After each of the parts of each color were traced, I used an X-Acto knife to cut out the colored regions. The cutting process created large sheets of posterboard, "stencils," where the colors would be, which would be used in the create phase of the project.

During the create phase, I chose a piece of cardboard large enough for my final product. I chose to paint the background of this cardboard white, as my picture contained a large amount of the color. After it dried, I taped the first stencil (pink) onto my posterboard and sprayed it with pink spraypaint. One by one, I taped and sprayed each additional stencil to the posterboard. Each of the colors pieced together to form a recognizable and artistic picture.

The project was successful in my eyes, because each of the colors combined to form a recognizable image. All of the processes went as planned, and I encountered no large problems. Additionally, I enjoyed the process and was able to help others complete theirs. Personally, I enjoyed the project because I was able to personalize it with a photo of my choosing, as well as choose the variety of colors I for the final product. I enjoyed the entire project, as it included a variety of processes. I worked on a computer and outside, and got to try new methods of art (creating stencils, spraypainting, etc.) I was a bit worried about how the final product would look, due to the fact that the cutting process was very difficult, especially in the curvy and intricate portions of the posterboard. Despite my concerns, I am very satisfied with the condition of the final product. Throughout the completion of the project, I learned how to use Photoshop for editing. I also used spraypaint for the first time, learning that the paint puddles if the spray is too concentrated in one area. Overall, I expanded my knowledge of art resources, and enjoyed creating a meaningful piece of artwork.