A Look Into the Fine Art Department at BSM
The fine arts department at BSM offers a wide range of classes and extracurricular activities for students to take such as drawing and painting, art and design, ceramics, digital video production, graphic design and printmaking. Many juniors and seniors are offered Advanced Placement courses if they have taken the required art courses. The three AP courses offered to students at BSM are AP Photography, AP Ceramics, and AP 2D Drawing and Painting. In May, students will submit their artwork to the college board and possibly get credit for college courses.
Senior Caroline Braun, an AP Photography student, has been taking photography classes at BSM for three years. Taking photos is a big part of Braun’s daily life and being able to share her passion with others is her biggest motivation. “The freedom of creating art and being able to take pictures of whatever I want, be able to edit them however and capture emotions is my favorite part about creating art,” Braun said.
For Braun, creating art isn’t just about getting results, rather, the art is more in the process of investigation and learning from mistakes. Inspiration for creating art can be found in many different aspects of life. “Sitting in a calm environment during my day where I can simply relax and step outside of the chaos is where I find my inspiration,” Braun said.
Senior Gavin Hansen, an AP ceramics student, has been taking ceramics for three years. Hansen finds that the most rewarding part about creating art is seeing the end product come out of the kiln. “I find
inspiration through the endless possibilities that ceramics can offer me,” Hansen said.
Many choose not to pursue their artistic talents as a career. Having a passion such as art, as a career, can lead to burnout, and ultimately one can lose the love they had for art. “I would rather keep photography as a hobby rather than mixing hobby with work to preserve the freedom of it,” Braun said.
Having a strong support system for a creative outlet is crucial for students to be their best artists. With a teacher who inspires and guides, yet gives space for creative freedom can aid students in finding their artistic voices. “Ms. Rahn is beyond supportive of all of my ideas and is one of my favorite teachers I have ever had. I hav
e always had a passion for photography, but Ms. Rahn really pushed me to take AP photography,” Braun said.
