Self-taught since seventh grade, Gregory Griffith continues to hone his skills as an artist by taking AP 2-D Art his senior year.
The objective of an AP Art class is for a student to produce a portfolio that shows off the skills they have honed in throughout the school year, and that portfolio is to be submitted to College Board in May right around when other AP classes begin their exam season. Usually the process of portfolio building is broken into each semester, one semester dedicated to the breadth of content and the other for the student’s choice of concentration – a group of pieces that are similar thematically and typically have a message attached to them.
“A concentration is your focus for the second semester, and what you focus on is something that is important to you. You have learned what to do in the previous semester, and now you get to display how you see art. It’s less general and more specific to the person,” said Griffith.
For Griffith, whose main medium is paper and a pen or pencil, decided to stick to this gray scale formula and add a twist to it: color pop.
Color pop, or pop of color, is when a piece is mostly black and white or monochrome, but one portion or detail has a flash of a relatively bright color.
Thematically, Griffith’s concentration is focusing on African American royalty and related images of empowerment of the African American community.
“My concentration is a mix of pop of color and black royalty, so my art has allusions to African American culture and bright colors,” said Griffith.
Griffith drew inspiration from his own background, as he and his family originated from the Caribbean, a heritage that he is proud to claim.
“My grandma was a healer back in her days, so I drew a lot of that black symbol of power in my art. The pop of color I’ve always liked. I like how black and white goes against a bright red or gold color. They’re expressive to me and true to my background,” said Griffith.
Griffith has won awards for his art already, including winning the Battle of the Belts poster contest. Students were able to submit a poster of their making to help raise awareness about the importance of wearing seat belts to fellow student drivers.
“I got second in the Battle of the Belts and a trophy for a picture I drew of my sister, but I’d like to get more immersed in the art world as life goes on,” said Griffith.
Art has become an important part of Griffith’s life; he has acknowledged that this is not something that he wishes to make a career out of but hopes to still maintain it.
“It’s fun and I can express my feelings through it and I’ll probably be doing this for the rest of my life,” said Griffith.
Aliya Leary // Business Manager
