FINE ART UNIVERSITY ESSENTIALS

So, I've just completed my third week at university, and I thought it would be a good idea to list the essentials for a fine art degree. I hope this is helpful for anyone who hasn't got their equipment yet or for anyone who maybe looking to study fine art in the future.

The first section is basic stationary

• Pencil case consisting of pens, pencils, ruler, rubber, sharpener
• 2 A4/ A5 notebooks. One for Fine Art and one for Art History. (if you do both)
• plastic A4 folder to put any papers into that you need to take with you
• Ring binder with plastic wallets to put any papers that you don't need to take with you

The second section is the actual art equipment

• Acrylic paint in the primary colours + black and white
• Paint brushes in varies different sizes
• A1 portfolio
• 2 A4 sketchbook
• 2 A3 sketchbooks
• A1 paper
• Toolbox
• Mixing palette
• Black drawing ink
• Pencils 2B- 6B
• Graphite sticks
• Black compressed charcoal
• Willow charcoal sticks
• White chalk
• Putty rubber
• Fixative
• PVA glue
• Masking tape
• Drawing pins
• Scalpel handle and blades
• Scissors
• Stanley knife
• Tape measure
• Screwdriver
• Claw hammer
• Carpenters square
• Metal ruler

The third section is books- this will probably be different for each university but I thought I would list a few that I was told I need.

• Vitamin D: New perspectives in drawing
• Vitamin P2: New perspectives in painting
• After the Revolution: Women who transformed contemporary art

The last section is electrical

• A laptop or a desktop pc and a small laptop/ tablet to bring with you to university
• Dslr camera (not essential, however will be an advantage). I've got the Nikon D3200, which is a really great DSLR camera for beginners.

What are you studying at uni/ college/ school?

Amber x

3 MOVIE REVIEWS IN ONE

So, I have been to the cinema 3 times this month (well 4 including Paper Towns). So here are reviews of the 3 movies I've watched.

The first is 'Straight Outta Compton'. I don't think I can fathom into words how much I loved this movie. If you are a Hip Hop fan like myself you will love this movie as it portrays perfectly what Hip Hop is all about, which is telling a real life story. However if your not a Hip Hop fan like my amigo Jada, you will still find the movie interesting as it touches on subjects such as racism, HIV and poverty. The only downfall was the length of the movie... I wish it was longer which is weird considering it was around 3 hours long.
Overall it was a brilliant, emotional yet funny movie with sick music!
Also OMG Ice Cube's son is the spitting image of him!
5/5


The next movie is 'Trainwreck'. The first half of this movie was really funny and witty and the main character 'Amy' is just hilarious and she basically is that person who says what everyone is thinking. However the movie was so unnecessarily long, and I got quite bored at the end and just wanted to go home and watch OITNB lol.
2/5


I watched Me and Earl and the Dying Girl yesterday and it was AMAZING! It was such an emotional movie. My favourite character in the movie is Earl, he is hilarious! It's hard to write this review without giving any spoilers so I'm going to leave it here but overall the whole movie was such an emotional roller coaster.
3.8/5


What movies have you seen lately?
Amber x

PAPER TOWNS MOVIE REVIEW | ARTS AWARD

On the 1st of August me and my friend Jada went to the fan screening of Paper Towns. I was extremely excited to see the movie as I loved the book so much. So here are my views on the movie and whether it lived up to my high expectations.

Firstly I think the actors were perfect. Cara did surprisingly well as Margo however sometimes her British accent would come through. Also Nat did an incredible job as always.

Also what I loved about watching the movie, was seeing scenes from the book in real life. for example the abandoned building were Margo goes to was exactly how I imagined it and I found it exciting to finally see these things in visual forms.

The main down fall for the movie was the ending! In the book the ending is quite sad, Quentin is "in love" with Margo and he finally comes to understand that it's just not meant to be however he still wishes for it to happen. In the movie I think it's not as sad, Margo and Quentin get closure on their feelings and then Quentin makes it back just in time to go to prom and everything is fine and dandy.

Overall I think the movie is quite neutral. I felt as though I didn't go through all the emotions I experienced while reading the book. I guess if you haven't read the book you will have nothing to compare it with and therefore may find it more enjoyable.

If you have read paper towns or seen the movie, comment below with your thoughts.

Amber x

LETTER TO MY YOUNGER SELF

Dear Younger Self,
                               I know that sometimes you can feel sad because of what happened but please know that those feelings of sadness, anger and confusion will soon disappear and turn into happiness.
It's okay to be different, it's actually what will make people like you. Don't feel left out or boring if you don't do what everyone else is doing, you will be thankful soon that you didn't partake in their "fun".
Sometimes you need to break friendships as they are bad for you. It may be hard as you have invested so much time, money and energy into them, however it is for the best and you will find friends that will help you grow rather than hold you back.
Even though people have hurt you don't hold grudges it will take up too much of your time. Instead learn to forgive and forget and you will be happier.
Don't let anyone tell you that you dreams are too big and that your dreams are unachievable because no dream is too big and trust me when I say you will achieve anything you put your mind to.
And lastly, You know yourself extremely well. You know what you like and what you dislike so be more confident with your decisions.

 Love 18 year old you x

DO WHAT YOU LOVE

Since making the decision early this year that I will be studying fine art at university, I feel everything is starting to slowly fall into place and I am certain I have made the correct decision.

I applied to be the 'Cass Art Student Ambassador' and I got it! I get the chance to guest write for their blog, gain experience and insight into the commercial side of the creative world, test products, exhibit my art work within a group show and much much more.

I am finally starting to see the importance of doing what you love.

This blog post is basically a reminder to me and to whoever happens to stumble across it to 'Do what you love' as you never know how far it can take you.

Amber x

AFRICA OYE 2015

The Africa Oye is an annual festival that is held in Liverpool to celebrate everything African to food, art and music. I go every year and one of the main things I love about it is the coming together of different people from different cultures celebrating Africa.

Here are some pictures from the Africa Oye 2015.

How did you spend your weekend?

Amber x

BULLYING!

I thought I would write about bullying today as I know it is something a lot of people deal with, and it is something I have been through.

Firstly I want to define what bullying is in my opinion. I think bullying is when someone or a group of people physically or verbally abuses another person over a long period of time. However it does mean different things to different people.

I was bullied in secondary school and since leaving it's funny to see how everyone's paths are completely different to what I thought they would be. Even my own path. I feel extremely proud to be able to say I have an unconditional offer for a university that I love, studying something I am passionate about, but if I'm honest I don't think I would have pushed myself as much if I didn't go through everything in secondary school. I felt the need to prove certain people wrong and to prove myself wrong for believing what they said for so long. If you are in a position were you are being bullied use that anger you probably feel towards them to better yourself.

Lastly, even though it's hard, you should feel sorry for bullies. For them to be able to bring down another person shows they must be dealing with something very difficult in their own life. I used to try my hardest to pray for those who bullied me, that they would find happiness and would no longer feel the need to bully others.

"A bully grows weaker and a victim gets stronger."

I would love to know your thoughts and opinions on bullying.

Amber x