ART PORTFOLIO
Original Artwork By:
Avalon Grace Kim
Redondo Union High School, Class of 2027
Coursework: Art 1, Art 2, 2D Art & Design (AP)
For more information: avalon.grace.kim@gmail.com
ARTIST STATEMENT
My art is inspired by the details that often go unnoticed: light reflecting, the structure of natural forms, and the quiet movement within everyday scenes. I am especially drawn to nature and environments where I can observe how light, texture, and form combine and interact.
I frequently use oil and acrylic paints, charcoal, graphite, water colors, acrylic markers, and colored pencils. Each medium allows me to explore a different aspect of a subject. For example, charcoal helps me focus on contrast and structure, while oil paint allows me to build depth and capture subtle changes in light and color.
I enjoy experimenting and refining, and I often revisit my pieces to better represent what I see.
Most of my projects start with detailed observation. I focus on what something looks like, how it is constructed and how its parts relate to one another. This approach influences my art, as well as my broader interests, including my curiosity about engineering and design.
In my artwork, I aim to capture the physical structure of an object and the feeling of its moment. Sometimes that is the stillness of an object, the movement of water, or the way light transforms a scene. Art allows me to slow down, notice details, and interpret them in a way that feels both precise and expressive.
TITLE: "Reflections and Memories"
MEDIUM: White charcoal on black paper
NOTES:
The three glasses in this piece sit in a cabinet in our kitchen, and they signify "family" to me. The glass on the left was purchased by my paternal grandparents in the 1980s. The glass in the center was part of a set that held layers of my maternal grandparents' wedding cake together in 1968. The glass on the right was used in a wedding toast when my parents married in 2005.
In this piece, I layered white charcoal on black paper, and created a high-contrast study that challenges the viewer to find form within transparency and shadow. This piece reminds that light reflecting is similar to the way our memory works. Both can be whole or fragmented, individually defined or overlapping, crystal clear or obscured.
TITLE: "Filtered Light"
MEDIUM: Oil and acrylic paint on canvas
NOTES:
This painting examines how light behaves when passing through transparent and translucent layers. By applying oil and acrylic in successive layers, I studied how these mediums interact differently with light, creating shifts in color intensity and clarity. The piece captures a specific moment where light becomes as important as the objects themselves.
TITLE: "Edge of Motion"
MEDIUM: Oil and acrylic paint on canvas
NOTES:
Water interests me because it is in constant transition; solid in form but fluid in nature. In this piece, I layered oil and acrylic to capture the structure of water at one moment, but also the blur and flow of the next. The painting explores how water's movement isn't just about change, but about the tension between stability and motion.
For me, the California Coastline is home, both in terms of its proximity to where I live, and the joy that I feel when I am in the water.
TITLE: "Suspension"
MEDIUM: Oil paint on canvas
NOTES:
This piece shows how lilypads interact with their reflections and the light surrounding them. I was interested in how reflection isn't a perfect image, but a transformation. Color shifts, edges blur, and the boundary between the object and its reflection becomes ambiguous.
TITLE: "Warm and Cool"
MEDIUM: Oil pastels and charcoal on paper
NOTES:
This still life pairs warm and cool tones to explore how colors create visual energy. Rather than rendering the apple realistically, I focused on its form and how color relationships can define volume and space. This piece shows that simple objects with clear color contrasts can deepen observation.
TITLE: "Rhythmic Meditation"
MEDIUM: Acrylic markers on canvas
NOTES:
Swimming captivates me because it combines physicality with water's fluidity. When I swim, I often feel like I am in a meditative experience, where the repetitive movement transports my mind to a place where I can relax and become calm, despite the hard work happening within my body.
In this piece, I explored how repetitive movement creates rhythm and pattern: arms cutting through water, alternating strokes, ripples multiplying. Rather than capturing a single moment, I tried to show the repetitive nature of swimming itself, where individual movements performed in succession accumulate into something larger. This piece is an example of my interest in both structure and motion.
TITLE: "Self-Portrait"
MEDIUM: Graphite and charcoal on paper
NOTES:
In this self-portrait, I focused beyond the surface of my skin to understand the underlying structure of my face, from the geometry of proportions, to the bone and muscle that create facial expression.
Working in charcoal allowed me to think about value relationships and how subtle shifts in tone can suggest physical likeness and inner presence. This piece taught me that portraiture is as much about understanding construction as it is about capturing likeness.
TITLE: "Waterfront Geometry"
MEDIUM: Acrylic paint on canvas
NOTES:
This painting captures a specific moment where architectural forms and the natural landscape intersect. I was drawn to the vibrant colors, and how the buildings interact with their reflections in the water and the environment. Rather than trying to be photorealistic, I allowed vibrant color to dominate, letting warm and cool tones create movement. This piece shows how location and light can transform how we perceive built form.
TITLE: "Structured Motion"
MEDIUM: Colored pencil on paper
NOTES:
This piece explores pattern and symmetry as a way to create visual movement. By arranging geometric elements with repetition and variation, I created a composition where the eye moves and discovers rhythm, rather than resting on a single focal point. In this piece, the geometric grid actually generates energy.
TITLE: "Family Legacy"
MEDIUM: Charcoal and colored pencil
NOTES:
This portrait is inspired from a 1957 photograph of my grandfather. Instead of replicating the photograph, I used it as a starting point for exploring memory and time. By combining charcoal with watercolor pencil, I found tension - with some areas rendered sharply and some more abstract.
The piece honors my grandfather's presence in my family history, while acknowledging that my memory is imperfect and fragmented.
Thank you for taking the time to view my work. I hope it inspires you to focus on the details in the environment around you.