Zuniga Miller 1

Tera Rose Zuniga Miller

Mrs. Wickware
CAA Plus II
May 20, 2016

From Start to Finish

Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it
still. (Dorothea Lange) When I entered the academy, I applied to be in art. I
wanted to be an artist, and at the time all I knew was drawing, painting, and
sculpting; everything else was out of my comfort zone. When I got into
drama yeah drama, I was beside myself with nerves. Being up on a stage
was not my forte. Sure I had been in Elementary school plays and talent
shows, but thats nothing in comparison to the things I was expected to do
in drama. Three days in, Mrs. Abbott and Mr. Cline pulled me aside and told
me a spot had opened up in photo. During that time I remember what Mr.
Cline told me; he just kept telling me I wouldnt be hurting his feelings if I
chose to move to photo. Everything changed after that. I walked into the
photo room and it just felt right. Everything about photo was new. I found I
could create so much more with a camera than I ever could with a
paintbrush. Over the years I learned to approach every project as an
opportunity to see things from a new perspective and shed light on difficult
topics, go beyond academic expectations to create something memorable,
and bring art to a demographic that doesnt have the opportunity to explore

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it. Every project is a chance to push yourself and grow. Grow as a student,
an artist, and as a person. You never know what you're capable of until you
push yourself to try.
I have been learning through the lens of art since 7th grade. I would
say Elementary school, but I believe it was middle school art that made me
want to pursue art. It taught me that I was capable. Capable of creating
something no one had ever seen before, something different. When I was a
freshman, my english class started the year by reading The Crucible by
Arthur Miller. My very first project ever in the academy was for this book.
The goal of this project was to show the mindset of the people of Salem
when the witch hysteria took full effect. I chose to make a paper mache
collage on a foam head, because why not? The word mind is what really
inspired me to us a head. On the front of the face are pictures of
extraordinary things; flying men, cows with wings, a women able to hold fire
in her hands. The front of the face is colorful and vibrant because to the
people of Salem, the thought of witches living among them was something
new. Something different and amazing. Yet, in the back of their minds, there
was fear and anxiety. The fear that someone you loved or even yourself
could be accused of being a witch. Constantly looking over your shoulder
hoping no one sees you do anything that may be suspicious. Thats why the
back of the head is dark. Black and white images of worried faces,
witches being burned at the stake, and possibly last time loving embraces.
This project taught me to put myself in other peoples shoes. We were only a

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few chapters into the book at the time, so I needed to be able to place
myself in the character's mindset in order to fully understand what was
going through their minds. By learning how to place myself in situations, I
myself have never experienced, has helped me throughout my photo career.
I have been able to successfully portray photographs of things like eating
disorder, cancer survival, and heart defects. A simple freshmen year project
has helped me to grow as a photographer, and the assignment wasnt even
photography. Because of this, the styrofoam head project will always hold a
special place in my heart; it was the very very first project I ever did as an
Academy student. I realize it was a very simple assignment, a majority of
the other projects were done on printer paper, yet I chose to take it to a
whole other level. I look back and know that it was this project that set the
tone for the rest of my Academy career. I wanted to go above and beyond, I
wanted to be known for always putting in that extra hour in my projects.
And when your very first project is a huge, paper mache, foam head, you
want to keep the ball rolling! I have always tried to go above and beyond in
the projects I do and its nice to know it all started with a head. As I
continued to grow, so did the size of my projects. Maybe a poster the size of
my kitchen table wasnt the greatest idea.
One of my favorite memories from middle school was when I won 1st
place in a red ribbon week poster contest. I was so amazed that I had won; I
had never been acknowledged for my art before. And my teacher, Mr. Gross,
took me out into the hall where all the posters were displayed and we just

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looked at mine. He told me I should be proud of what I had created because
it had a bigger idea than any of the other posters and that I deserved to feel
proud of my work. And proud is the feeling I felt when I turned in my
freshman year english final; a 36x54 poster that displays three images each
representing three chapters from Tim OBriens The Things they Carried.
This project was a final so it needed to be big in order to demonstrate how
well we could interpret the novel. This was one of the first non photo
assignments where I used photography as art, but I also combined it with
painting. The poster consisted of three photographs, three soldier
silhouettes, individual foam letters spelling out the chapter titles, and two
poster boards taped together. I was very ambitious when it came to this
project. It wasnt just the fact that it was a final, it was the fact that I cared
so much about the subject matter. I have always loved learning about
Military history, my personal favorite topics are World War II and The
Vietnam War. Everything about the book engaged me. I wanted to read
ahead so badly, but I didnt want to because the way Mrs. Abbott read it in
class sounded much better then the voice inside my head. It captivated me
in a way no other book at the time had. I was so in love with the story, I
wanted to make sure my art piece did the novel justice. The entire poster
from start to finish spanned over the course of many days. In Spite of the
long time span I remained organized and was able to complete it without
having to rush and sacrifice quality. This project will always stand out to me
mostly because of its size, but also because it allowed me to grow as not

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only an artist, but as a student. It made me passionate about learning.
Which sounds bad because school should do that everyday, but it made me
passionate about continuing to learn about the topic. Im glad that its this
project that has impacted me throughout my academy career because the
effort you put into your work shows just how passionate you are about the
topic. And passion helps to drive success. Develop a passion for learning. If
you do, you will never cease to grow. (Anthony J. D'Angelo)
The thought of having an entire class dedicated to art, instead of just
monthly lessons, was the most incredible thing about middle school in my
fifth grade mind. I purposely took the rotation classes to get the art class for
even a quarter. Having art my 7th grade year was everything. When
everyone is trying to tear you down, its nice to go somewhere that builds
you up. You were very lucky to be in art II on 8th grade because there was
only one art II class. I feel very lucky that I got to be in an artistic
environment for two years.It was my middle school art teacher who told me
about the Arts Academy, he even wrote one of my letters of
recommendation. It can be scary transitioning from Elementary School to
Middle School, but when you have something to look forward to its not as
scarey, and for me that was art. The goals and objectives of this Senior
project were to help kids use the art of photography as an outlet and to help
kids with the transition from 5th grade to 6th grade. I want to teach them
about how photography can express their feelings, knowing that even
though others may not understand the image, it means alot to the

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photographer. The reason some of these kids may have a hard time
transitioning is because they may hear that the Middle School theyre
attending is a low end school. The social issue at hand is the division
between the classes. Over the course of the project I collected research and
reviews on Deltaview Elementary schools feeder Middle School and a
popular transfer school, Sequoia Middle, and found that when I compare the
reviews of these two schools, there is already notice a clear divide, but
there are also a number of similarities. Although Riverview has lower
ratings the comments are very similar to that of Sequoia. Both schools seem
to have a problem with communication between parents and educators and
a problem with difficult classes causing lower grades. What Ive noticed is
even though comments about Sequoia are the similar if not the same as
comments made about Riverview, Riverview is still given a lower star rating.
I believe this is because when people see these problems at Riverview they
think that's normal and cant be fixed; its just another complaint. Whereas
these comments are made about Sequoia, they are things that are just
happening and have a possibility of being fixed. Now kids dont really focus
on the logistics of their future school what they think about is how many
recesses will I have, will my friends be attending the same school as me?
Because the students are so young it made more sense to teach them not
about the social issue, but how to portray themselves through an art form
theyve never been exposed to before. I walked into Delta View relativity
unprepared. I knew what I wanted to happen, but what I got was so much

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more! From the first visit, the kids were excited to get a camera in their
hands. When I came with the cameras they were ecstatic! It took a few
moments for them to loosen up, but once they did they were unstoppable.
They began thinking like photographers: getting down on the ground to get
different perspectives, using movement to convey joy and adventure, their
creativity really took flight! I loved capturing the fun they were having.
Seeing them pose each other and get silly in front of the camera just made
me smile. I am very happy about the outcome and I hope that this
experience stays with these students as they transition into Middle School.
Beginning able to teach is the ultimate test of an artist and a student; it
takes everything youve learned and puts it to the test. Can you speak loudly
in front of a crowd? Can you make what your teaching engaging? Can you
show that you have proper knowledge in what you're talking about? I feel
that I accomplished all these things, the students really enjoyed the
experience and showed a lot of creativity and teamwork. The reactions I got
from the students were the kind of reactions Ive always wanted to get
towards my art. Thats why I wanted to become a Director of Photography
(for either movies or TV). I wanted to leave an impact and get a response
out of people. I have been in so many movie theaters where people are
laughing, crying, or simply dead silent. I want to create work that prompts a
response. And even though theyre only 5th graders, they gave me
confidence that I can provoke thought and feeling. And I hope to continue to

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make people think and see the world differently, because the world looks
pretty great through a camera lense.
As part of my senior project I asked the students to write or draw
what emotions they wanted to portray in their pictures. There was one that
stood out to me; a student drew a smiley face and a angry face, and a sad
face, and a confused face. The student was only in fifth grade, but its as if
he was drawing the feelings you feel during your senior year of high school.
Every assignment, every late night, every five hour photo shoot has led to
this moment. I came into the academy unsure of myself and my skills, and I
leave it loud, proud and confident. I leave high school looking at the world
with a new perspective, capable of going beyond whats expected, and
knowing that wherever I go, I will bring the art of photography with me.
Even though Im terrified to enter the real world, the academy has
prepared me for anything that may come my way. Ive said that once finals
are over I wont be crying out of stress, but because Im going to miss the
academy so much. And so, along with all the academic and artistic lessons I
have learned, I will bring with me the memory of my family. Dont cry
because its over. Smile because it happened. (Dr. Seuss)