Artist's Statement For my final art project I decided to collage titles of articles from 2016. I decided to put a painting of myself looking at all these things I saw and heard about in 2016 because it is important to see a young person’s perspective on these issues. It is important to remember that adults need to set a good example for young people. Adults are the ones responsible for the protection of people of all ages, ethnicities, and religions. The painting of me is supposed to show the hopelessness that so many feel after this year, and the pink dress is supposed to symbolize innocence and youth. I came up with this concept after reading about the social issues Keith Haring and Betye Saar conveyed through their pieces, and I already knew I wanted to incorporate recent events. It was important for me to add certain events because they opened my eyes to the suffering in the world this year. These events showed me the ignorance in the world. I thought the most effective way to convey this was through collaging titles of articles. I mostly used shape and some texture when I painted myself. In the painting I am a different texture from the rest of the piece. I think there is a balance to the piece. Everything has its own place. Originally I liked the concept of my art piece, but after finishing it I felt that it looked too simple. I did not have much experience with collaging which may have been my first mistake. I could have added another column of articles or painted more people looking at the titles. I also need to work on my steady hand when cutting because some of the edges are rough. I think I might want to try something like this again in the future when I have more experience with collaging.