Your capstone should be the most ambitious and personally meaningful work of the year — in any medium, on any theme — reflecting genuine artistic intention rather than simply repeating something comfortable. Work from planning sketches, allow time for revision, and expect the piece to change as you make it. This work could reasonably be framed, exhibited, or submitted to a portfolio.
Make thumbnail sketches first — small, rough compositional sketches (2×3 inches) exploring different arrangements. Make at least 5–8 before selecting one. The first idea is rarely the best.
Do a full-size compositional study on inexpensive paper before committing to your final surface. This draft lets you work out proportion and placement errors without wasting your best materials.
Begin your final piece with intention. Return to your proposal — what were you trying to communicate? Make choices that serve that intention rather than what is simply easiest.
Build in at least one deliberate revision session. Step back mid-project and ask: Is this working? What specific thing needs to change? Great work involves revision — rework an area that isn't right yet.
Know when it is finished. A piece is done not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left that would genuinely improve it.
If this project feels comfortable and easy from the very beginning, push it further. The goal is not to produce something perfect but to produce something true — a genuine expression of what you've learned and who you are as an artist at this moment in your development.