The Portfolio Puzzle: What Art Colleges Really Want to See

Your Creative Snapshot: Demystifying the Art College Portfolio

The portfolio is often the most stressful part of applying to art school. Let’s take the mystery out of it. At Montserrat, we see your portfolio not as a final exam, but as a window into your mind.

We are looking for three main qualities: potential, curiosity, and foundational ability.

1. Show Your Foundational Skills: Drawing from Life

This is the non-negotiable requirement for virtually every serious art program.

• Observational Drawing: We require at least two examples of work drawn from direct observation (still life, figure drawing, landscapes, self-portraits).
  • Why? This demonstrates your ability to see, measure space, and translate a 3D object onto a 2D surface. This skill is the backbone of every discipline, from Animation to Sculpture.
  • Pro Tip: Avoid drawing exclusively from photographs or copying existing artwork. We want to see your unique interpretation of the real world.

2. Show Your Passion: Personal and Exploratory Work

Your portfolio should reflect you.

• Incorporate Media You Love: If you’re into digital art, include your best pieces. If you enjoy sculpture, show photographs of your 3D work.
• Include Exploratory Work: Show work that was challenging, or that took you out of your comfort zone. This could be a failed experiment, sketches from your travel journal, or early concept sketches. This shows critical thinking and a willingness to take risks.

3. Quality Over Quantity (12–15 Pieces)

• Be Selective: Focus on presenting 12 to 15 pieces that are your absolute strongest, most recent, and most representative of your current abilities.
• Document Well: If you include 3D work (ceramics, sculpture), take high-quality, well-lit photographs from multiple angles. For time-based work (video, animation), provide a short, well-edited clip.

Getting feedback is the best way to gain confidence. We strongly encourage applicants to attend one of our portfolio review sessions with an Admissions Counselor. It’s a low-pressure way to improve your submission!

Get valuable, personalized feedback on your current work! Request a Virtual Portfolio Review with our Admissions team.