Central saint martins porfolio help..?!

hey ive got a portfolio reveiw for CSM and i was just wondering if anyone knew the sorts of things the best portfolios have in them, like the ones that have been accepted. im applying for the art and design foundation but i want to specialise in fashion.
Ive already got about 8 sketchbooks from gcse, and alevel which ive got A's and A* for but im not sure how to realy stand out as i think my books are probly like every other fashion students?! any suggestions??

Reply 1

z925gh

People have their own theories about what the admissions tutors want to see - some suggest pristine work presented on perfect white paper, others want to tell a story with their portfolio (in order for it to flow through.. via a general theme) and others just whack all their best work in.

Do what feels best, because none of these is wrong! My best advice (seeing as its for foundation) is to put a big variety of stuff in, to show them how diverse you are, and put in pieces that aren't necessarily your best work, but show potential, and show something a bit different

also, any drawing is ALWAYS good - drawing is the base of any art (but thats just my opinion..)

the only person who could answer this question of yours perfectly is the admissions tutor themselves, and theyre not exactly gonna be checkin out TSR are they :wink:

Reply 2

vintagechic89

i'm on the art foundation course at the moment at csm and have just been accepted onto their fine art degree course. i would advise really going with what feels right, your gut feeling, because there is no telling who they will accept and who they won't.
for my foundation portfolio i had roughly 3 a level sketchbooks, mainly a2, 2 personal, i guess self guided sketchbooks (i'd started a foundation course at a college near me, it was **** so i left and worked on my portfolio and wanted to show i had done stuff in my year off!), one large canvas which was my final piece for a2 and a large scale drawing that i'd rolled up and taken with me. i also had an a1 portfolio filled with examples of print work, some life drawing but the majority had been in my sketchbook because of the direction i'd taken it in, and some more self guided stuff. anything loose basically.
i took a lot because i didn't want to risk not getting in!
also, don't worry too much about the guidelines set out for your portfolio- remember to just mount every loose work, unless heavy ie on canvas board, onto white (never black, it's a death wish!) only mount on one side of the paper, and on the back in very light pencil, make a quick note about what the piece is about, if you feel it appropriate to do so- some work speaks for itself, some doesn't
just take as much as you can and really show them what you're got, so that if you end up not getting in, you know you tried your best! good luck!

Reply 3

vintagechic89

ooh and DON'T take anything from GCSE level, no matter how good you think it is.

Reply 4

littlemisssophie

vintagechic89

ooh and DON'T take anything from GCSE level, no matter how good you think it is.

how come?

Reply 5

spinandscribble

my guess is its probably too old?

Reply 6

vintagechic89

littlemisssophie

how come?

it's never as good as you think it is!

Reply 7

BoyinBlue

yeah art & design foundations in GENERAL don't appreciate GCSE work, let alone CSM.

Reply 8

vintagechic89

yeah that's pretty much it :smile:

Reply 9

emma0992

thank you that was realyy helpfull!! :smile:

i only just saw your reply, but i didnt get in. I took my gcse books (which were black paper!) as well as my a level haha woops. but my books were no were near as good as they could be, very rushed!! so im going to have a look at the foundations near me or take a year off and build up a proper portfolio lol im very glad you commented as now im not so worried because im having a year out, thank youuu! so fingers corssed for next year, the course looks soo good! :biggrin:

Reply 10

vintagechic89

emma0992

thank you that was realyy helpfull!! :smile:

yeh to be honest, if anything, it will work in your advantage. i put in my personal statement that london was where i wanted to be, that's why i'd left my other foundation, and i got told by my tutor on it that it won't work against you. they like to see that csm is really where you want to be and you're prepared to work hard. even now, tutors really don't appreciate those that think they can ride on the back of the fact they go to st martins. it's more a case of knuckling down and working hard, it always pays off! like i've had zero social life practically (or it feels like it!) but it has paid off and i've been asked to stay on for degree level. yeah just take your time, ENJOY your work (that's the most important thing) and show them csm is where you really want to be! good luck poppet!