A Twist in Grid Drawing

Students for this assignment were asked to choose either themselves or an iconic person to represent.  Focus on this assignment was drawing the human face.  Working with proportion, value, and drawing techniques were a strong focus.  Student were asked, after selecting their chosen person, to create an innovative grid through their subject.  In each square of the grid they were to use a different drawing technique that was introduced in class.  Students were to choose between 6-10 different techniques.  Before getting started they were to come up with a rough draft of their ideas.  Here are some examples of students rough drafts.

 

Here are some examples of the final product: 6th-8th grade

 

 

 

 

 

The Study of Hands

Students for their homework assignment focused on drawing the human hand. Students were to research American sign language and create a word that was at least 4 letters long. Students had the option of creating a full scale value drawing or show value with color.  Focus was put on the anatomy of the hand, full value range, and originality.

 

Shoe Art

This was a two-part assignment.  The first part was a drawing assignment and the second part was a sculpture assignment.  For the first part, students created an observational drawing of a shoe that represented them.  They included 5 words that described themself as well as images that could be drawn on the shoe.  The drawing was entirely based upon them, giving it an abstract flare that would make their shoe drawing come to life.  The second portion of this assignment was a sculpture. Students were to bring in a shoe that they would like to use in order to create some type of shoe art.  The assignment was very open-ended.  They could turn the shoe into an animal, monster, landscape, etc.  It was entirely up to them how they would alter the shoe.  This is what 6th and 7th graders created.

 

 

 

 

Record Portraits

Students studied the history of music and its influence on our world today.  We examined how music evolved and, more specifically, how music was recorded so that people could listen to it.  As a class we looked at the history of the record and how it was developed.  Students watched videos on the process.  After having an understanding of music evolution and records, students chose an iconic music figure for their assignment.  Their assignment was to use this uncommon surface to paint their iconic musician's portrait.  Students were given examples of different icons, but were encouraged to choose their own, someone of interest or connection to themselves.  Here is what 8th grade students created.

Jar Art

Starting the "color" unit off this year, 6th and 7th grade students will be working with "jar art."  For inspiration, we will study snow globe artists Martin and Munez.  Students will look at the realistic scenes, from enlarged photographs, that take place in snow globes.  Students will use their own jars to create scenes within, both on the inside and the outside of the jar.  They will depict a scene that has some sort of connection to their own personal life.  Students will be using a variety of materials, including sculpture, natural materials, found objects, and craft materials.  This is what the 6th and 7th graders created.

Icon Paintings "spontaneous realism"

Voka, born in 1965, lives and works in the Lower Austrian town of Puchberg am Schneeberg.  He coined the term "Spontaneous Realism" as a trademark for his art. Voka defines this style as a revival of the significance of contemporary art, a valued tradition in a new era, with a new interpretation reflecting today´s spirit of the time.



Students study this style of art, focusing on the artist himself as well as new renounced style of art.  Each student is asked to choose an iconic figure of either the past or present.  Students create a list of at least 10 people that they would consider for this assignment and then select one.  Students then start by creating a basic sketch of their chosen person.  This is to help them practice drawing proportions of their iconic person.  After creating sketches, students will each be given a canvas where they will experiment with palette knives as well as pieces of cardboard.  With those tools they will spread 3 colors of paint all over the canvas (2 primary and 1 secondary color).  After the paint has dried they will then take a pastel or chalk and lightly sketch out the portrait of their person (a simple gesture drawing).  After they complete that they will paint in their figure's face, using abstract colors and composition.  This is what 8th graders created.