This month in middle school we have been working on 3D figures, inspired by Alberto Giacometti’s surrealist sculptures. We began with gesture drawing and building a wire armature of a chosen pose. Next, we added meat onto the bones of the sculpture using strips of newspaper. This step definitely taught us patience with our material constraints. Lastly, we painted the figures. First a layer of black and then a metallic layer which we applied with a brush and then wiped to give the illusion of a patina.
Month: October 2014
Parrot Drawings
I began this year teaching two elementary classes, which is a lot less than I taught last year. I have enjoyed the opportunity to once again to teach these students and I have lots of new ideas of exciting projects to try with them. I do not know how long I will have these classes, but I will enjoy it while it lasts.
We began the year with abstract guided drawing using the basic elements of line, shape and colour. It was a good exercise for the students in listening to instructions and seeing how the same instructions can be interpreted in different ways to achieve unique results. This lesson was followed up with another guided drawing lesson where we combined the elements to create a recognizable creature- a parrot. We used the same elements to create our own birds and added other overlapping details- branches, leaves, flowers and other creatures- to fill the page.
Adding colour to the drawings was an exercise in patience for many students. I had them cover all the white on the page using coloured pencils and then add final details- outlines and texture using markers. I am quite pleased with how they all turned out- each unique in their own way!
Keith Haring Reduction Prints
Here is yet another of my challenging project ideas where I ended up learning right along with students! I realized that the concept of reduction printing is one that is hard to explain. While I wanted them to plan out each step of the design, this is not always possible- surprises happen and often they turn out the best. I remember back to the good old days of art school and how difficult it was to figure out how all those layers of colours would interact.
So… reduction printing is when you use one surface to print and print in multiple layers. In our case, the plate was styrofoam, which is not the easiest surface to work on, but it is readily available and is a good place to start. Each time you print, part of the plate is cut away, adding detail and colour to the overall design. Keith Haring was the artist inspiration for the project. We love to listen to music and move around in art class, so I thought discussing Keith’s action packed work would get everyone excited. It was a success! We had a lively discussion about what is considered art and where it should be displayed. Haring is a good example of someone who added to that definition and that made art more accessible to the public.
The finished products of our printmaking unit are multicolour prints inspired by Haring. We used multiple colours and line to create simple figures with a message. The element of line was also used to convey movement and texture. Students created an edition of three identical prints and at least two additional colour variations.
Gateway Art 