Overview

Students have completed their name designs, and soon we will be critiquing them as a class.  This gives students the opportunity to compliment and gently give constructive criticism, while developing their own evaluative skills.  We spent the last several weeks drawing from observation--drawing animals on loan (for example:  the mink, pileated woodpecker, mockingbird, bluebird, kingfisher, etc.) from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.  Students were introduced to the concept of contour line and did contour line and blind contour line exercises.  A contour is the edge of a form.   Contour line drawings are done with one continuous line; blind contour line drawings are contour line drawings done looking only at the object that is being drawn, not at one's drawing!  These exercises resulted in unusually, beautiful, detailed drawings. 

Click here if you'd like a little lesson on Contour Line.

Here are examples of contour line and blind contour line drawings:

While the animals were on loan to us, students took their best drawing and transferred it to canvas, traced it with a sharpie and painted it with tempera cakes while observing the animal for correct color choices.  These paintings will be cut, glued and stuffed, creating a soft sculpture.  Students are working on drawings of their animal's habitat.  In their plan, they need to have something in the foreground, middle ground and background.  (We talk about the 6 Clues for Creating Distance on a 2 Dimensional Surface--size, overlap, position on the picture plane, color, linear perspective, and atmospheric perspective.)   Then after a discussion regarding color mixing, paper will be hand painted using only the primary colors, and black and white.  This will be torn, then used to collage a background that will be turned into a diorama of the animal's habitat. 

Click here for some information about Color Theory.

Syllabus

(May vary as needed)

Name Design

Animal Habitat Diorama:  habitat collage and soft sculpture

Palissy Pinch Pot/ Pond Habitat

Painted Portrait from the Past/ Relief Printed Frame

Paper Molas

Gargoyle Clay Sculpture--if time permits

Copper Enameling--it time permits

Assignments

Ample time is given for students to complete art projects during art class.  If additional time is needed, students are encouraged to come to the art room to work during conference periods or study halls.  Work for the term is due at term's end.

Announcements

BULLETIN BOARD INFORMATION:

The name designs done by Mrs. Bodnarchuk's students are on display in the upstairs hallway leading to the 6th grade wing.  They are very colorful and show up dramatically against the black background!  Please come and see them!

Link

08-09 Course Expectations--Student Handout

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