In an effort to reduce paper waste, most assignments will be posted on this web site and one will be posted in our classroom. Students who work best with paper handouts can absolutely request copies. Project handouts, examples, and rubrics will be posted on this page. Absent? Check in here or simply e-mail : [email protected] me to see if you can catch up at home. Please keep in mind that due to the nature of this art studio course, attendance is extremely important. Some projects must be done in class due to the methods and materials involved. Each term you will have a sketchbook assignment. You may work on this at home or in class if you happen to complete a project early. Click the "sketchbook assignments" tab in the top pages bar to access your assignment.
Assignment # 1: Elements and Principles Collages
Students will be introduced to (or review) the elements and principles of design. We will talk about these throughout the year and focus on them individually with specific assignments. You will select one element and one principle of design at random from a basket. You will create two small collages; the first will depict your element, the second will use the elements of design to illustrate your principle of design. Your class will trade collages and guess which element and principle you were assigned so make sure they are prominently illustrated!
Handout and rubric below:
Handout and rubric below:
UNIT 1: ART IS ABOUT REPRESENTATION
In-Class Exercises: Contour Line Drawings
We will be discussing line and using line to better understand people and objects. Students will have both in class and take-home sketch book assignments focusing on contour line drawings.
Dia de los Muertos
Each year we participate in a collaborative project with the Foreign Language department. Classes will contribute to a "Day of the Dead" exhibit. This year you will have several options all centered around WIRE.
Assignment # 3 & 4: Still life Pair (Value, Form, & Space)
Students will create two still life drawings. They will have about 3 class periods to work on each. One will be completed in pencil, the other with vine charcoal. Students will be introduced to value, blending, and using a view finder to isolate one area of a still life. Students will create two value scales (one in pencil, one in charcoal). Students will be introduced to proportion, visual measuring tools and creating a sense of space. Students will need to show at least 5 different values within the drawing.
Assignment intro, Powerpoint and rubric below:
Assignment intro, Powerpoint and rubric below:
Sketch Book with Handmade Paper Cover
Has your art teacher ever said "DON'T WASTE PAPER!?" I know I always try to write notes to myself on old scrap paper, incoporate used hall passes and notebook paper into collages, etc. Paper is a resource that use and often overuse. There are many different ways to make paper- we will be creating paper out of recycled paper, tissue paper (for color) and cotton rag pulp. Students will experiment with different colors, textures and "add-ins" to design their own handmade paper. Each student will make 3-5 sheets of paper and design the front and back cover of their sketchbook. Students will be introduced to book binding, and cover design. This handmade journal will be yours to sketch in for the rest of the year.
The project incorporates a papermaking participation grade as well as a journal grade therefore class participation is a must!
The project incorporates a papermaking participation grade as well as a journal grade therefore class participation is a must!
Day of the Dead Wire Skills
Several of our art classes are taking part in an exciting collaboration with the Foreign Language department. Metals, Drawing, Art Foundations, Digital Photography and Spanish (sophomore classes) will each be contributing to a Day of the Dead exhibit in our art gallery. Art Foundations students will create linear wire projects. Design inspiration will come from the decorative sugar skills that are presented during the Day of the Dead celebration. Students will research the Day of the Dead, browse sugar skulls and mask designs and come up with their own version exploring with line and shape. Students will be introduced to various wire tools and connection techniques.
Gesture Drawing and Wire Sculpture
We are moving away from trying to realisitically illustrate an object or person. Students will begin creating quick gesture studies of a person in various poses,. Students will take turns posing for 30 seconds to 2 minutes. The goal is to capture the essence of the pose. Students will need to focus, draw quickly, draw constantly, and there will be no erasing. The goal is to capture a sense of movement and the essence of the pose. Students will use pencil, Sharpie, conte crayon and pastel and explore the possibilities of each drawing tool.
Students will then choose one of their drawings and create a gestural wire sculpture based on the drawing/pose. Students will get two pieces of wire (approximately 2' each) to work with.
Students will then choose one of their drawings and create a gestural wire sculpture based on the drawing/pose. Students will get two pieces of wire (approximately 2' each) to work with.
Resources and Examples
http://www.artworksforyou.org/?page_id=672 - Information about artist, Wanda Edwards who will be teaching a class at ArtWorks in November. She creates torn paper paintings.
http://www.eileendownes.com/landscape.html - Web site for artist Eileen Downes who creates town paper landscape and incorporates text into her work.
http://www.eileendownes.com/landscape.html - Web site for artist Eileen Downes who creates town paper landscape and incorporates text into her work.
Putting Value into Focus: Subtractive Drawing

Students will use subtractive drawing as a method of illustrating value. Students will apply a dark gray tone to their papers and use erasers to "draw" and pull out the value to show midtones and highlights. This image will be projected onto a screen in the room and put out of focus. Each day, the image will become more and more focused. This helps students work on larger areas across the composition and slowly add more detail.
Subtractive drawing is a process where the drawing surface is completely covered in graphite or charcoal, then erased to make the image.
Read more:
http://www.ehow.com/how_12057566_subtractive-drawing-eraser.html
http://www.artinstructionblog.com/charcoal-drawing-basics-techniques-for-beginners
http://prezi.com/g5nmlklu7ajn/subtractive-charcoal-drawings/
Subtractive drawing is a process where the drawing surface is completely covered in graphite or charcoal, then erased to make the image.
Read more:
http://www.ehow.com/how_12057566_subtractive-drawing-eraser.html
http://www.artinstructionblog.com/charcoal-drawing-basics-techniques-for-beginners
http://prezi.com/g5nmlklu7ajn/subtractive-charcoal-drawings/
UNIT 2: ART IS ABOUT ABSTRACTION
Non- Objective Drawing
Looking at artists: Wassily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian
Negative Space Painting- Observational Drawing
"Autograph" Relief Squares
Stacked Geometric Forms: Light/Shadow, Balance/Gravity
Collaborative Piece: Non-Objective Assemblages
Students viewed the work of contemporary artists Louise Nevelson and Leonardo Drew and their different approaches to creating non-objective assemblages. Students compared and contrasted, noting that Nevelsons assemblages are organized, and she achieves unity through color. Objects are transformed into shape and form. Leonardo Drew's assemblages are a bit less structured, and raw.
Students learned about various guidelines to create a good composition: The rule of thirds, the golden ratio (golden rectangle) and the Fibonacci Sequence. Students worked in small groups and chose materials from a large box of wood scraps and found objects to create a successful non-objective assemblage.
Students learned about various guidelines to create a good composition: The rule of thirds, the golden ratio (golden rectangle) and the Fibonacci Sequence. Students worked in small groups and chose materials from a large box of wood scraps and found objects to create a successful non-objective assemblage.
UNIT 3: ART IS ABOUT PERSONAL MEANING
Torn Paper Self-Portraits

Student photos were brought into Adobe Photoshop and made grayscale with only 4-5 values. This created an image with areas of planes and shapes of value. Students are exploring IDENTITY and incorporating text and images to provide information about themselves in their self-portraits.
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Students responded to the questions regarding IDENTITY:
How would you describe yourself in one word? How do you think others perceive you? What is something about you that people might not know? |
Shoe Still Life

We will look at observational drawings and paintings from several historical artists. Students will begin to consider symbolism in still life works.... What do your shoes say about you? Students will use a view-finder to isolate an area of still life set up with a variety of shoes. Students will use their knowledge of perspective to draw their shoe(s).
Vocabulary: Linear perspective, vanishing point, horizon line, foreshortening, one-point perspective, two-point perspective, three-point perspective.
Vocabulary: Linear perspective, vanishing point, horizon line, foreshortening, one-point perspective, two-point perspective, three-point perspective.
Branch Weaving
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UNIT 4: ART IS ABOUT THE NATURAL WORLD
COGGESHALL FARM
Coggeshall farm is a dear place to me and essential to my Art Foundations curriculum. Why take students to a farm?
1) History - Coggeshall Farm was a tenant farm in the 1790's and operates as a "living history museum." Students will see and often pet, brush etc. unique breeds of farm animals that would have lived in the 1700's and 1800's.
2) Process. We live in a modern society where we choose food off of a shelf or freezer, maybe a local farm or farm-stand. I think it is important for students to view the amount of work that went into running a farm. It was a way of life and a business. Students will walk through the garden, some will pull plants and vegetables. They will see chickens laying eggs, they will often milk cows and watch cheese and butter being made. Seeing and participating in these processes creates understanding, value, and appreciation.
3) Nature. There have been countless studies done about the benefits of learning outside of one's classroom environment. Albert Einstein once said "look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better." I believe this is true.
4) Art. Throughout the year students have been strengthening the power of their own observation through observational drawings. They have learned what the components of a successful composition are. They have created realistic and conceptual self portraits. They will work on several assignments here at Coggeshall Farm.
a) First, all students will have 15-20 minutes dedicated purely to sketching. They will draw from observation; plants, animals (gesture drawings work best), the house and other structures, tools, etc.
b) Upon returning to school, students will work on accordion book incorporating their sketches, photographs, etc.
c) Cyanotypes. Students will learn about cyanotypes, one of the earliest forms of "photography" and also referred to as nature prints or blueprints. Students will get an 8x8" square of pretreated fabric that will react when exposed to heat and light. Students will arrange objects and artifacts from the farm on their square, expose it to sunlight resulting in a beautiful photo-negative style print.
1) History - Coggeshall Farm was a tenant farm in the 1790's and operates as a "living history museum." Students will see and often pet, brush etc. unique breeds of farm animals that would have lived in the 1700's and 1800's.
2) Process. We live in a modern society where we choose food off of a shelf or freezer, maybe a local farm or farm-stand. I think it is important for students to view the amount of work that went into running a farm. It was a way of life and a business. Students will walk through the garden, some will pull plants and vegetables. They will see chickens laying eggs, they will often milk cows and watch cheese and butter being made. Seeing and participating in these processes creates understanding, value, and appreciation.
3) Nature. There have been countless studies done about the benefits of learning outside of one's classroom environment. Albert Einstein once said "look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better." I believe this is true.
4) Art. Throughout the year students have been strengthening the power of their own observation through observational drawings. They have learned what the components of a successful composition are. They have created realistic and conceptual self portraits. They will work on several assignments here at Coggeshall Farm.
a) First, all students will have 15-20 minutes dedicated purely to sketching. They will draw from observation; plants, animals (gesture drawings work best), the house and other structures, tools, etc.
b) Upon returning to school, students will work on accordion book incorporating their sketches, photographs, etc.
c) Cyanotypes. Students will learn about cyanotypes, one of the earliest forms of "photography" and also referred to as nature prints or blueprints. Students will get an 8x8" square of pretreated fabric that will react when exposed to heat and light. Students will arrange objects and artifacts from the farm on their square, expose it to sunlight resulting in a beautiful photo-negative style print.
Cyanotypes
Monochromatic Landscape Paintings
Along with creating a cyanotype, students will also sketch and photograph animals within the landscape. Students will sketch/photograph various areas of the farm to capture the best composition for a 5-8 step atmospheric landscape. See examples below of watercolor paintings, sketches and photo examples.