The 3rds are experimenting with line as they look at the abstract compositions created by Gary Petersen for inspiration. To start the lesson, we look at several of Gary's brightly colored abstractions. Specifically, we look at how, even when an artwork is non-objective, it can still have a sense of 3d space that is achieved with repeated diagonals and the changing height and width of included lines.
After identifying how space is created in 3 of Gary's pieces, we experiment in a similar fashion on our practice paper. When doing so, I remind students that these are not expected to be perfect, but I do want them to try their best while they play with line.
After we practice, I ask the students to select one sketch they like more than others and to think about why they think that one will be more interesting as a larger drawing. We then partner up and share our reasoning for choosing one sketch over the other. I point out that this oral practice will help them write a reasoning statement about the project once their drawing is done. They are using this oral sharing to rehearse their reflection sentence.
When we draw out the larger design, I remind my student artists that they may add more detail to it with line and shape and that it's okay if the design changes some from the preliminary sketch. Students are free to use color as they like- I do model changing hand pressure to create light and dark color values because this could heighten the implied 3d qualities of the drawing. I also express that they can leave areas white if they want to do so.
This guy's shirt was a fantastic example of spatial line!
I love that even though we practiced similar compositions, there is still a wide array of variety in the compositions created. Students wrote out the reasoning statement that they rehearsed as a quick wrap up activity.
The 4th graders have spent the first 2 weeks looking at 2 artists who have a similar vocabulary of line, yet their work looks very different from each other.
During week 1, we looked at the work of Oakland based painter Brendan Monroe and attempted to create landscapes inspired by his work that used line to create pattern and the illusion of 3d space.
Brendan created this one for the kaboo festival, right here in San Diego.
When looking at a couple of his pieces we talked about the type of landscape or place they remind the kids of, as well as how he is using a pattern based on the bottom edge of a shape to give the side of a form that 3d look.
We practiced a few approaches (wavy canyons, angular canyons, and an oval plateaus) together that were based on techniques the artist used and then the students chose the sketch that they could be most successful with on a larger scale. They wrote an explanation of their choice under their sketch, shared their reasoning with a neighbor, and then got to work on the larger version. After they drew their landscape larger in pencil, students traced their landscape with thick lines in the front, medium in the middle, and thin in the back, to emphasize the 3d space of the image.
There were some very interesting results with this project. It was a bit challenging for some, but we talked about growth mindset and strategies to use if they felt like they were getting frustrated with the project.
This week, we have been looking at some murals done by Daniel Anguilu, who is a Mexican American painter based in Houston, Texas. At the beginning of this lesson we quickly revisited the elements present in our first project. I emphasized that there would be similarities and differences between the 2 artists' works and that the kids should be thinking about those as we worked.
Daniel creates large scale murals that are much more abstract than Brendan's work, yet they are both line and pattern heavy. We discussed how the space that Daniel creates is more decorative and 2d than the work of Brendan. We also revisited the concept of contour lines and how Daniel outlines almost everything in his work, and we don't really see that in Brendan's large scale landscapes.
I shared a brief video from 2014 of Daniel talking about one of the murals he was working on at the time, so the kids could see him in action.
With this project, we started out by sketching 2 different composition concepts that were inspired by Daniel's use of line and pattern. I asked students to break up their frame with at least 9 lines and to include at least 7 patterns. Students then chose their most interesting concept, discussed their reasoning with a neighbor, wrote a reasoning sentence about their choice, and then got to drawing their final design.
As they worked on their larger drawing, I encouraged them to add more patterns and details if the large spaces looked like they needed it. When tracing their pencil lines, we talked about making both thick and thin lines to create more variety in their contour lines and patterns. When it came to coloring their designs, how they did it was up to them. I did talk about and model modifying hand pressure to create light and dark version of the same color.
When students finished their drawings, they reflected on the project in writing by identifying how the 2 projects were similar, how they were different, and which one they had more success with.
There was a great amount of visual variety with this project across the 4th grade classes. A load of interesting, engaging results that addressed the project emphasis of brainstorming and using line to create different visual constructs.
This week the 2nds and 5ths have been experimenting with paint as they create portraits. Thw 2nd graders are looking at a couple images by Cbabi Bayoc and the 5th graders are looking at some paintings by Maurice Evans. Both grade levels are still exploring 3d space and volume in art.
The 2nds have looked at the images below by Cbabi Bayoc. we've talked about how he changes the human form a bit. We have noticed that even though his portraits are different than the Coronado Bridge landscapes they did, he still uses overlapping to create 3d space. When painting, we have tried to make light and dark colors by adding more or less water to the tempera cakes in order to make the shapes seem more solid.
The 5th graders are making portraits of musicians that are based on the work of Maurice Evans. We are looking at how he uses size to create space in a short distance in his portraits. The hands of his subjects are exaggerated in size, but the largeness of them compared to the size of the heads, creates distance and drama. When painting, we are trying to use dark and light color values to create 3d forms in places.
Again, this week, both projects have been pretty direct with choice coming in to play in the painting portion. The next time I see both grade levels for printmaking, there will be more room for choice throughout the artistic process. As with the chalk pastel lesson, I am using more control in terms of subject and process, so that they gain experience with the materials while demonstrating a beginning grasp of creating different effects with them.
