Popcorn Interpretive Drawing

This is a drawing lesson I found in the book: From Ordinary To Extraordinary: Art & Design Problem Solving by Ken Vieth. I like this assignment because it addresses both accurate drawing from observation as well as creative thinking. I did this project as a final lesson with my Grade 10/11 class.  It was challenging for them, but I think they learned alot about drawing with this technique. It involves creating two drawings from looking at pieces of popcorn: one a realistic drawing from observation and the second involves transforming the popcorn into something else.

It also involves drawing opposite to what we are accustomed to- drawing with white on black paper.

This website explains it well:

Drawing with white material on black paper does require some getting used to.  This is because most of us are accustomed to drawing with dark material on white or lightly colored paper.  This thinking has engrained in us the need to add dark values and leave the lighter values.  When we reverse this thinking by drawing with white material on black paper, our process is the opposite.  Now, we must train our minds to deal with the lighter values and leave the darker values to the tone of the surface.  This reversal can be challenging, but important in our development as artists.  It forces us to recognize the importance of tints (lighter values) and their inherent relationships with shades (darker values).  With practice, our understanding of value and how it is used to create drawings improves.

Drawing with white media on black paper can create stunning imagery and the drawing process itself can lead to improvement in your drawing ability.  

So here's how we created our popcorn designs. I brought in a bag of popcorn I had popped at home.

Students choose 2-3 pieces and glue them to a small square of black paper. 

Carefully observe and look at the popcorn from all angles before deciding how you want to draw them.

Because students are drawing in reverse, tell them to really examine where the

lightest or whitest areas are first.

My Grade 10 students did some practice sketches first to get used to drawing this way. 

They could use either white conté or a white colored pencil.

(most students went with the 'easier to control' white pencil)

I'm not going to lie to you- many students struggled (aka: complained) with this part. 

Some just 'got' it and it took others a while.

I encouraged them to simply practice and take their time until they felt comfortable. 

I find some high school students want instant results and want to be able to draw

something perfectly the first time they try it, and tend to give up easily.

Anyway, once they are comfortable, they can do their good copy and voila, the

drawings look really cool and dramatic on the black paper.

Once they have their observational drawing complete, they need to look at the popcorn and try to see some shapes/objects, etc. in them.  Similar to when you see things when looking at clouds. 

Students were encouraged to include a setting. They used colored pencils for this step.

Here are some of the results. Ta da!

Ceramic Folk Art Bird

This is a clay lesson I taught to Grade 1 and 2 students.  It uses the slab method, so it's helpful to have rolling pins for this project.  

I finally remember where I saw the idea: from Artsonia- Cottage Lake Elementary School.

To begin with, I usually have to help the kids roll out their clay, as it's pretty tough for their little arms.  I encourage them to stand up while they roll the clay in order to use their whole upper body strength.  Double check the thickness of them as the kids have a tendency to roll them either too thick or too thin.  I tell them to aim for a pancake-type thickness...(I use alot of food references in my art!)

I had pre-printed some simple bird shape templates, as I wanted these nice and large. The kids traced these shapes onto the clay with a pencil and cut them out with a plastic knife.  Then they 'scratch and attached' a wing shape and a ball of clay for an eye. At this stage, the kids used various tools (straws, bamboo sticks, coffee stir sticks, etc.) to add patterns and texture to their clay. 

When rolling out their clay they can also roll textured fabric into it. 

When the kids are finished, I poke a hole at the top of each one with a straw so they can be hung up.

Let dry flat for about a week; because it's a slab, I loosely cover these with plastic to let them dry slowly in order to avoid warping and cracking. 

Bisque fire, then have the kids glaze these (I use Mayco Stroke & Coat- it's foolproof) and then glaze fire.



After glazing.

 

You can also paint these if you don't have time for glaze. 
Spray with a gloss varnish for protection if using tempera like here.



This was my sample- I love birds in art.



Here I rolled my wing onto some lace fabric.



For this texture I used a wooden coffee stir stick.  It's also great for scales when making dragons or fish.



The Potters of San Marcos: The Clay and the Pot

This amazing pottery video shows a master potter from San Marcos Tlapatzola in Oaxaca, Mexico. Part I follows the process from digging clay to throwing a pot- without a wheel!!

Clay Bird in a Nest

This is a cute Spring clay lesson I've taught to younger students, aged 6 and 7 (Grade 1,2). 

I found the idea for creating the bird's nest at the Almost Unschoolers blog.

We started by making very simple, low pinch pots. Then, using a grater, the kids grated blocks of clay until they had a little pile of twig/grass-like material. You could also use a garlic press, but we didn't have one and the grater seemed to work well enough. The kids love this step! 

or

   

They patted this all around the outside of the pinch pot. Then they make a bird out of two balls of clay.  

I demonstrate how to 'scratch and attach' the head, wings, and beak using a toothbrush and water.  

Make some little oval eggs and stick them in the nest. 

Here's my sample after being bisque fired.

I lost the eggs somewhere along the way and had to make new ones...

Here's student work waiting to be glazed.

You can see some students had little birds hatching out of the eggs- so cute!

Mine after glazing- I like to use Mayco Stroke & Coat. The one below I actually over-fired (fired it at cone 6 instead of cone 06- whoops!) but it still survived, thank god, though the colours are much duller.

Southwestern Pen & Ink Landscape Drawing

This is a pen & ink lesson I recently finished up with my Grade 9's. The kids really enjoyed it and it was the perfect lesson for the end of the year.

It uses simple materials: white paper and black pens (ball point, rollerball pens, whatever you have). It also reinforces basic landscape drawing skills as well as hatching techniques. I found the initial idea from this website which has drawing assignments for art teachers.

So I gave students a handout which had ideas for their Southwestern style landscape- cactuses, pinnacles, buttes, mesas, desert plants, etc. They did a practice sketch first in their sketchbook (see below). You could of course also show the kids a slideshow of desert landscape photos from Arizona, New Mexico, etc.

For the good copy, simply start off with a Southwestern-style horizon line.

Then begin adding detail: students had to include a background, middle ground and foreground.

They did their good copy in pencil first, but you could also easily draw it straight away in pen.

In their sketchbooks they also practised hatching and cross-hatching techniques using a black pen.

You can find some good printable handouts from this website: http://www.artyfactory.com/

Image via: http://www.artyfactory.com/

Here's a detail of some pen hatching.  I explained to them that it's a way to show value through line.

Here are some of the Grade 9 results. I love all the different styles of hatching.

Ta daaa!

Landscape Magazine Collage

My Grade 9's recently finished their landscape collages. I wanted a landscape lesson that wasn't drawing-based and I also wanted to use up a bunch of old magazines and scraps of coloured construction paper, so this project was the perfect solution. It uses minimal materials to get quite lovely results.

Students were required to create a landscape that incorporated a background, middle ground and foreground.  For the paper, they had to use a combination of ripped and cut (with scissors) paper to create contrasting shapes and a variety of textures.

For inspiration, you could show students the work of California collage artist Eileen Downes.

They started by sketching out a plan for their landscape- a simple pencil drawing- and labeling what colours would go where. (see below)  They could re-create any type of landscape they wished (seascape, cityscape, landscape, etc). We used heavy-ish white paper, about 12 x 18 inches.

Then they looked through the magazines and ripped/cut/collected the necessary colours.

They started gluing, with watered down white glue and a paintbrush, from the sky (background) and worked their way down to the bottom.

I gave them manila envelopes to store all their pieces between classes. 

This project was quite time-consuming and took about 5-7 classes to complete. If you want to spend less time on these, use smaller paper- like 9 x 12". For my really slow-paced students, I accomodated them by giving them smaller paper to work with; it helped alot.

Once dry, students can protect them with a coat of water-based varnish (ie: modge podge, etc).

Ta da!

This is based on Claude Monet's painting "The Cliff' at Etretat"

The yellow brick road leading to Oz!