Op Art Eggs

I've seen this project around quite a bit lately, so I just had to give it a try. Of course, I did give it an Art Fairy tweak or two.

Instead of using the traditional sphere shape, we used an egg in honor of Easter.

This was also done in two pieces. The eggs were done on a separate paper, cut out and then attached.

They were given a cardstock egg shape templates to draw the eggs.

To draw the grid on the eggs, I had the students draw a slightly curved line down the center of the egg creating two sections. they drew another curved line in in the center of each new section, creating four sections. I told them to think of the longitude lines they would see on a globe. We repeated this process for the horizontal or latitudinal lines. 

The eggs were then colored with watercolor pencil, water was added using Q-tips, and lastly cut out. 

Because of time constraints, students were given a grid that was premade on the computer and printed onto cardstock. Again we used watercolor pencils for the grid.

We discussed a bit of color theory and looked at the color wheel. We talked about complimentary colors and how primary colors are mixed to create secondary colors. We also discussed how they complimentary colors are always composed of one warm and one cool color.

Students were instructed to choose one warm and one cool color to complete the grid patterns and hopefully create 

a bit of "chromatic tension". 

The eggs were then attached using rolled up pieces of tape.

Gluing would probably be better, but tape allowed us to move ahead without waiting for it to dry. The eggs were lightly shaded at the edges with vine charcoal. White highlight was added to the center of the eggs with chalk pastel.

Before we started our project we watched this little video on You Tube about the history of Optical Art. It is actually about Pop and Op Art but is nicely split in two sections right in the middle around the 5 minute mark. Several of the pop art images were more than I was willing to explain to my elementary level students so we skipped ahead and stopped early on the video. We also watched this 

video slide show of Op Art by Victor Vasarely. 

Next time I try this project, I'd like to try adding a basket as well and see how that turns out. Can you think of any other ways to modify this project to fit what you're currently working on? I'd love to hear your ideas...

Stay tuned Monday for a special Versatile Blogger Awards Post!

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Math and Art

In my classes of late we have been exploring relationships between art and math. If you ever go down this path, it is almost a requirement to include a lesson on MC Escher. I usually try to present some biographical information about the artist we are studying. Using a short video to accomplish this works fairly well, not to mention that with a little help from google and youtube, I can almost always find a video premade by someone else. The quality varies, as does the level of the intended audience. I find though, that if I pause the video here and there and explain what is coming up or what was just said, the kids digest it just fine. 

As a teaser to a tessellation lesson I'll be posting about soon, please enjoy this really well done video about MC Escher..

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Leo's Helio's

One of the numerous innovations we can give credit to Leonardo da Vinci for is some of the first concept designs for helicopters. Drawing helicopters is far easier than you might think, and my first grade class pulled it off pretty nicely.
This was a guided drawing lesson, (Monart style) so as I drew a line on the white board, the students would draw a line as well. Even though you might think this would create kind of uniformity in the drawing results, it really doesn't. The way each student interprets and reproduces the lines are totally unique. The  only caveat is making the kids aware that there is no right or wrong way to interpret and to get them through to the end of the drawing. Kids can be very critical of their process if they don't think it looks "right". This is probably the reason we lose so many people to the idea that they are "not artists" because they can't "draw right." We started in pencil, which can be a tricky thing to do. A lot of art teachers don't give pencils because the temptation to erase can be so overwhelming that it just brings the process to a big screaming halt. My pencils are well loved though and most no longer have erasers. I will give a child a big eraser if they really think they need it, but I try to hold them off if possible.
After the helicopter was drawn we added in background details, This is a great project to introduce the concept of the horizon line, as well as foreground and middle ground and background. Once the kids are satisified with their pencil lines I gave them either a brown marker or brown watercolor pencil to trace their lines. After this step was done, I had the kids use a wet q-tip to trace over those lines which cause the brown to bleed a bit, resulting in the appearance of an old sepia ink wash, just like in da Vinci's journals. If you have them you could use watercolor crayons too. I just bought some for myself personally. I am told they are more vibrant than their pencil counterpart. I haven't had a chance to use them yet, but they may be on my order list of classroom supplies for next year. Anyone out there have anything to say about them? Or water soluble oil pastels?

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Greek Vases

Scratch projects really have limitless possibilities. Vases are a huge part of the ancient history of Greece. They served not only an aesthetic purpose, but a functional one as well.
Different shapes had different names and
were used for different purposes.
You can learn more about those different names and purposes at this link. It also explores the different periods of Greek Pottery and how it changed from age to age.
Greek Vases Part I- Through the Ages
Greek Vases II-Shape Names and Purposes

Here is another project that is perfect for this technique. You can also play around a bit with the mediums. Oil pastel and crayon are generally what you use for these, but you can color with marker or watercolor then "seal" the color with a heavy coat of white crayon or oil pastel. Just be careful to avoid using dark colors like brown or gray as they don't show through the black very well.

1. In order to achieve a vase with symmetrical sides, start by folding a piece of cardstock down the middle vertically. Draw only half of the vase on one side. I did it in pencil first and then retraced in a heavy layer of black oil pastel.

2. Fold the paper over with the black lines on top of the blank side and then use a lidded marker to rub over the lines you just traced.

3. When you open the paper back up the vase half should
transfer to the other side in a perfect mirror image
creating a perfectly symmetrical vase.
You can then color with crayon, oil pastel, marker, or other paint. If you use paint, make sure you wait for it to completely dry before adding the layer of white to seal the color.
Once the color is done and sealed add a layer of black crayon or oil pastel.
If you use crayon you will need to use heavier pressure
than with oil pastel.
Once the black is on in an even layer, use a wooden skewer or unbent paper clip to "scratch" off the black in different line patterns to reveal the colors underneath.

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Marc's Mares

I have recently redone this project to reflect a Wizard of Oz connection. What could that possibly be you may ask? Why it was "a horse of a different color" of course!

I also repost this today to ask for some help. If you like drawing horses, I am looking for submissions for a horse themed art show to benefit my local equine therapy group, Healing Horses. It is their mission to better the lives of all children, especially those with disabilities and processing disorders like Autism and Asperger's Syndrome through interaction with horses. The show will run from October 1st through 31st, so I will need your submissions no later that September 17th. You can email them to msjuliesartclass@aol.com or if you would like more information.
Be sure to include your first name, age, and email address. If you'd like you can include a picture of yourself, but that is not necessary. Prints will be made, framed, hung, and offered for purchase. All the proceeds go to Healing Horses. Those chosen for the show will receive a certificate of participation and a photo of the horses used for this therapy.

To learn more try these books...

Franz Marc was a German painter famous for his brightly painted animals that were slightly cubist in nature. To learn more about him you can visit my post about him at my other site Artist of the Week for Kids. For now, we will just delve right into a project. May was horse month in my art room(unfortunately so was the worst morning sickness I have had to date) so though I wasn't posting here, I was working on projects! Today you will see the first of these.

To begin you will need

Pencil
Paper
sharpie marker- black
oil pastels
Q-tips.

The drawing instructions look like this...

At this point you will want to outline the horse in black sharpie.

Then decide whether to use rectangles, circles or triangles
and then draw them in pencil over the outlined horse.
Be sure to overlap often and to make some shapes
smaller and other larger.

Here is what rectangles might look like.

Now you will want to use the oil pastels to outline all the lines. Be sure to use bright, bold colors like Marc did. He was not aiming for realistic colors but ones that would make a dramatic impact.

Keep all the lines inside the horse's head the same color, use a different color for the mane, and a third color to outline all the lines of the background.

Once that is done, use a Q-tip to blend the edges inside each shape.

Here are some student examples.

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Parrot Paradise

Yo y Mis Pericos

I am taking a quick break on American Art History to look at our neighbors to the south. Frida tends to be one of those artists that you really like or really don't like. Personally I go back and forth depending on the piece, but my respect for her talent and triumph over adversity never wavers. In her honor, I present this lesson based on one of the subjects she often added to her paintings.
Next up we will take a look at Frida's husband- Diego Rivera.

I start by giving student a large paper- 18"X 24" and having them fold it in half lengthwise(like a hot dog) and then width wise creating 4 "boxes".

The body of the bird will rest in the upper two boxes and the very long tail feathers will be in the two lower boxes.

Make the eye just to the right of the center fold. After the drawing is complete, outline in black permanent marker.

The sample above was created with watercolor pencil and a q-tip dipped in water.

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Delaware Days

This week we have been learning about Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Leutze.You can learn more about the artist and the painting at Artist of the Week.
Here is the project. If you don't feel like doing the project, just feel free to print out the black line as a coloring page.

You can click on any of these to make them larger. Below are PDF files. The first is step by step directions and the second is a completed black line drawing that you may feel free to use as a coloring page.
How to draw George Washington

Coloring Page

Here are some more examples from my students. I think they all did an amazing job!

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