Draw–> Collage–> Paint

This art activity includes three sequential art lessons. The first lesson consists of a number of contour line drawings of a simple six string guitar. The second includes opportunities to look at and discuss collages made by Picasso (Three Musicians.) The young artist will use paper scraps, cardboard, yarn and their contour drawings to create a collage. After it dries or is partially dry then it can be worked on with additional drawing or painting (part three.)

This three part lesson allows the student to work back into a project to transform it into a new work of art. Some students will benefit from this process because they may feel that they will destroy their work if they cut into their drawings or paint on their collage. It is an excellent way to push them to add to and manipulate their artwork.

The young artists know that the simple contour drawing can be a finished artwork and so can the collage but those works can also be transformed into another work of art. If the student feels that they have spoiled their artwork during the third lesson, they have the experience of bringing it back to where they are satisfied with the result. The whole process of building on another lesson, pushing it further (even to destruction), layering and making it into what the artist is happy with will benefit any young artist.

The above photographs are from a fourth grade class.

The art of weaving has been used in every civilization to make clothing, containers, rugs and furniture.  Weaving is the process where natural or synthetic materials are passed over and under each other in a given pattern.  In the classroom students can explore weaving by creating simple paper weavings or more advanced yarn weaving using a cardboard loom.  Younger students can successfully create a paper weaving by alternating paper strips through a paper loom.  After strips are woven through, the ends can be glued to keep them in place.  Students can play around with materials by using strips of wrapping paper, aluminum foil or recycled shopping bags.  The size and shape of the strips can also be varied. 

The history and examples of the craft should be added to enhance the activity.  Kente cloth, Navajo blankets/rugs and basket making are just a few prized examples of the art form.    

Suggested Resources from Blick Art Materials

1. Weaving Kit  $32.64  item number 65021-1009

2.  Basketry Kit  $62.99  item number 60900-1001

3.  You Can Weave (Book)  $26.95  item number 69902-1001

Clay is great fun and I like schedule a clay unit around the end of November. Students are starting to get a bit restless with the holidays around the corner and working with clay recharges the energy in the studio. With a bit of control and technique they can have an earthenware pot at the end of their session other than a mud pie, although mud pies are fun too.

The three basic ways of making an earthenware pot are the pinch, slab and coil methods. Here is a very basic introduction to each of the methods:

1. The Pinch Pot
   Make a handful of clay into a ball then push one of your thumbs into the middle of it. Leaving the thumb inside and pressing with the other fingers, you “pinch” and rotate. When the opening is big enough, you may want to place it on a surface and shape it using both hands and smoothing out cracks as you go.

2. The Slab Pot
   Take a handful of clay and press it down with the palm of your hand. (This is often described as making a hamburger patty.) Use a roller to even out the surface and be careful not to roll it too thin. Cut a rectangle out of the “slab” of clay. The rectangle will be made into a cylinder by using the “score and slip” method to join the sides. Then you cut out a circle or base out of the slab to attach to the bottom also using the score and slip method.

3. The Coil Pot
   One way to start is to make a circular slab base. Then you make a coil or “snake” by simply rubbing the clay between your hands. Measure the coil to a length that can be made into a ring and placed along the edge of the base. Attach the coil to either the side or on top of the base by using the score and slip method. Make as many of identical rings as you want then stack and join them. To give the pot extra support you may want to smooth out the crease between each coil on the inside of the pot.

Each kind of pot will need cracks smoothed out as you go, so just be careful not to use too much water which could lead to a collapsed pot. You may want to play around with the shape and add different textures to make it unique.

Younger art students love to make paper mache pumpkins or jack-o’-lanterns.  Starting with crumbled up newspaper, they shape it the size they want and wrap masking tape around it to hold the form.  After soaking orange construction paper in water for a couple of minutes, the paper can be torn into large sections.  Their little hands rub watered down elmer’s glue all over the orange paper and wrap it around the newspaper ball.  Depending on the thickness of the paper, it may need up to four layers.  

When the ”pumpkin” is dry, a stem, leaves or jack-o’-lantern face can be added.  Although I usually make these with younger students, many upper school students comment “I wanna make one!” when they pass by the pumpkin patch. 

Fifth grade art students really get into one-point perspective drawing.  Starting with only paper, pencil, ruler and eraser each student draws a horizontal line across their paper.  Next they place a dot in the middle on the horizontal line.  The dot represents the vanishing point.  A vanishing point is where receding parallel lines meet.  The fronts of the buildings are drawn as rectangles with the lines that make up the side of each building lined up with the vanishing point.  The windows are parallel with the sides of the building.  The front windows of the building will most likely be rectangle or square shaped. The trick is when creating the windows on the side of each building the lines of the windows must be lined up leading to the vanishing point. After mastering these skills then have fun with the details and colors to create your own unique street scene.

Often in the art lesson planning, there are lessons that allow the student to explore various drawing and painting media as the focus of the lesson.  The art student selects a still life object such as an apple.  Then she creates a still life study using all the art media the art class has to offer.  Art supplies which could be used are:  graphite pencils, colored pencils, pastels, oil pastels, charcoals, conte crayons, water-soluble colored pencils, markers, ink, watercolors, tempera and acrylic paints.  While creating each individual drawing or painting the student also works on showing tonal values (the lightness or darkness of an area of color.)

During art instruction some students often try to hurry through their lessons. Maybe they think of art like other subjects where finishing first gives them “free time” or maybe out of the excitement of the activity they kick into hyperspeed. Regardless of the reasons, art students that finish early can always benefit from instruction that leads them to reflect on the process. Private art lessons not only allows the student to produce artworks but gives them the opportunities to discuss and reflect on their artmaking.

The aluminum foil figure is a great addition to a figure studies unit.  After gesture and figure drawing, the art pupil can create a sculpture of the figure with wire, clay or simply aluminum foil.  After some experimentation by the student to create her own sculpture, the art tutor can guide the student with some helpful tips on keeping the figure’s body parts all in proportion.  The figure can be attached to some form of base such as cardboard in order for it to stand up.   

A collage is a two-dimensional work of art created with such items as paper, photographs, cloth or found objects.  The art pupil is given construction paper of red, blue, yellow (primary colors) and black.  She is asked to cut the primary colors into squares and rectangles.  The black is to be cut into strips.  After they are finished cutting she will glue them down on a white sheet of paper.  The art tutor will point different ways the composition can be set up.  When the art pupil is finished, she will compare and contrast her collage with the paintings of Piet Mondrian.

Gesture drawing is when one makes drawings of the movements or gestures of the body.  The student needs a model to make a series of poses for the student to draw.  The model will “freeze” in a pose to allow enough time for the student to capture the gestures.  The drawings are not meant to be realistic with details.  They can be loose like scribbles capturing what the body is doing.  The art tutor will remind the student that gesture drawings are supposed to be loose and expressive and  to move away from the habit of outlining the figure.