Color

When we returned from the winter break, I wanted to talk about color--my absolute favorite Element of Art/Design.  We talked about the color wheel extensively--including all the color schemes that students can find on the color wheel.  After all of that, they got a little oil pastel exposure.  Students divided their papers into organic shapes, and then they used oil pastels to color each shape.  They had to gradually go from one color to another, and they had to use an analogous color scheme in each shape.  I challenged them by not allowing them to smudge!

I mistakenly gave most of these artworks back before I had a chance to take a picture of them!  But they were really vibrant and eye-catching! 

Kaleidoscope

I think all art teachers have done some version of a mandala or kaleidoscopic image with their students.  After all, it is an awesome art activity to learn about radial balance!  So, students had to include their name and three things that they like in their design.  i wrote my last name in cursive, drew a thread with a needle, an orchid and a zebra longwing butterfly.  Here is my example design:

The students enjoyed this assignment, although the transfer process can be a little complex for some.  It is so cool how those things that are drawn make their own unplanned design elements when the mirror image is added.  In the future, I believe we will not use watercolor washes on it so they can be more vibrant.

Graffiti!

One thing I like to do every year with my students is Graffiti!  I LOVE graffiti!  Of course we talk about the not so great side of it, vandalism, but I just think it takes so much talent to be able to create with spray paint!  I even found this nifty example on a train during a vacation in Atlanta:

But back to the class activity.  We continued to talk about line and shape, and we talked about common characteristics of graffiti, and some steps to making them.  I really enjoy putting up artwork in the hallway, so that people know that we are actually working in my room!  Plus, it just makes the students feel great to have their artwork out for all to see.  I started out with this backdrop:

And then added the students work, and voila!

I Am...

We are back from an unexpected break, AKA Hurricane Harvey, but we are anxious to dive right in to the Elements and Principles of Design.  For this activity, we are focusing on line and shape.  Students had to learn the characteristics of lines and shapes--different types and ways they can look, and then they had to list about six adjectives that they would use to describe themselves.  Here was my example:

Overall, I was very pleased with how the student work turned out.  A not-so-intimidating activity to start the year!