Art lesson resources for teachers and students
Ready, Set...Art
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This project is based on Favianna Rodriguez's artwork.
Paint an abstract background for the butterfly
While it is drying, fold a paper in half and draw one side of a butterfly. Then cut it. When you unfold it, you will have a template to trace onto the watercolor background. Draw at least three designs on each wing and then use a sharpie to outline and fill in the shapes for good contrast.
Tissue Flower
Composition
How can an artist take an idea further? Well, it starts with an idea and then try to build on the idea a couple times. Next, I try to challenge myself art technique wise. For example, this project required a fantasy animal with transportation. I saw a caterpillar that was similar and thought I could change that into a lizard. Then I wanted a story. I created a father lizard with his son while riding motorcycles. I went with markers because I wanted vibrant colors with some of the pen and ink texture techniques such as cross-hatch.
every_art_piece_720p.mp4The Process
For every lesson, I test it out. A lot of research and practice goes into each lesson. I strongly believe in creating an example so that I understand the challenges students will face. I also understand the common mistakes that will be made, because I did them too and I will be able to give advice on how to avoid or correct it. This video shows every art piece I made for the lessons.
As a teacher...
I strongly believe in a well-rounded education and every subject teaches something very important. Art helps in a big way by developing innovative thinking. Even though most students will not pursue an art career, they can still learn this skill to help them later in other courses. Art is the first class that pushes students to think outside the box. It is done through combining skill with creative expression. They have to figure out how to create something new from the skills they just learned. They do this during the rough draft process when planning out how the art piece will look. I help during one-on-one feedback time and challenge them to go further with their ideas. This develops innovative thinking. Developing innovative thinking skills certainly will help in future classes. Other subjects often don't get into the creative side until after college.
The four most important skills, for drawing and painting, to develop in order to execute these amazing ideas are composition, proportion, contrast, and gradation . I definitely teach other concepts, but one to four of these concepts are taught in every lesson.
Supplies on the cheap
I always use the same supplies as the students to make the examples. This way I know the challenges that the students will face and how to fix it. During the pandemic, I had to create a supply list that did not go over $30 and could be found easily at one store for online learning. I went to that famous big box store and was able to find everything needed for the year for under $30. I practiced with those supplies. The ice cream drawing to the left is made with cheap colored pencils on cheap drawing paper.
Note: When I put together the list, it also had the brand names. Some parents bought the more expensive brands, their choice, but then wondered why it went over $30? So, it's important to explain the cost of the specific brand names that you pick.
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