Overview:

Find an outdoor or natural scene and put things in it that wouldn't normally "fit in," (for example, cutting out a tiny hiker and make him hiking up the tail of a cheetah).

Materials needed:

Old magazines, scissors/exacto knife, poster paper (as backing), glue, oak tag paper (as mounting).

Instructions:

Background/Landscape

Get a bunch of magazines that no one needs anymore, and look for an outdoor scene, preferably of a landscape. The picture should be at least 8"x10". Anything smaller will be difficult to work with. Often, you can find a two page spread of a landscape in magazines.

Glue the landscape on the poster paper. The poster paper serves as a backing only. If the landscape is smaller than the poster paper, crop (cut) the poster paper so it fits the landscape exactly. If the landscape is larger than the poster paper, center the landscape on the poster paper, glue it down, and allow the landscape picture to overhang the poster paper. You will mount the picture later, so your artwork will be protected from damage.

*Make sure the picture has no caption on the picture itself. If it does, make sure you cover it with other cut-outs later.

Making it surreal

Look for forms/things that would not "go" with that landscape or scene, and cut them out carefully. Crop the pictures/images as closely as possible -- After each is cut out, there should be no trace of the original picture the forms were taken from.

*You can put two cut-outs together to make a larger shape that seems even more surreal -- for example, cutting out an open parachute, and connect it to an elephant, and then having the elephant parachuting down into your landscape.

*Be careful with the cut outs. They are sometimes very small and easily torn.

Arrange the cut-outs on the landscape. DO NOT GLUE DOWN YET! Plan out your artwork. The cut-outs need to make physical sense in the landscape, but not real sense. That is, it could happen in a dream, but not in real life. Pay attention to balance and spacing. Do not clutter the landscape. Based on the size of the landscape, and cut-outs, there should be 4-12 cut-outs on the landscape. While you can have more or less, you must be more careful with the balance of the landscape.

*Remember to cover landscape captions, if any.

Once you are happy with your artwork, glue the pieces down carefully.

Finishing touches

1. Sign your name on the artwork. Make the signature small, but noticeable. Often artwork is signed near the bottom of the artwork.

2. Mount your work on oak tag paper. Make sure the margins are equal on all sides of the artwork.

3. On the mount, title your piece. Think of a creative, descriptive title that might explain your artwork. You can also print your name lightly on the bottom margin of your mounting.

Assessment:

The artwork will be graded on how well the directions are followed. Is the landscape large enough? Are any captions visible? Is the artwork balanced, too cluttered, too empty? Do the cut outs not "fit in," but make physical sense? Is the artwork signed, titled, and mounted, and neat?

Turning in the assignment:

Scan your picture to a computer, link it to your coursework page, and send the URL to the Visual Arts Course page. The studio work, as well as the critique paper is due on the last day of the week you start.

Turning in the critique:

Send the critique on email to instructor. Also link a copy of it to your coursework page. Be sure to tell the instructor which artist and piece you are critiquing. It is due on the last day of the week in which you begin the assignment.

Materials:

• watercolor or tempera paints
• paintbrushes
• several sheets of large, heavy white paper
• jar of water
• rags / paper towels
• postcards, posters, or prints by Monet or Renoir
• outdoor area to set up a small work table or easel

Procedure:

1. Set up a table or easel outside where there are flowers or a pond to view. A sunny day will help make the painting experience more like Monet or Renoir would have loved.

 

2. Look at prints or postcards painted by either artist. Notice their short dabbling paint strokes, like the brush is smooshed down rather than lines painted. Try dabbing and smooshing paints on a practice sheet of paper. Now brush water on the paper and practice painting in the damp area with the same dabbing and smooshing technique.

 

3. After practicing, remove the practice paper and set up a clean sheet.

 

4. Decide if the paper will be wet or dry, based on what was preferred when practicing.

 

5. Look at the surroundings. Begin painting using the dabbing and short stroke technique used in practice.

 

6. When satisfied, set the painting aside to dry.

 

 

 

Rousseau Assignment

Jungle Prints

 

Materials:

• several flat leaves or ferns
• tempera paint
• brayer, or homemade paint roller (directions below)
• flat pan or cookie sheet
• white drawing paper
• lots of scrap paper
• paintbrush

Procedure:

1. Place a puddle of green paint on the flat pan and roll it with the brayer. The side of a jar or a small rolling pin can be used instead.

 

2. Hold a leaf by its stem on top of a sheet of scrap paper. Gently roll the paint covered brayer on top of the leaf. Roll several times, always in an upward direction, until the leaf is covered with a thin coat of paint. Roll the brayer in the pan often to add more paint. Add more paint to the pan if it is needed. Then set aside.

 

3. Carefully place the leaf, paint side down, on a sheet of white drawing paper. Lay a clean piece of scrap paper on top and pat it gently. Don't let the leaf wiggle. Lift the paper and the leaf stem to see the leaf print made beneath.

 

4. Print several more leaves on the paper using different shades of green (light green with some white paint mixed in, dark green with black mixed in, yellow green, olive green, blue green, or any other greens). Make greens by mixing colors of paint as they are rolled on the pan with the brayer. Print all the leaves growing up from the bottom of the paper as if they were jungle trees.

 

5. After the leaf prints dry, use a paintbrush to add flowers, fruit, jungle animals, or even people into the leafy scene.

 

Turning in Assignments :

1. E-mail the computer teacher at least 2 days before making an appointment to use the lab. The computer teacher will assist you in scanning your studio product onto your web page.

 

2. Scan your work to your page then create the link to the class home page.

 

3. When you have uploading your assignment to the site, e-mail the URL to the art teacher.

 

Monet

Renoir

Rousseau

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Romanticism / Expressionism Assignment

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Expressionist Assignment

 

1. One Line Designs (Paul Klee)

 

Materials :

 

• white drawing paper
• pencil and eraser
• black permanent ink marking pen Process
• One Line Realistic Drawing

1. With a pencil, lightly sketch an object on white drawing paper. Draw any simple object, such as the following ideas:

a face vase of flowers race carpet sitting house tree

 

2. Draw over the pencil sketch with a black permanent marker, again without lifting the pen off the paper until the whole picture is finished. Let the continuous line cross over itself and lop form one area to another until the single line has drawn the entire object.

 

3. Then completely erase all the underlying pencil lines with a soft eraser that won't tear the paper.

 

4. Decorate some areas in the drawing with watercolor paints, leaving other areas unpainted. Let dry.

 

2. Clay Facial Expressions ( Edvard Munch)

Materials :

• Play dough, plasticine, clay, or other modeling compound
• work area for clay (Use individual large rectangular scraps of formica as a portable work surface. Individual boards work well too.)
• tempera paints in deep colors, papers, and brushes.

Process :

 

1. Work a large lump of modeling clay until it is smooth and elastic.

 

2. Place the clay on the work surface and mold it into an oval face shape.

 

3. Squeeze, poke, and pull facial features into the clay oval. Pull the features from the oval without adding or attaching any extra clay pieces. Try to make a happy face with happy arched eyebrows and a smiling mouth. Then, experiment with changing the face into a sad face by turning down the corners of the smile and lifting the center corners of the eyebrows. Try other expressions such as frightened, crying , sleeping, surprised, adorable and sweet, or lonely. All of these expressions can be explored in clay by pulling, poking, and squeezing the clay.

 

4. When done, put the clay away for use at another time. Clean the work board.

 

5. As a follow-up, explore painting facial expressions with deep colors of tempera paint on paper.

 

Suggestion

• Work with a mirror propped up next to the clay project so the artist can make different expressions in the mirror and then capture them in clay.

Tell-a-Story Illustration (Norman Rockwell)

Materials :

 

• pencil and paper
• drawing paper
• choice of drawing tools, such as colored paper, crayons, makers, and paints and brushes.
•  

Process :

 

1. Think about something fun, funny, or enjoyable that happened. for example, remember something that felt really good, like a birthday party, a trip to the beach, or winning a prize at school. Remember something funny that make everyone laugh, like accidentally smearing icing from a cake on your face, falling asleep at the kitchen table, or finding your cat in a strange position on the couch.

 

2. Draw a picture to illustrate the story an draw a picture that shows what happened. Include details in the drawing. For example, if the story tells about hitting a home run and winning the game, draw the moment of swinging the bat and the catcher in the drawing, people cheering from the stands, teammates jumping up and down, your baseball cap popping off your head with the effort of getting the ball.

 

3. Look carefully at the finished picture. Does the drawing tell the story so well that written words are no longer needed? If so, this is illustrating like the great artist Norman Rockwell.

 

 

Turning in Assignments :

1. E-mail the computer teacher at least 2 days before making an appointment to use the lab. The computer teacher will assist you in scanning your studio product onto your web page.

 

2. Scan your work to your page then create the link to the class home page.

 

3. When you have uploading your assignment to the site, e-mail the URL to the art teacher.

 

 

 

Klee

Rockwell

Munch

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