What a busy little bunch they have been. For the past few weeks the kids have been working away on their canvases. I try not to get them to do it every week as it would get a bit monotonous so some weeks we've done something completely new and others we've mixed it up with some progression on the canvas and an extra activity.
We looked at still life drawing and how to put together a still life arrangement that balances to make a pleasing composition. They all traipsed off into the garden and around the studio to find an item that they would like to include. We ended up with a mini easel, flowers, pine needles, pots and a painting as a backdrop.
We looked at still life drawing and how to put together a still life arrangement that balances to make a pleasing composition. They all traipsed off into the garden and around the studio to find an item that they would like to include. We ended up with a mini easel, flowers, pine needles, pots and a painting as a backdrop.
Something that did come out of the activity was a comment "I can't do it". I find as they get older they start to become aware of the limitations in their drawing ability where it doesn't look 'real'. It ended up being a great way of looking at other artists work. I showed them a book of Impressionist art where some of the pictures when you look at them closely were nothing more than blotches on a page but when you moved away from the painting, it became a landscape of trees and shrubs. I also explained that everyone sees things differently and there is no wrong or right. It's like Monet versus Salvador Dali. It is something I have tried to emphasise with every lesson. That plus lots of positve comments about their work really does make all the difference. As you can see from the photo's, they put together some really good compositions. They then had fun turning them into a collage rather than just colouring in.
The canvas has been a real mix of mediums. They started with acrylics, but have added detail using oil pastels and overlaid using crepe paper, lots of glue and found objects such as shells and stars. We have also created another larger canvas which I am hoping to add to a range of artwork that will be available for sale towards the end of year. My hope is to do a small exhibition of the work that has been done by the children. I think it is a really exciting thing for them to see their work exhibited but also for friends and parents to discover just what their children are capable of.
This week we worked with pen, ink and pastel in creating Name Monsters. It proved a great experiement in what can be done with their names. They created beautiful martians, monsters and creatures. Oh, and a couple of them had also created a texture monster using the sole of their shoes to make the monsters body and then adding details like horns, mouths and eyes cut from magazines.
The other activity they really enjoyed was finding their own drawing space. Each person gave an instruction on what to draw and at the end they were able to see the difference in interpretation. Each and every drawing was completely different although they had all followed the exact same set of instructions. It goes to reinforcing my theory that everyone has an artist within!
The other activity they really enjoyed was finding their own drawing space. Each person gave an instruction on what to draw and at the end they were able to see the difference in interpretation. Each and every drawing was completely different although they had all followed the exact same set of instructions. It goes to reinforcing my theory that everyone has an artist within!
