We began this lesson with an introduction to the artwork and life of the artist Vincent Van Gogh. In the presentation, the students were able to identify the different shapes, lines, colors and patterns that they see in the artwork. We then explored in a little bit more depth, his self portraits. Van Gogh was able to use lines and movement even in the most still of positions. He was able to capture the intensity of his feeling or emotion at that exact moment in time. After a brief biography video, students turned to their sketchbooks to start creating. Using a worksheet that is glued into their sketchbooks, students will create a chart of different line patterns, inspired by Van Gogh's artwork of course. They will use the exact feeling they felt during class to give them the basis of their lines. From here, the students will take a photograph in a position of their choosing for their own self portrait. They will cut out everything but their face neck and shoulders from the printed photo. After gluing their faces to their papers, they will add in their hair, shirts and background using the Van Gogh inspired line patterns they created in their sketchbooks. 

​CHECK BACK FOR UPDATED PHOTO'S OF THIS PROJECT!

ART WORDS:
self portrait: a portrait of ones self.
brushstroke: the line a brush makes when painting.
composition: the plan or blueprint of an artwork, how you set up an artwork.
pattern: a repetition of something

click the links below to check out the presentation and video the students received on Vincent Van Gogh:

Here is a short video of the creation process for this project! 

3rd Grade is currently creating the cover of their very own, hand made sketchbook! Sketchbooks are like an artists journal or notebook. 13rd graders will be utilizing these sketchbooks for taking notes, creating preliminary sketches or drawings and during "free-draw" time. On the cover of these sketchbooks, students have created a drawing of their choosing to decorate their sketchbooks. Some students have created a beautiful abstract drawings by just using colors and lines as their artwork and others have created a representational drawing of something of their choice. Sketchbooks are a great way to store ideas, drawings and notes about artists and artworks that they are learning about to later refer to after leaving 3rd grade. 

Learning objectives: Techniques in using watercolors, listening to guided instruction. 

ART WORDS: 
Sketchbook: a journal or book used for ideas and drawings by artists. ​

Welcome back students and welcome to PS31q to any of our new students! I am so excited to get creating in the art room! This year we will be looking even more closely at the foundations of art, the elements of design! We will also look at some of the more difficult foundations that are called the Principles of design. In each lesson we will be learning about a different element or principle as well as learning about some artists too! I can't wait to get messy with you all! ​

We began this lesson with an introduction to the artwork and life of the artist Vincent Van Gogh. In the presentation, the students were able to identify the different shapes, lines, colors and patterns that they see in in the artwork. The students then created a landscape in the style of Vincent Van Gogh’s "Starry Night." ​They then explored the use of a brushstroke on a separate piece of paper. They will be able to understand how to use a “loaded paintbrush” using 2 different colors, unmixed to create dimension in each brushstroke. The students will be able to use their knowledge of brushstrokes and paint to begin to paint their landscapes. Students then will wait for the first layer to dry to apply some different brushstrokes to create the sense of movement.  To finish off this project, the students will outline their landscape using a black oil pastel and they will complete a writing assignment of their choice by picking from the writing wall displayed in the classroom

ART WORDS:
landscape: a scene outside
brushstroke: the line a brush makes when painting.
composition: the plan or blueprint of an artwork, how you set up an artwork.
palette: An array of paint color and where an artist pours their paint to mix colors.


click the link below to check out the presentation the students received on Vincent Van Gogh:

3rd grade is now exploring the art element of form or sculpture.  The students were first introduced to the life and artwork of the artist Salvador Dalí through a powerpoint presentation. Dalí was part of the Surrealism Art movement and created paintings that depicted dreamlike scenes, with strange, surreal elements to them. We discussed what we thought each paintings meaning could be, what were some of the elements we could find that would most likely not be paired with one another and the emotions we felt when looking at them. One of Dalí's most famous works was "The Persistence of Memory" or better known as "Melting Clocks".  In this painting we see clocks that appear to be melting over a tree branch, a strange form on the floor and over a wall. It's a very eerie painting, with a quiet landscape in the background. The students were then given their sketchbooks and on a clean page they tried to remember their last dream and just made a sketch of that dream to really understand the essence of Surrealism. The next class, the students were given a handful of clay in which they were given a tutorial on the techniques and processes of clay. For the rest of that class the students practiced those techniques to be used in creating their melting clocks. During the next class each student was given 1 lb. of air dry clay, we shaped and flattened down our clay and then molded them over a plastic cup to get that melting form. Next the students painted their entire clock white as a base and to leave on the inside of the clock. To finish the students will paint the outside of their clocks in the color of their choosing as well as paint in the numbers and clock hands. They will then finish off their clocks with a layer of acrylic medium to seal and protect their clay pieces. 

Learning Objectives: Form, Clay processes and techniques (including painting), art history/ artist recognition. 

ART WORDS:
Surrealism: a 20th-century avant-garde movement in art and literature that sought to release the creative potential of the unconscious mind, for example by putting together images that would not regularly be paired in real life. 
Wedging Clay:  to knead the clay or push on it repeatedly to help remove air bubbles and extra moisture.
Slip: a mixture of clay and water used like glue. slip is used in combination with scoring.
Score: to make the surface of the clay rough when putting two pieces together (similar to velcro!).

Click here to see the Powerpoint presentation on Salvador Dalí that the students received in class. 

3rd grade students have just completed their first art critique in which they spoke about their own Op artworks and the artworks of their classmates. They have been introduced to a new artist, Roy Lichtenstein. Through a powerpoint presentation, the students learned about the life and artwork of the New York artist and the art movement Pop Art. Lichtenstein was best known for his huge renditions of comic book characters and his use of Ben Day Dots. Not only did he create portraits and stories of people but he used the landscapes he found in comic strips that set the scene for the characters. After the presentation, the students were given a 12"x 18" paper and after reviewing what a landscape is the students got to work creating their own landscapes inspired by Roy Lichtenstein. He often used very simple shapes and hard black lines for sun rays and mountains for example. The students began their drawings in pencil and will finish them in a black outline with sharpie. Once those drawings have been finalized, the students will create dots inside some of the shapes they have created using oil pastels and paint over them using the same color watercolor paint. To complete their compositions, the students have created one single word that they will put into a speech bubble to represent the sound that might be heard in their landscapes. Lichtenstein was famous for his speech bubbles and usage of words like BOOM! ZAP! POP! and so on. 

Learning objectives: Pop Art, art history, ben day dots, comic strips, word association.

ART WORDS:
Ben-Day dots: printing process, named after illustrator and printer Benjamin HenryDay, Jr., is a technique dating from 1879. Depending on the effect, color and optical illusion needed, small colored dots are closely spaced, widely spaced or overlapping inside of a shape.
Pop Art Movement: art based on modern popular culture and the mass media, especially as a critical or ironic comment on traditional fine art values.
Landscape: all the visible features of an area of countryside or land, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.

Click the link below to see the powerpoint on Roy Lichtenstein that students received! 
/uploads/3/9/1/4/39148519/roy_lichtenstein.pptx