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Animal Eyes - Grade 7
Justin was inspired by the lesson by Bunki
Kramer, Los Cerros Middle School, Danville, California. Like
Georgia O'Keeffe, the students focused on something small and
magnified it - to make something beautiful. The students were
required to mix their color on the canvas rather than premixing
on a palette. This resulted in some very painterly images.
A View to Value - Landscape Painting -
Grade 9
This is a grade 9 unit where students
develop a knowledge and understanding of aerial perspective.
Students manipulate paint to create a representational image of
the landscape. Their selection of image is based on the concept
that it is a view that they value, i.e. have a personal
connection with. Students worked from images that they
personally took or collected. The unit also has introductory
lessons into plein air painting. These were done in watercolor
and were to balance the more extended studio painting sessions.
This unit was done at the beginning of the year and is a very
focused unit and develops students representational painting
skills.
One of the students won a painting trophy at the local youth art
competition (bottom row - left). We were all very excited for
her. Another student won first prize at another competition for
painting section in his age division (bottom row - right).
Justin encourages all of his students to enter the local
competitions.
Exploring Painting Techniques - Guitar
Painting - Grade 8
These are works by grade 8. Students were
exploring different painting techniques of sgraffito, impasto
and dry brush. They were asked to compose the shape of a guitar
into a composition. Preliminary work in this unit included color
mixing, paint technique, balance and composing design elements.
The guitar provided to be an accessible item for the students to
represent. Students fused this object with others, changed its
context, represented within context, zoomed in on the object and
changed its meaning or represented it as an energized object.
The unit began with
observational drawing of a guitar including blind contour
drawings. The students found this enjoyable and allowed for
personal interests to still be represented while containing a
common link for an introductory class. Most of the students had
limited art experience.
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