Lesson Submitted by Lotte Petricone
Felix Festa Middle School West Nyack, NY.
UNIT: Technology - Portrait
Lesson: Scratchboard portrait - digital photo
Grade Level: Middle School
Alternate lesson
Rationale for Teaching Lesson:
Students will become familiar with basic Photoshop and the medium of scratchboard, creating an expressive self-portrait based on a manipulated digital photo.
Lesson Objectives:
1. Learn some of basics of Photoshop. (Can be obtained from the Adobe Education Store)
2. Become familiar with the medium of Scratchboard,
creating a self-portrait based on a digital photo that has been manipulated in Photoshop.
3. Understand how value can be used in a self-portrait.
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| Click the thumbnails for full size view |
Essential Understanding:
1. Artists use technology in many ways to create art - artists use photography to create art.
2. Mood/emotions can be expressed through contrast of values
3. Textures create value and add interest
New York State Learning Standards:
Standard 1: Students will actively engage in the processes that constitute creation and performance in the arts and participate in various roles in the arts.
Standard 2: Students will be knowledgeable about and make use of the materials and resources available for participation in the arts in various roles.
Standard 3: Students will respond critically to a variety of works in the arts, connecting the individual to other works and to respond to other aspects of human endeavor and thought.
Standard 4: Students will develop and understanding of the personal and cultural force that shape artistic communication and how the arts in turn shape the diverse cultures of past and present society.
How the Standards are addressed in this lesson:
Standard 1: Manipulation of a digital photo, and scratchboard self-portrait.
Standard 2: Understand how a digital photo can be manipulated and used to inspire a scratchboard self-portrait. Become familiar with the medium of scratchboard.
Standard 3: Look at and discuss the self-portraits of Lucas Samaras
and Chuck Close,
and the scratchboard art of Brian Pinkney. Written Artist Statement.
Standard 4: By using digital technology, and looking back at similar self-portraits that used the technology available: photography and Polaroids, students will develop and understanding of how technology can influence artists.
Scratchboard resources
Materials:
1. Copy of The Boy of a Thousand Faces,
by Brian Selznick
2. PP presentation of Close, Samaras & Pinkney.
3. Slide of value chart, xeroxes of value chart to transfer to scratchboard
4. Lab with Adobe Photoshop, Printer
5. Scratch Paper
and Scratch-Art Tools
6. Artist Statement outlines,
Mounting Board,
White Glue
DVD: Chuck Close
- This film covers the life and work of a man who has reinvented portraiture. Close photographs his subjects, blows up the image to gigantic proportions, divides it into a detailed grid and then uses a complex set of colors and patterning to reconstruct each face.
Books:
Photoshop CS4 For Dummies
- Quickly learn how to use Adobe Photoshop. This book is written in an easy-to-understand language.
Adobe Photoshop CS4 Classroom in a Book
- The Classroom in a Book series is by far the best training material on the market. Everything you need to master the software is included: clear explanations of each lesson, step-by-step instructions, and the project files for the students.
Layers: The Complete Guide to Photoshop's Most Powerful Feature
- Layers is the key to understanding Photoshop, and now you have a resource to show you exactly how. With Matt’s clear, easy-to-follow, and concise writing style you’ll learn all there is to know.
Books Illustrated by Brian Pinkney
Lesson Segments:
1. Read (1 class)
2. Look at and discuss self-portraits by Chuck Close
and Lucas Samaras,
and the art of Brian Pinkney – introduce project with example. (1 class)
3. Intro to value and demo scratchboard. Make value chart on scratchboard while taking digital photos (1-2 classes- photos could be made during previous project)
4. Computer Lab for manipulating photos (1-2 classes)
5. Transfer of images to scratchboard – begin to scratch away the different values. Make rubric second scratching class.(4-5 classes)
6. Mount finished art – Artist Statement. (1 class)
Segment 1: Reading and discussion of the
Teaching Style:
Guided Practice – Discuss good listening, and then read aloud book. Talk about book using open-ended questions:
Questions about The Boy of a Thousand Faces, by Brian Selznick
1. At the beginning of the book, he is making self-portraits where he is disguised as a monster. Why might a boy want to do that?
2. At the end he makes one last self-portrait. What does he show and say?
3. What happened that made him change the way he made the last portrait?
Artists have always made self-portraits. Why might an artist make a self-portrait?
Assessment Method: Verbal
Segment 2: Look at and discuss self-portraits by Chuck Close and Lucas Samaras, and the art of Brian Pinkney – introduce project with example. (1 class)
Teaching Style:
Guided Practice –
1. Using PP to discuss black and white self-portraits of Chuck Close and Lucas Samaras and what can be communicated in a self-portrait through facial expression and gesture.
2. Show example and discuss the project and the process to make them – the photos: whether they want to wear hats, glasses etc., include their torso, hand gesture.
3. Discuss the scratchboard: look at Brian Pinkney’s work and again at the example of a scratchboard portrait.
Assessment Method: Verbal – Summarize: How can an artist communicate something about themselves through a self-portrait? (Visual clues like facial expression and gesture, the composition.)
Segment 3: Intro to value and demo scratchboard. Make value chart on scratchboard while taking digital photos (1-2 classes)
Teaching Style:
Guided Practice –
1. Intro to Value: Tints and Shades. Look at a manipulated photo, and discuss the range of values that can be seen.
2. Discuss using Line to create Value, by changing the spacing, or crosshatching.
4. Demo transferring the value chart to scratchboard and using the knives – discuss angle and pressure of pen.
3. In bins, student find strips of scratchboard, and using Xerox strips, transfer the value chart to the scratchboard.
4. Together create the value chart in the order shown on the plasma screen.
Ind. Practice – Once the students have done the first three values they can finish on their own.
After demo, pull students one by one to take digital pictures in front of a gray background on the bulletin board. Transfer photos to a Photoshop folder on a hard drive. Students will want an expressive photo- showing emotion
Assessment Method: Verbal - Define Value. What are the different ways to create value with line in scratchboard? How do you hold the pen in order to use it successfully?
Segment 4: Computer Lab for manipulating photos (1-2 classes)
Teaching Style:
Guided Practice – In the computer lab, introduce this segment of the project: manipulation of photo in Photoshop.
1. Open Adobe Photoshop.
2. Open the picture labeled Photoshop (Or whatever you choose to name your folder). Your photo is labeled with your art period and last name.
3. Once it opens up in Photoshop, click on Image size and change the size to 8 x 10 (or whatever size the scratchboard is).
4. Click on Image again, go to Mode and change it to Grayscale. Click OK to discard the photo information.
5. Click on Image again, go to Adjustments, and scroll to Brightness and Contrast. Change the brightness to at least 25 and the contrast to 25 and click OK. This may need to be modified depending on the background.
6. Click on Image again, go to adjustments and scroll down to Posturize. Change the level to 2 or 3 – so that you have 3-4 different values that are clear.
7. Print the image, then save it to your H:// so that you can access it again.
Ind. Practice – Students manipulate the image, print and save.
Assessment Method: Verbal
Segment 5: Transfer of images to scratchboard – begin to scratch away the different values. Make rubric second scratching class.( (4-5 classes)
Teaching Style:
Guided Practice – Review transfer and scratching technique through a Do Now.
1. Place the portrait directly on top of the scratch art and tape to the edges so it does not move around.
2. Use a pencil to trace directly on top of the photo – get everything and do not draw what is not there!
3. After it has been traced, lift off the photo, and keep available to reference.
4. Begin scratching, keeping the value chart that was made a reference. Try to match the values to those in the photo.
Ind. Practice – Students begin scratching the self-portrait and continue for 4-5 classes.
Assessment Method: Rubric and Artist Statement
Segment 6: Mount finished art – Artist Statement. (1 class)
Teaching Style:
Guided Practice – Review mounting art and Artist Statement – due in 2 days.
Ind. Practice – Finish, mount and begin Artist Statement.
Assessment Method: Rubric
Assessment:
Rubric
Name:
Homeroom:
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Excellent
20
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Good
17
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Adequate
14
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Unsatisfactory
12
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Score
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Photo
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The gesture, facial expression and
body language of the artist in the photo is deliberate and
communicates something about the artist
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The gesture, facial expression and
body language of the artist in the photo seems to communicates
something about the artist, but we wonder if it was deliberate
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The gesture, facial expression and
body language of the artist in the photo might communicate
something about the artist, but we can’t quite figure out
what!
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The gesture, facial expression and
body language of the artist in the photo does not seem to
communicate something about the artist
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Manipulation
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The final print of the photo shows a
clear understanding of Photoshop, having used image adjustments
absolutely correctly, showing 4 clear values
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The final print of the photo shows a
clear understanding of Photoshop, having used image adjustments
absolutely correctly, showing 3 clear values
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The final print of the photo shows
that the artist was a bit unsure about Photoshop - the image
adjustments seem a bit off, or the value differences are not
clear enough
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The final print of the photo shows
that the artist did not understand how to use Photoshop - the
image adjustments do not make clear value differences and are
incorrect
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Scratchboard
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The final scratchboard art uses the
medium very proficiently – there are very smooth lines lightly
scratched into the surface
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The final scratchboard art uses the
medium pretty well – there are somewhat smooth lines and –
but perhaps one or two rough spots
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The final scratchboard art does not
use the medium very well – there are a few rough lines, with
parts gouged out
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The final scratchboard art does not
use the medium well – there are many rough lines, with several
parts gouged out
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Value
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There are 4 clearly different values
in the different parts of the image
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There are 3 clearly different values
in the different parts of the image
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There are 3 -4 different values in
the different parts of the image, but there are a few parts
where they look the same and shouldn’t!
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The different values in the
different parts of the image look pretty much the same
everywhere
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Textures
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The values are created by using
lines in a large variety of ways: space between the lines
changes, crosshatching, direction… Forming several different
Textures
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The values are created by using
lines in a variety of ways: space between the lines changes,
crosshatching, direction… Forming some different Textures
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The values are created by using
lines but with little variety: space between the lines changes,
crosshatching, direction… Forming only one or two different
Textures
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The values are created by using
lines but with almost no variety: space between the lines
changes, crosshatching, direction… Forming only one Texture
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Grade:
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National
Standards
| 1.
Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes |
2.
Using knowledge of structures and functions |
3.
Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols,
and ideas |
4.
Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and
cultures |
5.
Reflecting upon and assessing the characteristics and merits
of their work and the work of others |
| Students
intentionally take advantage of the qualities and
characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to
enhance communication of their experiences and ideas |
Students
generalize about the effects of visual structures and
functions and reflect upon these effects in their own work |
Students
integrate visual, spatial, and temporal concepts with content
to communicate intended meaning in their artworks |
Students
know and compare the characteristics of artworks in various
eras and cultures |
Students
compare multiple purposes for creating works of art |
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Students
select and use the qualities of structures and functions of
art to improve communication of their ideas |
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Students
describe and compare a variety of individual responses to
their own artworks and to artworks from various eras and
cultures |
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- You can see Brian's scratchboard illustrations in this book.
- More scratchboard art by Brian Pinkney.
- Brian Pinkney's signature scratchboard renderings handpainted with oil pastels.