maandag 19 november 2012

Colourful city


You need:
  1. white drawing sheet A4 size
  2. pencil
  3. colour markers
  4. black fine marker
What kind of lines do you know? Straight, zigzag, wavy, spiral, edgy etc.
Draw on the upper half of the sheet six different lines from left to right. Draw on the lower half a lot of different overlapping  houses. Start with the front row. Be sure to vary in width and heighth and draw several kinds of roofs.

Choose seven colours. Colour the spaces between the six lines each with a different colour. Use the same colours for the houses of the city. Outline everything with a fine black marker.

Made by a students of grade 5

zondag 18 november 2012

Spider in coloured web

Made by students of grade 2
You need:
  1. white drawing sheet A4 size
  2. blackoilpastel
  3. autumn leaves
  4. liquid water colour in orange and green
Divide the sheet with a black oil pastel in eight parts: two diagonal lines, one vertical and one horizontal. Draw a web between those lines. Draw one or more spiders in the web.

Colour the different parts with liquid water colour in orange and green.

dinsdag 30 oktober 2012

Lost in the hall, a lesson about surrealism and perspective

Made by a student of grade 6

Thanks to Phyl, who originally posted this lesson. You can find hers here!

You need:
  1. white drawing sheet 24 by 24 cm
  2. ruler
  3. pencil
  4. watercolour paint
  5. brushes
  6. jar with water
  7. magazines
  8. scissors and glue
  9. rubber foam
Show some surrealistic artwork from Dali and discuss about the salient features  surrealism.

Follow the first two steps of this lesson through direct instruction: the students follow the instructions the teacher gives.

Step 1
Draw two diagonal lines. Draw a square of 8 by 8 cm around the middle point. Draw around the square dots every 1 cm. Draw on the outside edges of the sheet dots with 3 cm between them.



Step 2
Connect the opposite dots by drawing lines. Draw on the diagonal lines dots with 2 cm between them. Connect the dots. 


Step 3
Colour walls, floor and cealing with watercolor. Always select two colours together and keep both walls equal in color.

Step 4
Cut some squares on three sides apart, fold the paper and paste a picture from a magazine behind.

Step 5
Cut two human figures out of foam and paste them as if they are floating in space.


dinsdag 23 oktober 2012

Four season trees

 
You need:
  1. four white drawing sheets A6 size (postcard)
  2. Q-tips
  3. tempera paint
  4. coloured corrugated cardboard
  5. silver and gold markers
  6. fiberfill
  7. glue
How can a deciduous tree tell you what season it is? What colours do they have in spring, summer and fall? What does a tree look like in winter?

Discuss these questions at the beginning of this lesson. Write on the board the colors in the spring heard (light green, green, white, pink - blossom), which belong to the summer (green, dark green, yellow) and the autumn colours (brown, orange, red, yellow). And in winter there aren't any leaves. left of course.

 
The students will make a tree for every season. The colours of the leaves have to show what season it is. The log is "painted" with a Q-tip, the leaves have to be may only be spotted. Remember that in fall there are a lot of leaves on the ground! Use fiberfill (snow) for the tree in winter.
 
Paste the trees next to each other on a piece of corrugated cardboard. Design it with gold or silver marker and write the seasons above the trees.  

Organisation:
Give each groep of six students an eggtray with several colours of paint. Give each student a Q-tip to paint the trunk. Per groep een eierdoos met de verschillende kleuren verf. Geef de leerlingen elk een wattenstaafje voor de boomstam.For the dots: one Q-tip per colour for common use.
 
Artworks made by students of grade 3
 
Thanks to Maureen Kaal

vrijdag 12 oktober 2012

Owls in the moonlight

Background of dilluted water colour paint 

You need:
  1. drawing sheet 60 by 25 cm
  2. white drawing sheets
  3. brown wrapping paper
  4. indian ink 
  5. liquid water colour paint
  6. brushes
  7. pieces of styrofoam
  8. pencil
  9. flat piece of glass
  10. paint roller
  11. block printing ink
  12. chalk pastel
  13. saucer
Background of dilluted water colour paint  mixed with a drop indian ink  

Part one:
Put a saucer on the big sheet. This piece of paper remains white; the moon. Paint with highly diluted indian ink or liquid watercolor (also dilute it with water) and a large brush in one direction. Make sure the dish does not move. Paint with big strokes and leave the edges a little white. Let this dry.

Part two:
Divide the class into two groups. Group 1 paints the branch, group 2 is going to print owls.

Branch painting:
Paint with indian ink a branch with side branches on the painted sheet. Remember that a branch becoming thinner towards the end. Do not paint around the moon, but through it. If the branch stands out too little against the gray background, outline the branches later with white chalk for a better contrast.

Printing the owls:
Group 2 will start with the owls. Give each student two pieces of styrofoam. Students have to press two different owls in the foam. Put some blockprint paint on a glass plate. Roll the paint on the piece of foam. Then place a sheet (remember to write names on each sheet!) and rub with flat hand over it. Pull off the paper. Create several prints in different colors and on different kinds of paper. In this lesson we used white paper and brown wrapping paper.

A student who has finished printing, takes place on the painting table and paints his branch. Students who have completed the branch, follow up with printing.

Next day:
When the owls are dry (with block print this takes at least a day), they have to be cut leaving one millimeter space around. Use yellow chalk to draw a circle around the moon. Paste the owls on the branches.

Background of dilluted indian ink, branches outlined with white chalk pastel 

All artworks are made by students of grade 4

maandag 8 oktober 2012

Lollipop trees like Hundertwasser


Made by a student of grade 2
 
Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928-2000) was an Austrian artist and architect who is best known for the colourful buildings he designed, built with attention to the environment and nature. The buildings of Hundertwasser are very recognizable: straight lines are missing, there is use of bright colours and many of his buildings have typical turrets. The influence of architect Gaudi is very obvious.
The paintings of Hundertwasser have exuberant colours too and mainly undulating lines.
 
Show buildings of Hundertwasser on the digital board. Discuss the salient features: bright colours, undulating lines. Then show some paintings and discuss the things that stand out:
 
the use of small areas outlined with black
no straight lines, usually parallel lines
recurring spiral shapes
bright colours
 
Ask students what they think of by seeing those spirals.  Probably they see real lollipops in them!  Lollipop trees, that's what we're going to draw today! Demonstrate the drawing of a spiral, starting in the middle.
You need:
  1. white drawing sheet 35 by 35 cm
  2. black construction sheet
  3. white drawing paper 35 by 35 cm
  4. black construction paper
  5. pieces of sponge
  6. tempera paint
  7. gold and silver markers, wide and small
  8. round shapes to trace
  9. scissors and glue
  10. black oil pastel
Stamp the white sheet with sponge prints in colours you like and put the work out to dry. Trace on black paper round shapes in different sizesDraw spirals in them with gold or silver markers. Fill the space between the lines with patterns in gold or silver and cut the circles.
Create a composition of lollipops on the stamped sheet and paste them. Pull lines from the lollipops to the bottom of the sheet with black oil pastel, the trunks. Draw the trunks through the circles if necessary (overlap), to show depth in the lollipop woods.


Thanks to Maureen Kaal.

woensdag 3 oktober 2012

Owls in the tree

Made by a student of grade 5
You need:
  1. grey construction paper
  2. white drawing paper A1 size and A4 size
  3. tempera paint
  4. brushes
  5. scissors
  6. glue
  7. linoleum 10 by10 cm
  8. lino knives
  9. flat piece of glass
  10. block printing ink
  11. lino press
  12. linoleum roller
I found this great lesson on Artsonia!

Before the lesson: ask two students to paint an A1 size sheet with brown tempera and a few yellow and red. This painted paper will be used for tearing branches and tree stumps by all students. 
Another A1 sheet should be painted in warm autumn colours; this sheet is used for cutting out leaves.

Each students draws an owl on linoleum. Cut the outlines, the wings, eyes and beak. Decorate with small patterns. Print the owl several times in two colours and leave them to dry.

Take a second lesson to finish the artwork. Tear stumps and branches from the brown painted paper and paste them on the grey sheet. Cut leaves from the autumn sheet. Cut the owls with a little edge (1 mm). Look for a great composition and paste everything.

zondag 16 september 2012

Under the rainbow

Made by a student of grade 5

You need:
  1. white drawing sheet 25 by34 cm
  2. black marker
  3. tempera paint
  4. brush
  5. scissors
  6. glue
I found this idea on Pinterest. It's origanally from a teacher from Estonia.
Paint coloured stripes or circles at the top of a white sheet. Let dry. Draw contours of houses on a second sheet of paper with thin pencil lines. Ensure overlap. 'Colour' these houses with different patterns in black marker. Don't outline the houses; the surfaces should be recognizable by the different patterns.
Make the row of houses as wide as the painted sheet. Cut the row of houses and paste it on the painted paper.

maandag 3 september 2012

Frogs in the pond


  1. white drawing sheet A4 size
  2. blue liquid water colour
  3. water
  4. brushes
  5. water colour paint
  6. tempera paint
  7. stencil brush
Make the sheet wet with a large brush. Drip a few drops of ink on the sheet and spread it by moving the sheet or by painting with the brush. Let dry.
Paint some frogs with watercolour paint. Use a pear as the basic form. Painter parts of frogs on the edges of the sheet. Stamp with a stencil brush and some green and yellow tempara aquatic plants in the water.
Staple the art work on a coloured background.

Artworks made by students of grade 4

zondag 26 augustus 2012

Turning around with Keith Haring


You need:
  1. drawing sheets 20 by 20 cm
  2. pencil
  3. markers
  4. coloured contruction paper 
  5. glue
I found this lesson on Pinterest, it's originally from DaVinci's Wings.
Show artwork of Keith Haring (1958-1990) and talk about the characteristics of his work:
 
people are drawn as in cartoons
fewdetails
thick black lines and contours
bright colors
• dashes indicate movement
Students draw figures in Keith Haring style. The sheet must be filled completely and also rotatably: the figures are not all the same way, but are crisscrossing the drawing. Furthermore, also figures on the edge of the sheet, to make the drawing more exciting (what happens beyond the edges?)
All figures have to be coloured with marker; choose just one colour. Outline with a black fineliner and then add motion dashes.
Paste work on construction paper that is the same color as the marker colour.

See also my other lessons about Keith Haring:
 
Artworks made by students of grade 4

maandag 25 juni 2012

Sailing into summer

You need:
  1. white drawing sheet A4 size
  2. pencil
  3. water colour paint
  4. crayons
  5. brushes
  6. jar with water
Draw a horizon line on the half of the sheet using a green crayon. Draw above a green wavy line, these art the bushes. Draw with pencil two sail boats in the water. Colour them with crayons in bright colors. Draw clouds in the sky using a white crayon and colour them white. Draw waves with white crayon in the water. Paint the sky, bushes and water using water colour paint with plenty of water.   The crayons will resist the paint so that clouds and waves become visible again.

zondag 24 juni 2012

On the beach - collage


You need:
  1. drawing sheet 40 by 35 cm
  2. white drawing sheets
  3. tempera paint
  4. brushes
  5. scissors
  6. markers
  7. glue
  8. pencils
Draw a word web with words about the beach. Think of things (to do) on the sand, things (to do) in the water and things (to do) in the air. Talk about people standing in the water: they seem to have half legs!

Cover four tables with newspaper and put three containers with paint on it:
  • yellow and a little brown besides (beach) + two big brushes
  • blue and a little green (seawater) + two big brushes
  • blue and white (air) + two big brushes 
  • white (surf) + two brushes to stamp
Show how to paint the beach: much yellow on the brush and a little brown for the beach (so do not mix!). Do the same with blue and white for the air, and blue with green for the sea. Make wavy motions with the brush to accentuate the water. Finish with a white stamping brush for the surf.


While about four students are painting, the others can start with the drawing part of this lesson.

Draw people and things you see on the beach. Colour them with markers, and use a skin colour pencil for the bodies. Cut all those little drawings and paste them on the beach, the water or in the air.
Hang all work together for a great group work.

All artworks are made by students of grade 3

maandag 11 juni 2012

Comics like Roy Lichtenstein

 
Artworks are made by students of grade 3

A lesson based on a lesson from Phyl's site, There's a dragon in my artroom, but instead of painting I decided to choose for collage. Check out Phyl's site for the paintings!

You need:
  1. coloured paper A4 size
  2. white drawing sheet A4 size
  3. newspaper
  4. ruler and pencil
  5. glue
  6. crayons
  7. glitter
  8. colour markers
Roy Lichtenstein (1923 - 1997) was an American popart artist. He is best known for his enormously enlarged cartoons. After his art studies in New York and Columbus Liechtenstein teached art himself. In his spare time he painted abstract paintings and made parodies of American art from the twenties. In1960 he came into contact with Claes Oldenburg and the style elements from advertising and comic strips. He started to use use grids, dots, black outlines and bright colours, the style who made him famous. From 1962 Lichtenstein used the works of Monet, Picasso and Mondrian as the inspiration for his art and he paints sunsets in their style. Most of his work however is based on advertisements and cartoons.

Show artwork of Liechtenstein on the digital board and discuss the characteristics: primary colours sometimes with green, text balloons, raster dots as we know from newspaper photographs and thick black outlines. Show comic balloons from Lichtenstein and discuss them.

In this lesson students create a comic balloon like Lichtenstein did. Choose for a basic form, a star or cloud. See my 'how to draw a star step by step' below.
Cut this or cloud out of coloured paper. Cut another cloud or star from a newspaper. Draw an action word on the white sheet and colour with markers. Cut this word. Create composition and paste the parts of the artwork. Draw action stripes with black crayon or use glitter.

How to draw a star:
1. Draw a circle.
2. Draw lines from the edges to the circle, using pencil and ruler. See the black lines in the picture.


3. Draw lines from the same places but make them diagonal. See the red lines in the picture.
4. Cut the parts between the triangles, the blue pieces in the picture.

dinsdag 29 mei 2012

Sculptures like Niki de Saint Phalle


You need:
  1. newspapers torn in strips
  2. wallpaper paste
  3. paper towels
  4. tempera paint
  5. varnish
  6. brushes
  7. yarn
  8. white wall paint
Niki de Saint Phalle (1930 - 2002) was a French painter and sculptor. She made reliefs in plaster and other materials. Especially her feminine 'Nana's' are famous. These large sculptures of women painted in bright expressive colours are world famous and to be seen in several major cities in the world.

Show some pictures of Niki de Saint Phalle on the digital board. Discuss the salient features: bright colours, black outlinesof the colour patches - including circles, often (thick) women without a clear face. Then show images of the sculptures in Paris (google Nikki de Saint Phalle and Paris). What is different about these images? Those sculptures are the famous female characters, but they do have the typical De Saint Phalle characteristics.
 
Students are going to create an artwork of paper mache with at least one hole in it and two protruding parts. Provide at least eight layers of newspaper finish with paper towels.
Paint the sculpture after drying with white wall paint and let dry. Paint then in the style of Saint Phalle using bright colors.
Wait until the paint is dry and paint the black lines using a small brush or use a black marker. Paint with varnish. Pull a thread through the hole and hang the work.
 
Artworks made by students of grade 5

donderdag 10 mei 2012

Art cows

 
Artworks made by students of grade 2

You need:
  1. 3 sheets of drawing paper 15 by 15 cm
  2. colour pencils
  3. coloured paper for background
  4. glue
Students have to draw three different cows: a realistic one, a cubistic one and a cow in just blue colours like the Dutch pottery from Delft.
Paste those three works on a strip of coloured construction paper.

woensdag 9 mei 2012

Half chicken


You need:
  1. drawing sheet A4 size
  2. oil pastels
  3. blue liquid water colour
  4. brush
  5. jar with water
In this lesson students draw one chicken together. Fold a sheet in half and draw a half chicken. Colour with oil pastels. Draw with white oil pastel one or more eggs. Give the sheet folded to a fellow student, and be sure he does not see what was drawn. Tell what there has to be drawn, the head or the body. Mark with two little lines the places where the fellow student has to connect and draw a mark for the hight of the horizon line.
If the second student is ready, they fold up the sheet open. Hilarious!

Paint the whole drawing with blue water colour paint and lots of water. The oil pastels will resist the water and thus the white eggs come forward again.
 
Artworks made by students of grade 3

zaterdag 5 mei 2012

Sunrise like Roy Lichtenstein

A lesson is originally from Phyl's site, There's a dragon in my artroom. Check out her site for more!

You need:
  1. drawing sheet A3 size
  2. tempera in red, blue, yellow, white and black
  3. brushes
  4. jar with water
Roy Lichtenstein (1923 - 1997) was an American popart artist. He is best known for his enormously enlarged cartoons. After his art studies in New York and Columbus Liechtenstein teached art himself. In his spare time he painted abstract paintings and made parodies of American art from the twenties. In1960 he came into contact with Claes Oldenburg and the style elements from advertising and comic strips. He started to use use grids, dots, black outlines and bright colours, the style who made him famous. From 1962 Lichtenstein used the works of Monet, Picasso and Mondrian as the inspiration for his art and he paints sunsets in their style. Most of his work however is based on advertisements and cartoons.

Show artwork of Liechtenstein on the digital board and discuss the characteristics: primary colours sometimes with green,  text balloons, raster dots as we know from newspaper photographs and thick black outlines. Show at the end the work 'Sunrise'. Ask students how they can recognize this work as a Lichtenstein.

The students are instructed to paint a sunrise in the style of Lichtenstein. All Lichtenstein characteristics as discussed so, have to be seen in their painting.

Artworks are made by students of grade 5

dinsdag 1 mei 2012

Lighthouses along the coast


You need:
  1. drawing sheet A6 size (postcard)
  2. watercolour paint
  3. brushes
  4. jar with water
  5. scissors and glue
What are lighthouses? Where can you find them and why there? Why did we need them, and do we still need them?
Show pictures of lighthouses on the digital board and discuss them. What does a lighthouse look like? What colour is often used? Where is the lamp of the lighthouse? Where's the door?

For the background students paint with watercolour paint a simplified landscape of air and soil. The paint should be dilluted with a lot of water to get soft colours. The sheet doesn't need to be painted completely, it is even better to leave the edges white. Put this painting aside to dry.

Then sketch a lighthouse on a second sheet of paper. Paint it with watercolour paint, using less water now to be sure the colours really stand out.
Let the work dry and cut the lighthouse. Paste it on the painted background.
Made by students of grade 3

maandag 16 april 2012

Mexican amate

You need:
  1. brown paper bag
  2. tempera paint in fluoresecent colours and white
  3. brushes
  4. jar with water
  5. black marker
  6. coloured paper for background
  7. glue or stapler
Amate is a way of making paper, done for centuries by Mexican Indians. Amate paper is made by cooking the inner bark of various trees. At the beginning of the 20th century the Nahua Indians of Mexico started making amatepaintings as a form of folk art, especially in order to exchange and sell them to tourists.
Show some pictures of Mexican amate paintings. Discuss the striking features: birds, flowers, bright colours and black outlines. A frame around the drawing with a pattern in bright colours too.

Tear the edges off the paper: use thumb and fingers on both hands and tear very slowly. Use a pencil to draw some (two or three) birds and flowers, add a patterned frame and paint everything with fluorescent tempera. When it's dry, outline everything with a black marker. Don't forget the name of the artist!

Paste or staple the artworks on coloured construction paper.

maandag 26 maart 2012

What's in your egg?

 
You need:
  1. white drawing sheet A5 size 
  2. charcoal
  3. yellow sheet for background 
  4. hairspray
A great lesson for Easter, to be done in several grades. 

Start this lesson with a yeaser: Imagine you break your egg on Easter, and it shows something very different than just the egg.... Draw this imagination with charcoal on a white sheet.
Give instruction on how to work with charcoal. Point out that charcoal stain quickly, and give students tissues with water to clean. Show that the charcoal stripes could be blurred by smearing. In this way the shadows on the egg can be made. Tell charcoal can be erased with kneaded eraser.

Let the children first practice to experience for their self how you work with charcoal.
Then they draw the two  seperated halves of an egg with that's what in it between them. The egg should not just hang not in the air, but has to lie somewhere on or in (grass, cloth or similar).

Fix the drawing with hairspray and staple or paste it on a yellow background.
Made by students of grade 3