Drawing What We See

... NOT what we THINK we see!

On any given day in my classroom, you will hear me saying preaching this to my middle school students. Draw what a tree, person, vase actually looks like and you will be much happier with the end result!

Using this philosophy and the amazing book, Drawing On the Right Side of the Brain, I created a drawing unit for the 7th and 8th graders. We drew without looking at our paper, drawing the space around the objects, just the outline of the objects, and upside down. At the end of the unit, the students put what they learned into a final still life drawing. This drawing combined the negative/positive space relationship, blind contour line drawings, and the art of drawing what you see! The results are beautiful!

 

 

 

This was also the first time for the students to experiment with chalk pastels. Messy and fun!

Robert Indiana

The first weeks of school, 5th through 8th grade worked on a Robert Indiana inspired project. Our main inspiration was his "Love" print and sculpture.

The students and I discussed Indiana's inspiration for his artwork and that it was symbolic art. We talked about how artists can draw inspiration from just about anything. The students then brainstormed words that were meaningful and symbolic for them or the society in which we live. During the process of this project, students learned many elements of art including positive and negative space, value, and composition.

Here are some hanging on the wall:

 "Trust"

 "Power"

 "Faith"

 "Progress"

 "Music"

"Believe"

After the project was over, the students wrote and "Artist Statement" that explained their inspiration, process of the project, and self reflection.