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Drawing Skills students, ages 9-11, learned to draw both from the
imagination and from observation. The first lesson, radial designs,
stemmed from the imagination. Students looked to nature (the sun,
flowers, snowflakes) and art (quilt patterns) for inspiration. They
practiced the radial design concept by making a simple collage
(right), then drew more complicated designs in pencil and colored
them with marker.
imagination and from observation. The first lesson, radial designs,
stemmed from the imagination. Students looked to nature (the sun,
flowers, snowflakes) and art (quilt patterns) for inspiration. They
practiced the radial design concept by making a simple collage
(right), then drew more complicated designs in pencil and colored
them with marker.
| Rachel, age 10 |
| Lauren, age 9 |
Next students learned to draw from observation. We started with a simple object-- a flip flop. First students made a "contour
drawing", where they couldn't lift the pencil from the paper. This is an exercise where artists concentrate on the lines of an
object, not worrying about what the final results look like. Then they made a "free hand drawing", where they started with a
light, general shape (in this case, an oval), then added darker lines for definition. In these free hand drawings, realism was the
goal. Great job, artistis!
drawing", where they couldn't lift the pencil from the paper. This is an exercise where artists concentrate on the lines of an
object, not worrying about what the final results look like. Then they made a "free hand drawing", where they started with a
light, general shape (in this case, an oval), then added darker lines for definition. In these free hand drawings, realism was the
goal. Great job, artistis!
| Jacob, age 10 |
| Rachel, age 10 |
After practicing drawing flip flops, they tried free hand drawings of other shoes. Did you ever notice how many details
there are in a gym shoe???
there are in a gym shoe???
| Rachel, age 10 |
| Lauren, age 9 |
After mastering drawing shoes, the students graduated to a more complicated still life. They studied still life paintings by
great masters like Picasso, Van Gogh, and Cezanne. Then they drew their own pictures of a still life arrangement in the class
room. They were careful to show overlapping, correct proportions, and three-dimensionality. Once their line drawings were
complete, they learned shading techniques like blending and cross-hatching. The finished results are impressive!
great masters like Picasso, Van Gogh, and Cezanne. Then they drew their own pictures of a still life arrangement in the class
room. They were careful to show overlapping, correct proportions, and three-dimensionality. Once their line drawings were
complete, they learned shading techniques like blending and cross-hatching. The finished results are impressive!
| Rachel, age 10 |
| Jacob, age 10 |
| Lauren, age 9 |
For the last project of the 8 weeks, Drawing Skills students drew fall leaves and colored them with chalk pastels. The
compositions were planned carefully to fill up the page in an interesting way using big, little and small leaves of many shapes
and colors.
compositions were planned carefully to fill up the page in an interesting way using big, little and small leaves of many shapes
and colors.
| Jacob, age 10 |
| Rachel, age 10 |
| Lauren, age 9 |
| home |
| Drawing Skills Gallery |
| September-October 2005 |
