After my Color Theory with Kandinsky, this unit fits right into previously learned knowledge and a plethora of new knowledge. This unit encompasses line, types of drawing, negative and positive space, color theory, and a lot of movement…you heard me, movement and I’m not just talking about the principle. - - -
Image 1: Gesture Practice,
Image 2: Structure Drawing,
Image 3: Finished Project Display,
Image 4: Georges posed like dancers by my students.
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THE PLAN
SWBAT define "line".
SWBAT define "gesture line".
SWBAT define "structural line".
SWBAT define "contour line".
SWBAT define "postive space".
SWBAT define "negative space".
SWBAT effectively display an understanding of pattern.
SWBAT correctly use a color family.
1. Pencils
2. Erasers
3. Markers (Fine and Wide Point - ROYGBV and Black)
4. Drawing Models (wooden, any size, one per table)
Starts with the basics of drawing. Have students sit at their tables with a large white piece of paper and colorful thin tip markers ready to go (no yellow as it’s hard to see on the paper). As a class we discuss what a line is. Don’t pull out the dictionary because that would be too easy and students don’t truly grasp the meanings when they just look at the words. So, as a class go through different definitions we can come up with. (They usual include, “a segment”, “straight mark”, “it starts and stops” but of course…these are very limiting definitions)
Continue with “Okay, we know we’re on the right track. Let’s break it down. What is the first think we make when we are attempting to draw a line?” It takes a few moments but someone usually pipes in with “we touch the paper” or “a dot!”. Going with the dot continue with, “What a perfect way to start a line. We start with a dot.” On the board I write “Line: A Dot…” and draw a dot.
Then I ask, “What happens to that dot as we create the line?” And students talk about how it moves and can or cannot end, overlap, close, etc. So many possibilities! That lines make shapes and can vary to so many degrees. End this conversation with, “So, for our ‘art’ definition of ‘line’ we could say it’s a dot…” and students reply with “that moves!” Finish the board’s definition and move our dot. (And yes, I know this isn’t scientific but it helps the students understand and apply when the develop their own definitions. It also helps the problem solve and figure out the meaning of something without using complicated dictionary answers.)
Next state: introducing the types of line/drawing to cover in figural drawing. Tell them that in just a couple days they will meet a very good friend of yours, George. He loves drawing and appreciates line more than anything. He especially loves to be drawn by my students but before he can come to class, he wants to make sure students understand how sensitive he can be. He wants to make sure students know that it’s important to pay attention to proportion and the body basics of a human. Students get excited knowing that they will have a visitor and are ready to work.
Activity 1: Gestural: Break the word down (more vocab!) - base is “gesture” and we hear that a lot when people are doing things and moving. Students then gather that we are talking about a fast, almost messy, line that shows movement and energy. This is when it gets really exciting. We have to show them how to draw a gestural human figure but of course, George isn’t with us yet and we need a model! Have students model for each other, limit their time to push them to forget about detail (learned that when they have a lot of time they start to add unnecessary details) For example, I tell them that sometimes art class gets to break the rules because one by one we would be modeling for the class! And thus begins our “show” where one student at a time can stand on a table (carefully) and the rest have to quickly draw a gestural drawing of the pose. (See student example). Students are timed and as the period goes on, less and less time is available for students to think about their drawings. (They get so excited, I promise! I use lots of colors and remind them to switch it up so that they may leave with a colorful page of “dancing” classmates”.) Have them take this home with them.
Activity 2: Structural: Review gestural line and introduce "structural". (This is a *great* science connection.) Talk about proportion of the human body and what our main structure is - the skeleton (ex. a house is held by a frame, what is a body held by). Bring students back to stick figures and how they could show structure. But! If students were to use a typical stick figure, people can’t physically walk like that. So break it down into bones and joints. Talk about how to remember that the “humorous” is the “funny bone” and so forth. Stand up, move around, and even measure how things are similar (length of arm in reference to the forearm). If time, divide the face using symmetry. Use lines for each bone and dots for any joints.
Activity 3: Contour: Finally, students are introduced to contour lines, or the outline of something. That’s when the students meet George. They learn that George is not a real person but an art room friend. Students get very imaginative and create stories about George, the wooden art model. Talk about how proportionate George is and how his different body parts resemble tubes and shapes…something we could outline and using our previous knowledge we start to pose George and draw him throughout a page using outlines. Talk about positive space being George and the negative space being around George – and that our goal is to find a balance between the two. This ends up with large small and medium size Georges throughout the page and coming off the page. Students should end up with 4-5 Georges filling up the page - Don't forget to talk about how arms can look like they are missing if they aren't seen as well as that it's not okay to shrink a leg down because the page has no space - make it look like it goes off the page.
Once you have 4-5 Georges, have students outline him in black so that we’ve separated the negative space from the positive space. (I have students outline all around George, nothing on the inside.)
When George is outlined (all of them), review color theory with the students. It is a general agreement that George needs to stand out. After all, he loves attention and the white negative space fails to help him get any. So, after a review of color theory, students pick one color family (primary, secondary, cool, warm, analogous, complimentary) and using geometric designs, carefully color in only the negative space and not the positive (“George doesn’t want people to lose him in the background!” I say to the students). The black outline around George is a good “stopper” for students still grasping the concepts.
I use a consistent form of assessment aligned with standards and rubrics. The rubric attached shows is set up so that students can review it ahead of time, goal set and when a project is completed, students self-assess, peer-assess and write written responses prompted by essential questions.
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