2D Design Still Life Painting Exercise

How to make this up- Set up the still life. Put a box on a table, drape with a multicolored cloth. Find 3 solidly colored objects (each a different color from the others and the cloth) and arrange them on and around the boxes. Produce a painting of the still life using your acrylic paints on a sheet of your 18" x 24" paper. As with previous still life projects, pay attention to the individual shapes of objects, their relative position and proportion, but to that add the idea of matching both exact color and value. You may sketch with pencil first, or just paint directly on the page. For the background you can use any color you like. Above are a few examples from previous semesters.

This is a portfolio exercise, which must be made up by the end of the semester to receive full credit.

11/17/11 2D Design

Today's Class- Today we started a new graded project involving mixed media collage. We looked at a few historical slides of collage precedents, as well as some student examples from previous semesters, then students chose their collage subjects. We also looked at a few more of the season collages and some of the Russian word text exercise that we had done a few weeks ago.

How to make this up- The first step in the project is to receive the randomly generated phrase that will be the subject of your collage. Students in class received these by picking slips of paper with words from different bags. You may either e-mail me and I'll send you a phrase, or wait until our next class and select one yourself. Previous examples include City of Zoo (above) and Everything Turns to Thinking (below). The full details of the project and additional student examples can be found here.

Homework- This mixed media collage project is due at the beginning of class on December 1, 2011. The limited palettes color project that we started in class last week is also due on December 1st.

If you still owe me the season temperature collage or the woodcut block, try to get them in as soon as possible to still receive some partial credit.

For next class November 22, 2011. That's right, our next meeting will be Tuesday, November 22nd, to make up for the Thanksgiving holiday. We will do a portfolio exercise related to classic still life painting. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, pencil and eraser, paints, brushes, palette, palette knife, and water container.

11/10/11 2D Design

Today's Class- Tonight we started a new graded project related to color combinations, sometimes referred to as an artist's palette. Sometimes artists will try to closely match all the original colors in a scene they are painting, but at other times they will purposely choose different colors to achieve a different feeling. We looked at some art historical examples of paintings using some common types of combinations, then started on the project. We reserved time at the end of class to look at the color temperature collages started last week.

How to make this up- You will need to find a black and white photograph of an actual thing or scene, with a wide range of value from light to dark. Use pencil to divide a sheet of your 18" x 24" paper into 4 equal boxes. Do a compositional sketch of your photo in all four boxes, then use your acrylic paints to color each version of the composition, using some specific formats. Above are two student examples from previous semesters. The full details regarding the types of color combinations, and further student examples can be found here.

Homework- This limited palettes graded project is due at the beginning of class on December 1, 2011. We will be starting a new graded project next week, so I suggest making some progress on this one before then.

For next class 11/17/11- We will be starting a new graded project involving mixed media collage. Bring your 18" x 24" paper, pencil and eraser, markers, acrylic paints, brushes, palette, palette knife, water container, glue, and scissors.

11/3/11 2D Design

Today's Class- Today we started a new graded project involving color temperature. I showed a selection of art historical slides, and we discussed whether the overall perceived color temperature of each was warm, cool, or balanced/neutral. After that students began mixing colors for the project. We saved time at the end of class to have a critique of the woodcut prints that were pulled last week.

How to make this up- You will be creating a pair of collages, each reflecting the overall temperatures associated with two of the seasons of the year, as in the example above. Full instructions and additional student examples can be found here.

Homework- This color temperature collage graded project is due at the beginning of class next week, November 10, 2011. Anyone who has not yet turned in their completed wood block should complete it as soon as possible and bring it to class to be printed.

For next week 11/10/11- We will be starting a new graded project involving specific color combinations. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, pencil and eraser, acrylic paints, brushes, palette, palette knife, and water container. You will be working from a black and white photograph, so either bring one of your own or be prepared to pick through my pile of magazines to find one.