Today's Class- Two important things today. First, I graded the first half of the semester portfolio, all of the pencil and charcoal work that had not been individually graded. Those were returned to the students during class. Second, the class did the second individually graded drawing of the semester, the final charcoal drawing, which could use vine and/or compressed charcoal. Those were collected at the end of class and will be returned graded next week.
How to make this up- Everyone was there and everyone turned one in. Nothing to be made up.
Homework- Find two flowers, either living or artificial. Draw them on a page in your sketchbook using the pencil of your choice. Match the shapes and values. Include any leaves or stems that are within view. Rearrange the set up or take a different viewpoint and draw them again, a total of two pages.
For next class 4/3/15- You can put away the charcoal for now, because we are moving on to our next medium, drawing ink. We'll be using it to create washes- ink diluted with water to create a wide range of value. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, pencil and eraser, small bottle of black waterproof ink (or india ink), brushes suitable for watercolor, and a couple of cups or cans to serve as water containers.
Today's Class- Tonight I opened with a slide presentation about text as a visual element. Visual artists have long used letters and numbers in their art, and I presented examples ranging from illuminated religious texts, to details on depicted items. to modern movements such as dada, surrealism, cubism, pop, etc that found ways to use the shapes and meanings of text. I also showed some examples of wartime propaganda and early 1960's advertising, and discussed how lettering styles and image choices contributed to the meanings and messages. Then the class began a few portfolio exercises that dealt with those concepts, as well as provide an introduction to ideas we will deal with in some later graded projects. Meanwhile, I helped individual students print their woodblock black and white book illustrations; tonight's results can be seen above.
How to make this up- The first exercise involved words, designing them to convey their meanings through such variations as locations on the page, size and shape, fonts etc. The second exercise involved creating a logo and using simple images to convey meanings. Full details and student examples can be found here.
These are portfolio exercises and can be made up for full credit any time before the end of the semester, however I recommend doing them soon for two reasons. First, there are a lot more graded projects in the second half of the semester so you'll have less time going forward, and second, these relate to aspects of at least two of the remaining projects and may help prepare you for them.
Homework- Nothing new, but several students still need to turn in their wood blocks to be printed. I won't be bringing all the printing stuff again, but I will collect blocks as they come in, print them at home, and bring the results back to class the following week.
For next class 4/2/15- We are returning to our study of color, which will be part of everything for the rest of the semester. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, pencil and eraser, all your paints, brushes, palette, palette knife, water container, along with scissors or x-acto knife and glue or rubber cement, as we begin a graded project involving color temperature.
Today's Class- Today we continued value drawing with charcoal. Unlike our last meeting where the set up was all white objects and drapery and the value variation was from light and shadow, I introduced the idea of local value to the process. The white objects were supplemented with items of medium and dark value, so students would be dealing with those values in addition to the effects of light and shadow on the whole set up. One drawing was done each with vine and compressed charcoal. We also reviewed what will be expected at our next meeting- the final charcoal drawing and the 1st half portfolio review.
How to make this up- Set up a still life. Put a box on a table and drape side by side with a white/light color cloth and one that is darker. Arrange on and around the box four objects of similar size, a mix of white or light colored and dark colored. Set lights to create patterns of light and shadow. Draw the set up on a page in your 18" x 24" pad with the vine charcoal (draw directly on the white page, not the reductive style we started with last time). Rearrange the objects and draw with the compressed charcoal. Total of two drawings, as in the student example above. An additional example and more detailed instructions can be found here.
These are portfolio exercises, but the first half portfolio is due at our next class meeting, so you need to make it up by then to get full credit.
Homework- Set up a simple still life like last week's homework, but this time drape with a colored cloth and have two white objects and two dark colored objects. Set light to create light and shadow. Do a full value rendering using a soft pencil, dealing with shape, scale, perspective, as well as matching the values as closely as possible. Include shadows on the objects and those cast by the objects. Rearrange the objects and draw a second time, for a total of two sketches.
****Spring Break March 16 to March 20****
****No Class Next Week****
First Half Portfolio
At our next meeting, while everyone is working on the final charcoal drawing of the semester, I'll grade the 1st half portfolio, everything you've done to this point except the individually graded line drawing still life. If you've missed no classes, you're all caught up. If you have missed some time, or just want a check list to make sure you bring it all with you, here's what I expect to see and when you can find it on this blog:
1/30 Contour Lines (shoes)
2/6 Reductive Lines (bamboo)
Negative Space (chair)
Negative/Positive (bottles)
2/13 Perspective (boxes, boxes and cans)
2/27 Value Drawing of white objects
(vine and compressed)
3/13 Value Drawing of mixed value objects
(vine and compressed)
For next class 3/27/15- We will do the final charcoal drawing of the semester, an individually graded drawing. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, your choice of vine or compressed charcoal (or both), kneaded eraser, and spray fixative. Have you first half portfolio so it can be graded during class.
Today's Class- Tonight we started our look at color, which will be a part of almost everything we do for the rest of the semester. I showed a few dozen slides of art ranging from cave painting to comic books, discussing the way color was used, the evolution of color materials, and the different styles of painting. Then the class did a series of portfolio exercises involving basic color theory and color mixing.
How to make this up- You will need a full sheet of your 18" x 24" paper, pencil, and all your painting materials. The three exercises include a basic color wheel, a mix of two complimentary colors to create intermediates and neutrals, and taking one color through a series of tints and shades. Above is a student example from a previous semester. The full detailed instructions and additional examples can be found here.
This is a portfolio exercise that must be made up by the end of the semester to receive full credit, but I recommend getting to it sooner rather than later, as the projects will be getting harder after this.
****Spring Break March 16 to March 20****
****No Class Next Week****
Homework- Nothing new, the completed woodblocks for the book illustration project are due March 26, 2015. At that time I will bring the ink and tools needed to help you print your block, while everyone else is working independently on an exercise.
For next class 3/26/15- The class will be working on portfolio exercises related to the use of text as a visual element. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, pencil, and black markers of all sizes.
Snow Update
For one more day, Ocean County College has decided to stay closed and clean up from yesterday's winter storm, which will require us to make a slight change to our planned semester schedule. What we would have done today (more charcoal drawing, week 7 on our syllabus) will simply be pushed to next week. The things planned for next week, the graded Full Value Still Life and the grading of the Midterm Portfolio will now be done the week after we return from spring break, and everything else on the schedule will correspondingly be pushed back a week, with one exception. Looks like we have to drop the original plans for week 11, a portfolio exercise where you would play around with the monotype process. It's messy, though most find it fun and interesting, but we have lost a meeting and this one week drawing related project is the easiest thing to lift out. Therefore you will not need to purchase the black oil paint or monotype printing plate.
Homework- what I had assigned on 2/27/15. If you've missed any this semester, this week is a good opportunity to catch up.
For next class 3/13/15- We will continue with value drawing using charcoal. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, both vine and compressed charcoal, a kneaded eraser, and spray fixative.
Snow Update
As of the scheduled start of tonight's class the snow was still falling in my area. No problem because the college was wise enough to cancel the whole day of classes more than 24 hours ago. The simple solution is we're just going to push everything back one week. Thanks to the spring break the week after next, some things go back even further. So here's the new plan:
Homework- The completed carved wood blocks for the black and white composition book illustration project are now due at the beginning of class on March 26, 2015. Next week I'll have wood for those who did not get it last time and you'll still have two weeks to work on it. Take advantage of the extra time. On that day I will help everyone individually print their blocks while the class works on a new assignment.
For next class 3/12/15- We will move onto the use of color, which will be part of just about everything we do the rest of the way. We'll be doing a portfolio exercise in basic color theory and color mixing. Bring your 18" x 24" pad, pencil and eraser, acrylic paints (red, blue, yellow, black, white), paint brushes, palette, palette knife, and water container.
