Pre IB Art 1 Self Portraits

We had some amazing self portraits this year.  Students worked from a photograph and used the grid method.  Each student did the math and determined what grid size to do based on the size of their original picture, and the final size picture they wanted.  The size of their artwork and surface they worked on depended on the media they wanted to use.  Being able to choose a media and then the correct surface and size are skills they will use in their future art classes when they are working on their independent investigations in IB.

David - cut paper

Logan M - colored pencil

Samantha - pencil

Kacie - soft pastel

Cassidy - pencil

Riane - penicl

Kirshten - soft pastel

Lauren - marker and colored pencil

Lena - pencil and watercolor

Jason - watercolor

Logan A - charcoal

Encaustics

This was the second year of experimenting with encaustics, painting with melted wax pigments. I use this as my "after AP project" the portfolios have been submitted but we still have about a month of school so we need to do something fun.





This year we tried using other media with the wax. To start with, we added color to our boards with DynaFlow. You can't use acrylics with the wax because it needs an absorbent surface. Watercolors might work but I haven't tried them yet.












To melt the wax pigments, wax medium, and beeswax I use these metal tins and an electric griddle. Next year I'm getting a small crock pot for the medium.





Students add the wax in layers.






Between each layer the piece needs to be fused with the heat gun.






This year we tried out powdered pigments with the wax. I have metallics, some colors that were donated, and graphite powder. After the wax layer cools, pigments can be brushed on. Depending on how close you hold the heat gun to your work when you fuse this layer, you can get some neat effects.






The other media we used is oil paint. You can incise lines and texture into the cooled wax then rub oil paint into the lines. We used vegetable oil and paper towels to remove the excess.





Some students also embedded string into the layers of wax.






We used clay tools and razor blades to cut into the wax or smooth out the surface. When the wax is completely cooled we buff the piece with paper towels to make them shiny.





The students were quite successful with this project. My focus with this is experimentation rather than a perfect finished product, this allows the students to have fun with it.

My next post will have student examples.

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Mixed Media

In Pre-IB Art 1 students learned to mix media while creating pictures of the bicycle.  The students had to make choices about color and composition while mixing tempera and soft pastel, combining drawing with repeated patterns.

Nathan

Anmol

Sianna

Melissa

Sasha

Casey

First Week Assignments in AP Art - Mixed Media

Last Friday AP Art students got their sketchbooks and we did a mixed media assignment focusing on text as a design element.

The whole class gathered around the back table filled with gesso, acrylic paint, liquid watercolors, stamps and stencils.  Students had fun playing with the different media, building up layers and creating a composition that spread across two pages in their books.

Here are a few examples from the students' books.

Collage!

Check out the collage work by artist Ashley Barron.  I love the variation in color and shapes in her work.  In an interview she talks about how she collects all sorts of papers and paints them with colors and textures to add something personal to her work.

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So you think you can't draw?  That doesn't mean you can't produce high quality 2D design work.  A focus on shape, composition, the balance between variety and unity, and high level craftsmanship is important.

via Notpaper

Caroline Saul

Check out this work by Caroline Saul. She uses plastic milk bottles to create her sculptures. Read more about her work at Art MoCo and see more pictures at her website.

I know many of you like to work with recycled and found materials, usually by adding them to a larger work of art, but what do you think about using those recycled materials for the base for your work?