Interactive Portraits
Beth Conover
Title: Interactive Portraits
Grade: Sixth
PA Academic Standards For The Arts And Humanities: 9.1.5.E- Know and demonstrate how arts can communicate experiences, stories, or emotions through the production of works in the arts. 9.3.5.A- Identify critical process in the examination of works in the arts and humanities. 9.4.5.D- Explain choices made regarding media, technique, form, subject matter and themes that communicate the artist’s philosophy within a work in the arts and humanities.
Objectives:
Knowledge: Students learn about internal and external factors, and think about how we are affected by them. They also learn to be more aware of their interactions with the world and art. They will learn about the artist Grant Wood and his 1930 painting American Gothic.
Skill: Students will learn how to manipulate pastels while strengthening their decision-making skills. They will also be reminded how to set up a successful composition.
Attitude: Students learn to be aware of how the outside world influences us, and how their art will influence others. Students also become more aware of artists of other countries, and how they themselves can affect people in different areas.
Prepare ahead: Gather visuals, former student examples, information on Grant Wood, and supplies.
Prior knowledge: Students have some knowledge of the elements of art, and how to draw using crayons. They also have knowledge of primary and secondary colors.
Motivation:
Questions leading the students to discovery:
Good morning! I am really excited about today because you are going to be starting interactive cartoon portraits. You may have seen them around the school last year in the lunchroom. Today we will be looking at the artist Grant Wood. He was an artist in the 1930’s. His work American Gothic was recognized and won a national award in 1930. He became a celebrity overnight. He was kind of like today’s Hannah Montana, or who can came someone famous? Good, right like _______. Why do you think Mr. Wood made the choice to have two people in his painting? Right maybe he wanted to show a family. Why do you think he added all of this stuff into the picture? Right to show depth and the character. Just like you have certain things on your sketchbook cover Mr. Wood included objects so we (as viewers) know a few things about them.
Today you will be coming up with sketches of characters that will be interacting with a background. Who remembers what the background is (raise your hand)? That’s right it is the back portion of a painting or drawing that makes objects in the front stand out (forward). Everyone is influenced by outside factors whether they are internal or external factors. What would be something that is an external factor? That’s right, magazines, movies, television, and even the web can be external factors. This means they change how you interact with objects. How could you convey or tell a story in your work? Who has an idea and how you can convey it in a work of art? Art is like a mask. You can be anything your head can imagine, it is magic! So you can be what you really want to be in your art, or create the world you want to live in. Today you will be starting sketches for your final large piece. After you have general idea sketched of what you would like to do you can start mapping out your large piece. After you have laid down a general sketch you will use sharpie to cement it. Then you can begin filling in your world and character with color. Another fun part is that you have the choice to pick which material you will be using, whether you are more comfortable using chalk pastel or oil pastel. I will be going over the two materials during my demonstration. You will start on your large drawing with a face template and then you will be free to start creating your character and environment. I want to see how your environment is affecting your character. I also want you to pick two elements of art to use in this piece; so one obvious element is line. Who can tell me another appropriate element? Good, texture would be a good element to include in your drawing.
Demonstration: Okay so like I said before you will be starting with a quick sketch. So I am going to start drawing a basic figure using a circle to start as the head. Then my character is going to be near the ocean because I really enjoy the sea and the beach. Maybe my character is a sea creature that also lives on land. So I will put fins on her (since I am a girl) then arms and hair. So now I have to think how her external factors will affect her. So maybe I want her to be happy because she has gold seashells. So I am going to draw in some gold shells and start fish. Maybe the fish are happy too, so they are jumping for joy out of the water. So I have the basic idea I want to start with and I like the composition I have so I will begin transferring it onto my large final sheet. When you are doing this you will ask either teacher if you can continue onto the final sheet (make sure school appropriate). Now I am going to transfer me idea and then blacken the lines I want to keep. After I have my basic lines drawn I will begin to add color. I want to show you the differences of chalk pastel and oil pastel. They both have advantages and disadvantages. Oil pastels have great bold and bright colors, but they are messy and take a while to cover an entire page. Chalk pastels have lighter more subdued colors, but are easier to blend and spread. Today we will be focusing on color blending. Try and flawlessly blend the colors so you can not see the line where the colors meet. It is up to you to pick which one you think is best for your drawing.
Visual Aids: Cartoon power point (Ben 10, Batman, Madagascar, Spiderman, Despicable Me, and Legend of the Guardians) and Wood’s American Gothic.
Reference to art history: Grant Wood artist of the 1930’s.
Exemplars: Former student work and teacher’s example.
Activity:
What will the students do? Students will begin their project by sketching ideas. After they have their concrete idea and get it approved by the teacher they will begin laying down their ideas on the large final paper. After their line drawing is complete they will finalize it by using sharpie. After they have blackened all their lines they will pick which material they are going to use and will begin filling in their character and background enabling their idea to come to life.
Supplies: Pencils, Sharpies, Rulers, sketch paper, 18x24 white paper, head templates, oil pastels, and chalk pastels.
Vocabulary: Internal/ External factors, elements of art, Grant Wood’s American Gothic, color blending, chalk pastel, and oil pastels.
Closure: Okay class, who can raise their hand and tell me what artist I showed you today? Now what is one thing he added to his picture to give his characters an identity and allowed them to interact with their surroundings? Right a pitchfork (house, glasses, pin/ broach). So for next class I want you to be thinking about your character and what objects you can include in your drawing to allow your characters to interact with the environment.
PA Academic Standards For The Arts And Humanities: 9.1.5.E- Know and demonstrate how arts can communicate experiences, stories, or emotions through the production of works in the arts. 9.3.5.A- Identify critical process in the examination of works in the arts and humanities. 9.4.5.D- Explain choices made regarding media, technique, form, subject matter and themes that communicate the artist’s philosophy within a work in the arts and humanities.
Assessment Strategy: What tool will I use to evaluate the learning outcomes? I will be asking questions through out the students work time and during closure to enforce ideas and re-enforce important facts. Students should be able to answer question about the motivation, also their work should reflect knowledge from the motivation (obvious front ground and background).
Correlated Activity? Students will continue their character in a two class mini lesson. In this lesson the students will make a storyboard that uses their same character. This allows them to evolve their character and deepen their creativity into a full story.
Interdisciplinary Domains: Art History: Making students aware of other artists and their work. Today students will learn about Grant Wood and his painting American Gothic.
Reflections: I will watch the students and push their ideas depending on their skill levels. It will be important to monitor the students in order to get a feel for their capability.
Title: Interactive Portraits
Grade: Sixth
PA Academic Standards For The Arts And Humanities: 9.1.5.E- Know and demonstrate how arts can communicate experiences, stories, or emotions through the production of works in the arts. 9.3.5.A- Identify critical process in the examination of works in the arts and humanities. 9.4.5.D- Explain choices made regarding media, technique, form, subject matter and themes that communicate the artist’s philosophy within a work in the arts and humanities.
Objectives:
Knowledge: Students learn about internal and external factors, and think about how we are affected by them. They also learn to be more aware of their interactions with the world and art. They will learn about the artist Grant Wood and his 1930 painting American Gothic.
Skill: Students will learn how to manipulate pastels while strengthening their decision-making skills. They will also be reminded how to set up a successful composition.
Attitude: Students learn to be aware of how the outside world influences us, and how their art will influence others. Students also become more aware of artists of other countries, and how they themselves can affect people in different areas.
Prepare ahead: Gather visuals, former student examples, information on Grant Wood, and supplies.
Prior knowledge: Students have some knowledge of the elements of art, and how to draw using crayons. They also have knowledge of primary and secondary colors.
Motivation:
Questions leading the students to discovery:
Good morning! I am really excited about today because you are going to be starting interactive cartoon portraits. You may have seen them around the school last year in the lunchroom. Today we will be looking at the artist Grant Wood. He was an artist in the 1930’s. His work American Gothic was recognized and won a national award in 1930. He became a celebrity overnight. He was kind of like today’s Hannah Montana, or who can came someone famous? Good, right like _______. Why do you think Mr. Wood made the choice to have two people in his painting? Right maybe he wanted to show a family. Why do you think he added all of this stuff into the picture? Right to show depth and the character. Just like you have certain things on your sketchbook cover Mr. Wood included objects so we (as viewers) know a few things about them.
Today you will be coming up with sketches of characters that will be interacting with a background. Who remembers what the background is (raise your hand)? That’s right it is the back portion of a painting or drawing that makes objects in the front stand out (forward). Everyone is influenced by outside factors whether they are internal or external factors. What would be something that is an external factor? That’s right, magazines, movies, television, and even the web can be external factors. This means they change how you interact with objects. How could you convey or tell a story in your work? Who has an idea and how you can convey it in a work of art? Art is like a mask. You can be anything your head can imagine, it is magic! So you can be what you really want to be in your art, or create the world you want to live in. Today you will be starting sketches for your final large piece. After you have general idea sketched of what you would like to do you can start mapping out your large piece. After you have laid down a general sketch you will use sharpie to cement it. Then you can begin filling in your world and character with color. Another fun part is that you have the choice to pick which material you will be using, whether you are more comfortable using chalk pastel or oil pastel. I will be going over the two materials during my demonstration. You will start on your large drawing with a face template and then you will be free to start creating your character and environment. I want to see how your environment is affecting your character. I also want you to pick two elements of art to use in this piece; so one obvious element is line. Who can tell me another appropriate element? Good, texture would be a good element to include in your drawing.
Demonstration: Okay so like I said before you will be starting with a quick sketch. So I am going to start drawing a basic figure using a circle to start as the head. Then my character is going to be near the ocean because I really enjoy the sea and the beach. Maybe my character is a sea creature that also lives on land. So I will put fins on her (since I am a girl) then arms and hair. So now I have to think how her external factors will affect her. So maybe I want her to be happy because she has gold seashells. So I am going to draw in some gold shells and start fish. Maybe the fish are happy too, so they are jumping for joy out of the water. So I have the basic idea I want to start with and I like the composition I have so I will begin transferring it onto my large final sheet. When you are doing this you will ask either teacher if you can continue onto the final sheet (make sure school appropriate). Now I am going to transfer me idea and then blacken the lines I want to keep. After I have my basic lines drawn I will begin to add color. I want to show you the differences of chalk pastel and oil pastel. They both have advantages and disadvantages. Oil pastels have great bold and bright colors, but they are messy and take a while to cover an entire page. Chalk pastels have lighter more subdued colors, but are easier to blend and spread. Today we will be focusing on color blending. Try and flawlessly blend the colors so you can not see the line where the colors meet. It is up to you to pick which one you think is best for your drawing.
Visual Aids: Cartoon power point (Ben 10, Batman, Madagascar, Spiderman, Despicable Me, and Legend of the Guardians) and Wood’s American Gothic.
Reference to art history: Grant Wood artist of the 1930’s.
Exemplars: Former student work and teacher’s example.
Activity:
What will the students do? Students will begin their project by sketching ideas. After they have their concrete idea and get it approved by the teacher they will begin laying down their ideas on the large final paper. After their line drawing is complete they will finalize it by using sharpie. After they have blackened all their lines they will pick which material they are going to use and will begin filling in their character and background enabling their idea to come to life.
Supplies: Pencils, Sharpies, Rulers, sketch paper, 18x24 white paper, head templates, oil pastels, and chalk pastels.
Vocabulary: Internal/ External factors, elements of art, Grant Wood’s American Gothic, color blending, chalk pastel, and oil pastels.
Closure: Okay class, who can raise their hand and tell me what artist I showed you today? Now what is one thing he added to his picture to give his characters an identity and allowed them to interact with their surroundings? Right a pitchfork (house, glasses, pin/ broach). So for next class I want you to be thinking about your character and what objects you can include in your drawing to allow your characters to interact with the environment.
PA Academic Standards For The Arts And Humanities: 9.1.5.E- Know and demonstrate how arts can communicate experiences, stories, or emotions through the production of works in the arts. 9.3.5.A- Identify critical process in the examination of works in the arts and humanities. 9.4.5.D- Explain choices made regarding media, technique, form, subject matter and themes that communicate the artist’s philosophy within a work in the arts and humanities.
Assessment Strategy: What tool will I use to evaluate the learning outcomes? I will be asking questions through out the students work time and during closure to enforce ideas and re-enforce important facts. Students should be able to answer question about the motivation, also their work should reflect knowledge from the motivation (obvious front ground and background).
Correlated Activity? Students will continue their character in a two class mini lesson. In this lesson the students will make a storyboard that uses their same character. This allows them to evolve their character and deepen their creativity into a full story.
Interdisciplinary Domains: Art History: Making students aware of other artists and their work. Today students will learn about Grant Wood and his painting American Gothic.
Reflections: I will watch the students and push their ideas depending on their skill levels. It will be important to monitor the students in order to get a feel for their capability.