Geometric Landscape

Would you like to make sure your students know how to mix a color, in this case green? Then give them one of Crayola’s Watercolor Mixing Sets (which basically only has shades of primary colors) and tell them their job is to figure out how. I asked my students to not only make green, but at least three different shades of green for a simple but colorful abstract landscape.

1. To begin the drawing, I set up a lot of limitations just to keep students from getting hung up on drawing flowers or animals or even a sun. They were to draw at least three triangles trees, with simple trunks, and a wavy ground line.
2. When the pencil drawing was complete, they had the option of tracing their trees and coloring their trunks with brown or black crayons.
3. Next, the fun part, making green. Once the students figured out that the cyan + yellow made a pretty turquoise green, some realized that yellow + the dark blue included in the tray made a nice mossy green. From there, proportions of color could change, or white could be added to make a tint of a color. I encouraged students to leave the ground white, but it was optional. They sky could be painted any color ( I hate to make too many rules).
4. As a followup, small white paper circles made with a hole punch were glued on top to make a sprinkle of snow.
I plan to use this art for our holiday fundraiser, as it makes nice seasonal art that all may enjoy.

Drawing and Shading Lesson

This project was a big success in my after school drawing class today. I started at Michael's where I found an assortment of bright red gourds and a marbled pencil crayon that matched their coloring perfectly, simplifying the process of coloring and shading for any age.

1. The gourds come in small sets. I scanned a handful and made color printouts for my youngest students. I wanted them to observe the shaded edges of each piece, but all students had the option of sketching from the real models. I demonstrated how to look carefully at the shape of each gourd, and had them draw several randomly across their paper. The stems were filled in with pencil, as the gray matched the real thing pretty well.
2. When the drawing was done, each student got a Koh-I-Noor Hardmuth Magic Wild Pencil (about $1.50) to lightly color in each gourd.
3. The students sketched firmly around the edges with their pencils, making a soft transition from dark to light, without hard edges. For added dimension, a small amount was erased to highlight the contours of each shape.

Medium shades, plus dark shadows and a little highlight can put any student on the road to more realistic drawing.

Vintage Halloween Mural

I've always enjoyed vintage Halloween art for its whimsical quality. I thought it would be fun to incorporate elements from my favorite pieces to make this, my first Halloween mural.

My pdf file consists of 30 pages and measures 40" x 60" when complete. I'll deliver my Halloween Mural via email, for just $5. Click the “Add to Cart” button for same day delivery.