Hello and welcome! The above tabs will help you navigate for more information on how to contact me,extra credit, and artwork galleries. You are expected to come to class with a sketchbook, pencil, sharpener, and eraser. Be sure to come prepared for class; you never know when a random sketchbook check will happen!
Your projects are worth 90% of your grade. Here's what that means....
As you work, I will give you helpful critiques and advice on how to further develop your art. With each new project, I will have a poster on the board stating the project's objectives. If you go above and beyond the lesson's objectives, you may receive between a 90 and 100. What that means to me, is that you take the advice that I give you and really develop your skill and push yourself out of the comfort zone. You will surprise yourself with your ability! And if you aren't happy with the result, there are these wonderful little things at the end of pencils that allow you to erase your mistakes. Haha.
As always, you may come into my classroom during your advisory periods, and lunch/recess.
As a final component of each project, you will be expected to mat your artwork. I will be looking to see that you have followed the directions on the "Matting Your Artwork" poster that is on the board. You are to use four staples in each corner of your artwork, line it up straightly to the matte board below it, and label it appropriately. This final step gives an artistic flair to your artwork and is quite impressive when done correctly.
Sketchbook is worth 10% of your grade.
Each of my students are required to bring a sketchbook to art every day that they have art class. A spiral bound sketchbook is best, as the pages stay inside longer without coming undone easier. During the first five minutes of art class, I will have a still life set up on a stand for you to sketch. You will have three days to complete the sketch, during those first five minutes of class. Your sketchbook is worth 10% of your grade. I will be sporadically checking it throughout the semester to see that you have to come to class prepared and that your sketches are up to date.
Drawing from observation is such an important skill to learn. As small children, we draw from imagination as a way to set off our creativity. As we get older, we become more observant. Through observation, you as an artist can really develop your drawing skills. Once you have mastered drawing with pencil, the rest of the art mediums we will be using are a breeze!
I want you to enjoy this still life sketching time. I want you to view it as a time to let your mind relax and unwind. To let go of the pressures of drawing anything "perfectly" and to just try observe and draw the best that you can.