Many
Art I students or absolute beginners at the high school level require a great
deal of practice when learning how to shade forms. That said, I’ve assigned to
eighth graders the two exercises described here. And nearly every one of them
enjoyed triumph with both! Performing the tasks required of them, my students, um, drew on their knowledge of essential art concepts.
It was fun to go loopy and bundle up, too!
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| This might be too challenging for fifth or sixth graders. |
GETTING STARTED Before
class, I had cut white drawing paper into 4.5” x 12” strips, one for everybody.
Using transparent tape, I affixed one end of a paper strip to a drawing board
to show the students how to start. Then I twisted or curved the strip toward
the center and fastened that portion down, too. A final bump or curl, taped
down at the paper’s end, makes the form even more interesting. I asked the
class to create their own unique, "unboring" forms directly on their desks, but
to leave work space on their desks for themselves!
Before
my demonstration on the board, we held a discussion on the element of form,
with emphasis on its three-dimensionality and the use of light and dark to
depict that. Then I drew an enlarged sketch (outlines only) of my bendy, taped-down
example for everyone to see.
I
passed around several finished works to exemplify our objective. My own shading
on a whiteboard didn’t have the quality I wanted, so I used a piece of 18” x
24” white drawing paper and charcoal instead. Nattering away about values,
gradations, and hills and valleys, I smeared charcoal from dark to light to
transform my outline drawing into a form with mass. Then the kids began their
own works with soft pencils, and I was able to walk the aisles to assist. I
directed the artists to include the cast shadow on their desks, to ground their
subject.
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| A form that takes up space! |
I
reminded the students to try to use their blackest blacks and their lightest grays—a
full range of values. The class members were reminded of several fundamentals
with the “wavy strip” lesson. ART TIP: Imaginative kids might poke a hole in their paper forms. I had one who even left a pencil in!
A BUNDLE OF FUN The second, related activity is best for
another day, especially if class time is only 40 minutes or so. I had been
given scraps of flexible foam rubber padding, so I shared a piece with each
student. I instructed them to squeeze and squash their foam any way they
wanted, and then tie a piece of string tightly around the bunched-up form.
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| Charcoal and white chalk on blue paper. |
They
could roll it, pinch it, and fold it any which way before tying it into an
interesting form, but they should keep in mind that they would be drawing the
bundle! If it was terribly complex, they could be quite challenged.
WE BEGAN very lightly with charcoal pencils on
light blue construction paper. But you
could use any toned paper (not too dark), even brown wrapping paper! Following
the contours of their bundles with their eyes, class members completed line
drawings first.
Then
we modeled the sketches with shading, just as we had done in pencil shading the
drawings of the wavy paper strips. Again, including in their drawing the shadow
cast on their desks was part of my message. “It helps to anchor the drawn form
to the page.”
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| Ask a carpet-layer or re-upholsterer for foam scraps! |
Lastly,
here’s the reason for the toned paper: We added highlights anywhere the light
would strike, especially the rounded tops of bulges. That finishing touch
helped to illustrate the volume of the forms very well.
MATERIALS
- White and toned drawing paper
- Soft drawing pencils
- Transparent tape
- Charcoal pencils
- Upholstery foam scraps or carpet foam padding
- String or rubber bands
- White chalk or white pastels
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: to earn the importance of drawing what they see by using the elements of form and value, & to create a realistic work of art presenting the illusion of mass.
This is a terrific way to create beauty from unloved, unwanted books.
