Category: Visual Art

Art 7: Family / Mixed techniques

(Group A) The children were invited to work with several techniques: drawing, collage and painting. First we drew puppets that represented our family members, and then we cut them out. After this we transferred them to a new piece of paper, and using rollers and colourful water-based printing inks (yellow, red, green and blue), we were left with white figures upon a colourful background. We also glued the original puppets to the family composition, which resulted in a mirroring effect or contrasting shadows because they had been painted. We used black ink to draw details of faces or clothes onto our figures and also to write their names. Some children finished off with a colourful background that united the family and brought together the final look.

Art 6: Ink wash landscapes

(Mixed groups) We were working with an ink wash technique, in which a range of ink density produces astonishing variations in tonality. For this, the kids created paintings with only water and black ink. This technique can be admired in traditional Chinese paintings for the delicate nuances in tonality of black, grey and white and variations of ink strokes: thick or thin, fast or slow, square or round, and spaces left untouched. As a final touch we also used white pen to emphasise details when the black ink painting had dried. The children enjoyed this assignment because of its playfulness and the freedom of expression it permitted.

Art 5: Cardboard fantasy animals

(Group A) We took advantage of old packaging material that had accumulated in our studio:-) It was also a good time to change the subject and become more free; our theme focused on animals arising from fantasy or dreams. First we made sketches of what our animals should look like. By recycling the cardboard boxes we were stimulated to work more physically as well as to envision 3D shapes. There were no restrictions in size or colour, so that all possibilities were open to us and we could let the magic come to life. The results are fun to look at!

Art 4: Study of flowers

(Group B) We worked together with our guest teacher Manuela Bianco, who specialises in drawing flowers using a blue pen and white pencil (www.manuelabianco.com). Manuela brought several kinds of fresh and dried flowers to choose from and showed us the secrets behind her drawing style. —As a warm-up, we drew just one flower with a pencil. —The second task was to draw two to three different flowers with the use of water-soluble crayons. Even young children were able to depict the smallest details and by the end of the class the group had created a collection of sensitive flower studies. Thank you Manuela!

Art 3: Still-life with a blueprint fabric

(Group A) We focused on drawing and painting a still-life with a distinctive patterned tablecloth (a Slovak traditional blueprint fabric). The task was not easy in respect of the three objects and the tablecloth pattern, but it didn’t stop the children from delving straight into drawing. For painting we deliberately chose to use only three colours: two shades of blue and black. All children are true painters!

Art 2: Self-portrait

—Observe your face in the mirror, notice its main features, emotions, colours and also background.
—Paint the self-portrait as large as possible without using sketching tools, but you may outline the important parts with paint strokes.
We looked at the Fauves and the painting of Kees van Dongen, The Corn Poppy, 1919, for inspiration. We focused on painting the background simultaneously with the face—mentioning the theory of complementary colours in order to obtain the right contrast between colours.
The children worked expressively and spontaneously while also demonstrating an eagerness to learn. I am really enjoying their results.

Art 1: Writing/drawing own story

In this session we stimulated our storytelling and writing skills along with drawing and illustrating. We took advantage of our opportunity to host Sacha, a visiting art teacher from the US, who helped some children to build their stories in English. The children chose 3–4 objects from the collection I had prepared for them. The objects of their choice, whether funny, playful, bizarre, ordinary or very special, became the characters in their story. After writing a short story they went on to draw the objects that represented their main characters. Some children chose to do a single illustration, while others were more attracted to making a storyboard.

Art 9: Book illustration

For this art class I asked the children to bring their favourite books and to select a short piece of text. The assignment was to imagine our own fantasy illustration for the existing book, but some children chose to illustrate their own stories. Before the process started we looked at various children’s books with distinctive illustration styles and techniques. I proposed working with black marker (or ink) and enriching it with a colourful collage technique.

Art 5: Clay facial masks

For inspiration we looked at the tribal art of Africa, Oceania and the Americas, especially at their facial masks. We mentioned also Pablo Picasso and Paul Gauguin, who were seduced by the beauty and originality of exotic art: sculptures and facial masks. Using our fantasy, we first sketched the masks on paper with black markers and colourful pastels. While we listened to soft drum music, the emphasis was put on spontaneity, expressiveness and depicting one’s emotions. In the second part of our class we worked with clay to transform our sketches freely into 3D objects.
The masks will go through a firing process and in the next class we will be painting them to bring them to life even more.