Daily Sketchbook 3/7

German Expressionism.

We have looked at a little of this art through our artist of the month series in the past (remember Kirchner, for example), but I want you to follow THIS LINK and choose one of the first 20 or so images that comes up and then follow the below steps.

1) look up this prompt on the ipad if you have not already begun to do so (no phones today)
2) enlarge your chosen image as much as possible
3) save it to the photos of the ipad
4) go way back to the watercolor layer you created on 2/11
5) spend today drawing out the image you have chosen, lightly, in pencil
6) photo your image and upload it to Canvas
7) remember which ipad you are using

Be specific with this, and mark what parts are supposed to be black. We will come back to this image again later this week.
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Alternatively, and you can thank Abbi for this, you may create a pencil drawing of a hot air balloon carrying a rooster. This will ultimately be something like a fill-in ink piece so keep that in mind as you draw out your image(s).

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 4/1 AND 4/3

We are near the end of our "daily drawing" routine so I would like to take some time near the end of our journey by mostly ending how we mostly began.
So figure drawing it is - for at least a little bit.

Meet up in the corner of the room near the screen and I will put an image up on the screen for us to all spend some time with. And...go!

For the one of you who was absent on 4/1, here is the image we used.

For our last day before spring break, Friday 4/3, here we go...

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/24

Art is work, but art should also be fun. I'm ok with you stuggling from time to time, but especially in your sketchbook you should feel the freedom to play.
I love this guy's (Scott C.) work because it is playful and so different than how I typically work. I don't know if you have noticed that I have a book of his work in the classroom, but I would prod you to look through it just because it is fun.

At any rate, I know you know I am really really trying to get you to build a habit of daily work in your sketchbook/life, and to see that little bits of time can be piled up to add up to something much more significant over a period of days.
You don't need to spend hours the night before something is due in order to get all of that work done.

Since I only see you in class twice this week we are going to take both days and work on the same page so that I can see how the image develops.

Today's directions: take one of the below images and draw it out with pencil lines only. No shading, no color, only pencil lines/shapes.

It doesn't matter which image and it shouldn't take you all of the allotted 15 minutes, but begin asap.

Remember, pencil lines only for today. Have fun.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/20

You now know about Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, so below you will find a woodcut he did of fellow artist Jean Arp.

Grab a sharpie and recreate the below image in your sketchbook - without drawing it out in pencil first.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/18

Sketchnoting. Maybe you have heard of it, maybe not. It can be a really interesting thing to do in terms of taking "notes" of a lecture/talk/presentation.
Since all of you draw well, it could be a really useful tool to have in your bag of tricks as you move forward in your education/life, too.

There are plenty of studies out there that give evidence of drawing/writing creating a deeper connection with material - which bodes well for learning and execution both in and out of any classroom/meeting you may be a part of.

If you want to learn more about this process there are a couple of good links to check out some time both HERE and HERE.

For today, though, I just want you to copy the below photo in your sketchbook as thoroughly and accurately as possible.

 

If you don't recognize the names/ideas/words from above, it would be interesting for you to explore those on your own time as well. For real.

Just as a point of reference, the above image came from Doug Neill at www.graphicrecorder.com 

 

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/16

Being thoughtful/mindful of your surroundings is always important, or as I have said many times:

Awareness comes in many forms but here is how I want you to apply it for your daily drawing today:

• think of an "everyday" object in your house (something that you see and/or use all the time without even considering it)
• this should be something that is "always there" but not something such as your smartphone or laptop
• it could be the funky kitchen timer you always use for making cookies or the rooster lamp your grandmother gave your dad or the alarm clock you got when you were nine and still sometimes use
• close your eyes and picture it in your head - think about it from all sides
• in the middle-ish of your page in pencil only, with your eyes still closed, begin to describe the object using words only
• is is curvy, sharp, metal, cold, shiny, rough, what kind of rough, tall, made of wood, does it have slits or holes...etc, etc
• spend no more than five minutes writing with your eyes closed
• once you have described it with as much language as possible, open your eyes and begin to draw your object in pencil only
• draw it as accurately as possible in proportion/line/shading as possible in the remaining ten minutes (or so)
 

 

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/12

Last time you got out your pen and ink and did some drawing, so I want us to continue in that vein today.
Here are your directions: get out your sketchbook, bottle of ink, medium or large watercolor brush and some paper towels.

Use this link and choose one of the first black and white ink/brush "drawings" of Raymond Pettibon to duplicate on the next available page in your sketchbook.

I will be looking at how much and how accurate your image is. DO NOT DRAW IN PENCIL before beginning with your brush work.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/10

How long has it been since you busted out your pen & ink?
Probably longer than you would like to admit. So...that's what we're using today.

Supplies:
Large Pen, ink bottle, paper towel, mirror

Directions:

• read all of the directions before beginning
• Draw on the page you did last Wed. and Fri. (with the stream of conscious writing and the teardrop pattern)
• position your mirror so that you are in the center of the field of view
• begin by drawing the outer contour of your head (head, shoulders, etc)
• do not make your self so large there is no room for any negative space
• do not draw your face or any detail in your head
• only draw the negative space that you see in the mirror
• only draw directly with the pen (do not sketch in pencil first)
• draw as informatively and neatly as possible
• set your timer and draw for only 11 minutes (it only takes 2 min tops to get your materials and get set up) so that you can be totally finished and uploaded before 15 minutes of class has expired

Go!

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/6

Last time you did some stream of conscious writing regarding balance. Today I want you to use the below image to create a pattern on top of the writing you did last time.
You may use watercolor or colored pencil but this image is to be layered on top of your text.
Note: the teardrop shape on the right is just a detail of the full piece on the left.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/4 (Creating Balance Writing Exercise)

In life we all strive for balance. Sometimes this is super easy, but more often than not it proves difficult.
I mean, physically there is this:

Cool I know.

But physically creating balance is only one way to approach the idea of creating balance.

Read the below questions, close your phone and then do some stream of conscious writing on a blank page of your sketchbook.

Don't think about what is "right" or "wrong", just write. Get as much written as possible until I tell you to stop. Please also cease your conversations because we all know that if your are super focused on letting the words flow you can't carry on a conversation at the same time.

What are some of the most important things in your life?

How do you engage with one or more of these things?

How would you ideally engage with one or more of these things if nothing else "got in the way"?

What are some of the "have to do" things in your life you feel consistently obligated to engage in?

How do you engage in these things?

Do you feel you do these things well?

Do you feel you do these things efficiently?

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 3/2 - Blackout Version

Austin Kleon is a favorite. Much about the career he has constructed for himself is crazy great, and he is someone I suggest you investigate/look up at some point.

He first became "known" online for creating what he has termed "Newspaper Blackouts"

I want you to watch the following video (volume not necessary) and use the provided magazine pages to create your own.
(If the video doesn't play, try clicking on THIS LINK)

When you are finished you should use rubber  cement or glue stick or scotch tape to attach your blackout poem to the next available page in your sketchbook.

As an added bonus, I will call on a few of you to read yours aloud to the class!

You are being timed...Go!

Art 4 daily Drawing for 2/26

Look at these cute felines:

For your daily drawing today I want you to recreate this project in your sketchbook in your sketchbook.

Cutting out cat heads from magazine pages without drawing then out first, and then use a marker (or marker type object) to add the features so it actually looks like a cat. 

Then use the rubber cement, glue sticks, or scotch tape to paste them in a page of your sketchbook.

You will need a page or two from a magazine (I have a pile of them ready for you), some scissors, a sharpie or other marker, and some rubber cement or a glue stick.

How many can you create in 15 minutes? Go!

Monday Warm Up

Art 2's, welcome back.
We'll start our time together by getting the ol' arm moving quickly.

Step 1: Set your timer for five minutes and draw the following image on a fresh page of your sketchbook (orient your sketchbook horizontally please).

Step 2: Set your timer for another five minutes and draw the following image on the same page as the above quail in your sketchbook.

Step 3: Set your timer for two minutes and create a "conversation" between the two fowl.

Step 4: Smile. You are done.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for the week of 2/9

What does 45 mins of solid drawing look like?
At this point in your studies it should be pretty significant. You should be able to get a lot of high quality work done as you have a lot of practice under your belt.

This week you will work on the same image for the first 15 minutes of class all three times I see you. My expectations are that the drawing not only be accurate in proportion but also in things such as value and texture.

Begin with the children and what they are holding/using, and work from there. The points for these three days will be based off the progress and product both.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 2/5

Last time you drew one of the two pictures in THIS POST from 2/3. You should have been focused on getting an accurate image and one with clean lines without getting to any (or maybe very little) shading.

This time I want you to take the OTHER photo and incorporate the head/face of that person as an addition to the head/face of the drawing you did on Tuesday.

Please use pencil again, and focus on accuracy of proportion, line, shape, etc. before beginning shading.
Yes, it will look strange. That's the point - to get you to expand what you think of as a portrait.

If you have time to begin shading, perfect, but approach that slowly - as you would a more finished piece.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 2/3

Below you will find two photographs by the amazing Irving Penn. If you don't know his work - well, you probably do but don't realize it - you should look it up with the above link.

I want you to choose one of the photographs and begin to reproduce it as accurately as possible in pencil only.
At first focus on line. Don't worry about shading until you have your lines/shapes finished. We will be spending more than one day on this drawing so don't try to rush through and "finish" in one 15 minute session.

 

Just think about the figure in this exercise. I don't care so much about the background, and intentionally picked images with, basically, nothing there. Cheers.

 

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 1/30

I like this one. It's something I've been doing a lot in my daily sketchbook for some reason the past few months, and I have no idea why.

Step 1) draw one of the below moose images in the next blank page of your sketchbook.

 

Step 2) with your moose drawing from above, combine either

1. a minimum of three eggs or
2. the below photograph in some visually interesting way

Have fun with this and be goofy. I sort of got this idea from THIS GUY.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 1/28

Ok, this will be fun.
I want you to open up to the last class period's list of brainstormed subjects and follow the below directions.

• draw on top of the list(s) you made last class
• draw in pencil only
• draw an apple looking into a mirror
• reflected in the mirror must be a pineapple
• you must include some sort of context outside of those three objects
• you must come at least close to filling at least one page with your initial line drawing
• you must at least begin shading at least one of the above three mentioned objects
• I should be able to see drawn images and text in the photo you upload to canvas today
• you may NOT draw from photographs/images
• set the timer on your phone for 15 min as soon as you finish reading this and don't stop drawing until the timer goes off - other than that you shouldn't be looking at your phone for images at all (or any other image source)

This isn't about perfection, it is about working. Not overthinking, just working. Go.

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 1/26

There is a lot that can be done in terms of thinking about your work, and how you approach it.
One of the examples I always use in class has to do with water. I use this as it is a very important to me personally but also because it is easy to illustrate.

For example, let's make a list: a shower, a rain shower, a puddle, a puddle with a reflection, a puddle with a green stem sprouting up from it, a creek, a creek in the mountains, a creek with an abandoned tire sticking halfway out of it, a small pond/lake with a kid on a tire swing above it (see the connection between these last two?), a rain boot stuck in a mud puddle, a swimming pool, a swimming pool with someone jumping in it so it makes a splash, a small kiddie pool with a water ring in it, a small kiddie pool floating in a larger pool with an inflatable toy in it, a life raft in the middle of the ocean, a waterfall, a waterfall splashing on rocks, a series of three waterfalls (odd numbers are always good), a goose reflected in a lake, the Mississippi river with a paddle boat on it, Huck Finn on a raft, the ocean breaking on the beach, the ocean washing up some sort of treasure, the ocean washing away a heart - or other message - that has been drawn into the sand on the beach, a rubber ducky floating in a sink of water, a kid in the bathtub playing with toys, just the toys and little bits of water left over from a kid's bath, lily pads floating on water, and on and on and on

Those were just off the top of my head over the last two minutes (yes, I timed myself). Some came from the idea before, some came just from thinking of my own experiences such as backpacking in the Sierra's and giving children baths.

Sometimes when thinking about a project or study drawings I feel like it is best to just begin by brainstorming, and that doesn't even have to be drawing per se.
When I look at your list and think of "an antique", this is exactly what I would do, make a list.
Next I would think about context and maybe even make a list of where that subject might be.
Later I would look for pictures - after I have a lot of options.

I want your "drawing" for today to be a times writing exercise.

Take "an antique", "under wraps", and "a machine" and set your timer for five minutes. For each of these topics I want you to make a list of as many things as you can think of for each of them. If it's me I'm just going to make a list as I did above - which to be true is sort of difficult to read, or make a bullet pointed list or write sentences out for each idea.

Just don't stop writing for each topic until your timer goes off. Five minutes for each. If you can fill a double page spread with so many ideas for these three prompts that is a good start.
No, that doesn't mean write large, just as many things as you can think of.

One big requirement...make this list in PENCIL ONLY.

Some of your topics will be more complex and less obvious than these, but we'll deal with those later.

On your mark, get set, go!