Shoes and Doors

There is the Downtown Doors deadline that is coming up, so if you want to be part of the submission process READ THIS and then communicate with me so that we can get a good image taken for you before the April deadline.

Then there is the Vans Custom Culture contest we are part of again this year, and look how great this Bowie shoe is looking so far.
Nice!

Pre-Final, Art 3 & Art 4H

Before we begin the brunt of our final project I want you to quietly and on your own answer the questions you can find HERE. They should be straightforward but if you have questions please let me know.
If you are in Art 3, please read THIS POST for directions on what to do today.
If you are in Art 4, please continue working on the drawing you started on Monday.

For both groups, you will not be turning in a photo of your assignment once you are finished, but you do need to:
1) work for the remainder of the period and be as productive on the drawing as possible
2) know that you are not finished until I end the drawing and/or the bell rings
3) turn in a drawing project to me

Univ Art U Create Day

I don't really know the details, but I'm sure there are some you can read HERE.

Annual Student Art Exhibit

For the 4th year the Los Gatos Art Museum has held their county wide juried student art show.
Ivy was the only one from LG selected this year and I am super proud of her.
Below you can see two images from the catalog that was produced (cover and her image/statement). The show is on view through May 10th, and more info can be found HERE.

Update on the Vans Custom Culture Expedition

With a due date looming before spring break begins...the work is in full on production mode.

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.

Some Kids Working

Y'all know I love the process, and as much as I like taking photographs of you and your work with my iphone, there is a very different quality you can get with a real camera, so here are some of those.

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 3/2 - 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 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 1/26

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!

Art 4 Daily Drawing for 1/15

Last time you should have drawn the below photo in pencil with no shading.







For today's drawing I want you to pull out a pen and begin shading the faces. It doesn't matter which one you start with, but I want you get as much done as you can in the given 15 minutes. I will be looking for quantity in addition to quality.

Don't worry about it looking "perfect" since that isn't enough time to finish something, but you have the skills to make it look good, I know you do.

Why this, well, I want you to get practice knowing that you can re-visit ideas/drawings in your sketchbook and add to them. A lot of little increments added up makes for a big final product at some point.

Set your 15 timer and get to it!

Vans Custom Culture 2015

I just put a lot of the pertinent info regarding the why/how's of the Vans Custom Culture Contest for 2015 on Canvas. Please check there for more info. You can also check HERE.

Art 4 daily drawing for 1/13/15

Dear Quatre's

Looking for that daily image. Here you go.
Draw the three guys on the right (the ones you see all of the faces).
Do not include any building or anything in the background.
Do include the items the gentlemen are leaning against.
Draw only in pencil but with no shading.
Draw lightly please.
Draw as big on the page as possible while including everything required.
Orient your sketchbook horizontally.
Since you will be looking at this on a phone or an ipad, set your timer for 15 minutes.
At the end of 15 minutes please close your book and get out your materials for the current project.

National Portfolio Day Info

It is that time of year again, time for the announcements for National Portfolio Day to begin coming in.
Often I forget to remind everyone, but not this year! Yay for you.

That's the mailing I just received - which is also posted in the classroom. If you click on that image or HERE, you will be able to go to their site.

While they don't have the time listed, they do have the date set (Jan. 17th, 2015) at San Francisco Art Institute.

This is a great time for Juniors to take in some work and get feedback from a bunch of different art schools pertaining to what they like and what they think you might want to work on. If you are a senior it can still be helpful, but by that time you should basically have most of your work completed.

If you have questions please let me know.