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Thursday, August 13, 2009

How to Paint Outer Space!





Acrylic paint on dark paper always yields dramatic results! This is the best kind of project because it demonstrates the "freedom within structure" that I try to base my lessons on. I use circle stencils to help with the planets. I try to encourage students use bright colors and practice swirling paint. You might even practice making marble swirls on a paper plate first. See which colors create a dramatic contrast, and which ones gut muddy. I also encourage students to use only part of the stencil to create the illusion of a partially illuminated planet or moon. There are some amazing books with outer space photography at the library. These pictures were all created by students. you can see how they each made it his or her own!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

How to Draw Killer Whales




I just realized it's hard to read these instructions, but if you click on it to enlarge it, it should be fine. Once you get the hang of drawing killer whales, you can add anything you want to your underwater world. My favorite thing to do is to add shafts of light shining through the water. It's easy to do. First I spread chalk pastel powder all over the paper (even the drawings) with a paper towel or tissue. To get chalk pastel powder, you just rub the pastel on a separate piece of paper until there's a pile of dust. If you spread it on this way it looks smooth and even. To make the shafts of light you use the flat part of and eraser and erase the pastel. Here are Sophie and Cyan's pictures.