Sketchbook Blogging:
Observe. Document. Share. Reflect. (Grade 6-8)
"I have learned that what I have not drawn I have never really seen, and that when I start drawing an ordinary thing, I realize how extraordinary it is, sheer miracle. " ~Frederick Franck, The Zen of Seeing.
Objectives:
General: Complete a class criteria list on how to notice art - reference during discussion of exemplars as well as during individual sketchbook work/direct observation
Sketches: Closely observe and document scenes/spaces both indoors and outdoors, use a variety of line - thinking about type of line and quality of line to capture selected elements in a greater environment, Complete a series of quick sketches that capture space and movement, the complete a sketchbook that uses a wide range of medium and reflect expressive qualities and experimentation, discuss the purposes, practices and different uses of the artist sketchbook
Blog: Create a digitalized sketchbook that can be shared with a greater audience. Combine sketches with written reflection and utilize the blog as a venue for critique. Give and share ideas, feedback, or suggestions. Use the dialogue that happens as a springboard for further investigative observation and documentary inquiry.
Lesson One:
Duration: 1 45-minute period
Supplies: exemplar sketchbook reproductions, computer/internet connection, chart paper and markers, self-evaluation forms
Summary: An initial conversation invites students to think in discuss the ways in which we notice, not only art, but all things - people, places, and other happenings. Invite students to think about people-watching, watching movies, forms of advertising, etc and challenge students that we don’t take the time to notice. Question what we do and do not notice. Why do we notice some things and not others?
A community criteria is agreed on the ways in which art will be noticed and talked about.
Things to think about when noticing {art}:
- What do you see?
- What do you assume?
- What do you learn?
- What else do you wonder about or imagine?
- What else does it make you think of?
The concept of direct observation is emphasized. Selected exemplars from a variety of artists are studied and discussed as well as compared and contrasted in regards to theme (portraits, collections, scenes from a specific window, landscapes, etc) and approaches taken. The functions of the exemplary sketch books are examined in order to better understand the purpose of sketch booking: studies for final compositions, expression, journaling, documentation and observation. Types and quality of line are examined and discussed. Students are encouraged to take a close look at how the artists create movement, implies space, and uses value on the sketchbook pages.
Lesson Two:
Duration: 1 45-minute period
Suggested sketching supplies: Faber-Castell PITT artist pens (F, S, M, B), General’s charcoal pencils (HB, 2B, 4B, and 6B), flat sketching pencils (2B, 4B, 6B), Faber-Castell, General’s layout/ebony pencil, black, white, sanguine, and sepia conte crayon, Grumbacher compressed charcoal SOFT, General’s graphite pencils (HB, 2B, 4B, 6B and 8B), Speedball super black india ink and quill, CARAN d’ACHE water-soluble wax pastels, Strathmore Sketch paper, kneaded eraser
Summary:
Sketch: Introduce students to a wide range of materials used for sketching in this lesson. Demonstrate each medium and tool used. Explain the qualities and effects of inks, pencils, and charcoal. Give students the opportunity to experiment with the materials. Demonstrate a minimalist use of color in the sketch book, explaining color to be used as means of enhancement and not just to “fill in the page” like a coloring book.
Reflect: Discuss written reflection and the significance of writing in the sketch book. Referencing the exemplars, invite dialogue about the ways in which processes, discoveries, learning, and personal thoughts are documented through writing that intertwines with and compliments the sketched images.
Homework: Students are asked to become investigators of public and private spaces and places. Demonstrate to students how to create viewfinders by cutting 2 “L” shapes from sturdy cardstock and securing with paper clips to form a little window in the center. Have each student make their own viewfinder to use for their investigation. Challenge the students to capture in their sketchbooks images of both private and public places in their lives. These are most likely places and spaces that are relevant and a part of their every day. Ask students to sketch at least three or four public spaces/places and three or four private spaces/places. Challenge students to use written reflection directly on the sketchbook page.
Lesson Three:
Duration: 1 45-minute period
Supplies: Digital camera and/or scanner, blog account
Summary: Discuss the medium of blogging as means of collecting, displaying, sharing, and critiquing art works. Talk about the homework assignment that addresses public and private places and its relevance to the internet and how the blog makes public what might typically stay private (i.e. the artist sketchbook). Have each student set up their own blog account. Students will either take digital photos of their sketches or scan their sketches directly from their sketchbook. Use each sketch as a separate post and in addition to the image, include written reflection for each.
Homework: Reflect and respond to classmates’ sketchbook blogs.
Massachusetts Standards Addressed:
Standard 1: Methods, Materials, and Techniques/ 1.3
Students will demonstrate knowledge of the methods, materials, and techniques unique to the visual arts.
Standard 2: Elements and Principles of Design/ 2.2, 2.8, 2.11
Students will demonstrate knowledge of the elements and principles of design.
Standard 3: Observation, Abstraction, Invention, and Expression/ 3.1- 3.5
Students will demonstrate their powers of observation, abstraction, invention, and expression in a variety of media, materials, and techniques.
Standard 4: Drafting, Revising, Exhibiting/ 4.1 - 4.3, 4.6
Students will demonstrate knowledge of the processes of creating and exhibiting their own artwork: drafts, critique, self-assessment, refinement, and exhibit preparation
Standard 5: Critical Response/ 5.1, 5.3
Students will describe and analyze their own work and the work of others using appropriate visual arts vocabulary. When appropriate, students will connect their analysis to interpretation and evaluation.
Standard 6: Purposes and Meanings in the Arts/ 6.1 - 6.3
Students will describe the purposes for which works of dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and architecture were and are created, and, where appropriate, interpret their meanings.
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