Grids

In this lesson, you are going to create a full page in your Visual Arts Diary that explores the idea of drawing, and iteration.

Iteration is the repetition of a process - in this case, you are going to fill your art diary page with a GRID, and apply mark making using consistent materials and see what kind of variety you can come up with.

View the artist examples below, and then come up with a way to fill your Art Diary page - it can be using a strict, even grid, or using irregular shapes. You can fill each section with visual texture, drawings of images from your laptop, or scenes from around the art room. Consider it an experiment in drawing.

Do not cross anything out - just layer or build on top of any 'mistakes'. The point in this activity is to improve your drawing through repetition, but also challenging your creativity as you come up with different designs for each grid segment.

It is recommended that you use between 2-3 drawing tools, so that there is a consistent visual aesthetic i.e. blue texta + orange colour pencil.

NOTE - this will take much longer than you expect, you might only complete 4 sections this lesson.

Define 'iteration':

repetition of a mathematical or computational procedure applied to the result of a previous application, typically as a means of obtaining successively closer approximations to the solution of a problem.

How can you apply this definition of a mathematical concept in your art?

Observe the many different examples below to inspire your artmaking:

Marble illustrations by Maurice Dessertenne from Nouveau Larousse illustré encyclopedia, published between 1897 and 1904.

anastasia inciardi🍅

linocut food printmaker

Look at how this printmaking artist has displayed her illustrations above her desk in her art studio - forming into a grid display that shows off the variety and totality of her work.

Linda Toolsema

Urban sketcher | Sketchbook artist

Katie Moody - sketchbook artist

Boing (@boingbln) • Instagram photos and videos21K Followers, 1,074 Following, 646 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Boing (@boingbln)

Links/Events | Jo Blaker

Tattoo artist 'Bex' creates what are known as 'flash sheets' that customers can choose a tattoo design from. Although meant to be selected as individual tattoo designs, the way the artist arranges them into a grid formation is striking.

Photography by Marc Riboud, Beijing

Look at how this photographer has found an interesting view through a wall with many windows - creating the sense of a grid, dividing up the outside scene into different sections.

Artist Jacob Van loon creates brilliant artworks that are highly saturated and reminiscent of glitches and optical illusions.

In this example, you can see how a student has created different sections of 'visual texture' using drawing techniques in a grid, labeling each one as a form of research.

Ben Styler

Still not sure?

Fill your art diary page with a range of shapes
Pick no more than 3 drawing tools
Fill one shape at a time - draw what is in front of you i.e. your other hand, your keyboard, the view out the window, or copy something from a picture
If you can't think of what to draw, simply play around with different patterns/textures/mark making

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