This course will cover basic drawing and painting skills. Students will be instructed in various drawing and painting media: pencil, charcoal, pen and ink (marker), colored pencil, digital, pastel, watercolor, and acrylic. Emphasis will be placed on direct observation and grid drawing (with a larger grid than studio art), rendering skills, the use of value to define form, color theory, focal point, composition and showing emotion. The course will also incorporate reviewing and refining the elements and principles of art and art history. The main goal is improving on basic drawing & painting, techniques that will help the students grow as artists

Creating a strong composition

The rule of thirds, the Golden Mean, triangular compositions, circular compositions, pathways, cropped images, different viewpoints,

allowing for face room, framing

Drawing Techniques:

Review of the elements and principles

Graphite Drawing Still Life- proportions, direct observation vs grid (larger grids than Studio), creating a range of values

Pen and ink drawing- rendering and creating a range of values with this medium

Charcoal, Chalk or Oil pastel using a visual or several- rendering and blending with each (each is different)

Colored Pencil- blending colors, shading, vibrancy and rendering

Portrait Drawing- Proper proportions and the basics of how to draw face parts, basic shading

Painting Techniques With Watercolor and Acrylic:

Learning how to blend colors to create a range of values and shading

Combining several visuals together to create an original image

Using gradations, blending techniques, color theory, vibrancy, mixing mediums, and color mixing techniques to create unique images

Art Critique and Self-Reflection

Description, Analysis, Interpretation and Judgement for the art critique

Review of techniques, review of elements and principles used, defining what they wanted to convey to the viewer and how your eye moves around their composition, whether it was successful overall, what they would change if they could, what they learned and whether they would recommend the project in the future

Taking photos and creating a portfolio of work

How to properly take photos for portfolios

How to create a digital portfolio

How to write an artist statement

• In this course students will be making art by exploring different mediums and subject matter previously explored or possibly new ones for mastery. Students will work on improving their techniques and skills regarding basic skills, mediums, and subject matter and move towards mastery and excellency. Students will talk about art through art critiques, art history and the elements and principles with the contemporary elements introduced. Students will write about art through art critiques, artist statements, and critical self-reflection. Students will be exploring drawing mediums such as graphite, colored pencil, charcoal, oil pastel, chalk pastel, art markers, pen and ink, and digital media. Painting mediums that will be explored are watercolors, acrylic paints and digital media. These media are explored a bit more in depth with masking fluid, gel mediums for acrylics.