VAC 2-5
These Advanced Level Art courses are intended for students with a high level of artistic ambition and motivation. You are expected to already be familiar with your elements & principles, art criticism and art history; and had some experience with drawing, painting, and 3D techniques. Students will increase technical skills, develop a more sophisticated approach to process and subject matter, and create a portfolio of individual work. In this class, students will keep an artist journal to explore artistic process, experiment with materials and analyze work. Through experimentation and refinement, each person will create a body of work that includes observational drawing, mixed media and a variety of self-chosen media.
There will be a lot of independent work and time management will be essential. The pace of this course is fairly quick; students who do not use class time wisely or who are absent may have to complete classwork and/or projects at home to meet the specified due dates. Students may need to bring in objects or supplies throughout the year to help with projects.
This class is not an “easy A.” “A” means mastery and will represent both excellent art making skills and knowledge/reflection demonstrated in written summaries.
Below you will find a sampling of some of the projects we work on in the upper level Visual Arts Comprehensive classes.
"Where I'm From"
After listening to the poem "Where I'm From" by George Ella Lyon, students write their own poem. After discussing visual symbolism they thumbnail ideas for an artwork that represents who they are based on their poems. For these early artworks they are allowed to choose any medium they have worked with previously and feel confident with.
These is a great beginning of the year project that allows me to learn something about each of my students.
InkTober
Each October we practice the basic value techniques of hatching, cross-hatching, stippling, and scumbling as we participate in the annual InkTober challenge.
Cardboard Sculptures
One of our favorite 3D projects is Life Like Cardboard Sculptures. Students learn to manipulate upcycled materials to create realistic sculptures.
Representational Abstract Oil Pastels
We look at Georgia O'Keefe and discuss how she used magnification to create representational abstract artworks of flowers. After reviewing the color wheel and choosing an analogous color scheme, students choose an image from their photo library to magnify. As a finishing touch we learn about sgraffito and they add texture and patterns to their artworks by scratching into the artwork.
Alebrijes
Alebrijes are brightly colored Mexican folk art sculptures of fantastical (fantasy/mythical) creatures. Art Comprehensive students watch an interview with one of the artists responsible for the beautiful creatures of Disney/Pixar's movie "Coco" and then create designs for their own ceramic sculptures.
3D Modeled Hearts
Before beginning their Narrative Self-Portraits students spend one full day practicing shading and modeling of form while creating drawings and/or paintings of 3D hears.
Narrative Self-Portraits
Art Comprehensive students learn to create art with meaning and that tells a story by creating expressive portraits of themselves.