SHARPEN THOSE STICKS LADIES

MODIFIED CONTOUR STICK & INK

INTERMEDIATE 2-D ART

sharpened dowel, india ink on bristol board, watercolor & collage

They little pieces may be small

 but they pack a mighty wallop when you see them up close and personal.

So much so that our Principals secretary,

Suzanne Campbell,

 buys at least one or two a year at our Open House Sale.

You can view her collection on the walls surrounding her desk.

To begin this assignment

 I give the kids a piece of 1/8 to 1/4 inch doweling and ask them to sharpen them.

They are allowed to pick a subject of their own choosing,

but my collection of shells is a very popular choice.

Then they get a small piece of bristol and dip their wood stick into the ink

and draw their subject in Modified Contour.

That means they rarely look at their paper as they draw.

It's a technique that I got from Betty Edwards Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain Book.

note: I wish I had photographed them flat and not hanging on the wall,
it warps their matts

The kids are scared at first of not being able to erase, 

but they quickly come to love the technique.

I have them do a really small practice piece first to get them comfortable with the process.

This first beauty we are seeing above was done by senior Hazel Cruz.

I adore how she brought in so much background with the pier, water, and sand.

One of the many requirements was to bring in tissue paper collage.

That's how Hazel so effectively pulled off the stormy sea.

She also brought in a special ingredient,

the black salt from the grocery store

 that I bought for the kids last year for their watercolor unit.

I love that she remembered it and thought to use it for the sand.

My students were also required to bring in 25% watercolor into their work.

 We all agreed that the stunning sky and shell watercolored by senior Risha Bhakta

 was truly amazing! 

And how delightful is this one by senior Katherine Ku.

Besides watercolor they were also supposed to bring in at least 3 values of ink washes.

Katherine did a really outstanding job with those.

And the detail she brought into the shell,

remarkable!!

How pretty and sensory is this piece by senior Kyla Balquin.

Love that she thought to use a bit of bas-relief for her tissue collage requirement.

And the rays shinning thru the water,

brilliant!

But it was this one that was the most unique by senior Bernice Lin.

Bernice made several practice pieces before she began the "real" one,

then found a clever way to incorporate them into her drawing.

She is also giving us great use of color and fluidity thru her watercolors.

And I like how she solved her dilemma when it came to matting up this work

since that was also a requirement on this assignment.

Fabulous job Art Ladies of Whitney High

The Shapes of Her Shadows - Student Work

SHAPES OF SHADOW PORTRAIT

INTERMEDIATE 2-D ART

Laarnie Barcelon Model

First off, I'd really like to thank my T.A. junior Laarnie Barcelon

 for agreeing to model for this assignment.  

It's a fairly challenging project in which Laarnie had to sit for 4 days straight in class without moving a muscle so the kids could draw only the shapes of the shadows on her face.  

We close some of the lights in the room and shine a spotlight on her so that the cast shadows are more visable.  

Then the kids come in with pen and india ink, as well as watercolor and collage.

First up is senior Justin Hwang. 

 Love how her drew her holding a flower, and his watercolor washes a very pleasing.

Senior Alex Lee brought in both watercolor and collage for a very thought provoking background.  

Plus he burnt a few of his edges, one of his signature stylistic moves.  

He also put a dried flower in her hair because Laarnie frequently wears them.

Senior Cathy Luo really gets into the recording of all the shadows in this very sensitive portrait. 

 And look closely at her gorgeous watercolor background.

Laarnie has a love of flowers so I really like how senior Heather Warner captured that by cutting out and collaging all those and more into her work for a stunning, vivid piece.

And senior Jasmine Zhao has also brought in the flowers and insects but in a completely different way.  

Just so clever and lovely.

 I am truly blessed by how much time and effort these young ones give me. 

Thank you all!

Drawings with Sharpened Sticks and Ink - Student Work

PEN & INK WASH DRAWINGS W/ WATERCOLOR AND COLLAGE

Intermediate 2-D Art

It is always a pleasure to show off these pieces.  The kids go into them very unsure and skeptical but come out so pleased with themselves and their work.  They draw their subject in Modified Contour with a sharpened dowel dipped in ink.  They do no pencils drawings first, just go for it with the stick and ink.  And surprise themselves in the process.  After the drawing is dry they come in with 3 values of ink wash, then watercolor and collage in whichever order they choose.

For senior Heather Warner, this was her best piece of the year so far.  To fill her composition and add balance she drew in her hand; great critical thinking!

This is the first time I make the kids cut their own matt to frame out their work.  I really like how senior Jasmine Zhao has double matted her lovely piece with the silver and black.

Senior Anne Allen has brought humor into her work which is always fun, but it's how she watercolored the sky with the sun's rays shining thru the clouds that has me taking a second and third look at her work.  

Brilliant piece Anne!

And seniors Alex Lee above and Justin Hwang below bring us so much beauty and sensitivity.

And finally senior Cathy Luo gives us an exquisite composition with her strong skills and color choices.  

Watercolor with Mixed Media

Meet my 3rd year Advanced 2-D students Jarick Simbol and Megan Yeu.  Jarick started taking classes with me when he was in the 7th grade, and has taken 4 of my classes throughout his career here at Whitney.  His daddy, Patrick, was also one of my students back in the day and was also artistically inclined.  Sadly, Jarick lost his father recently, and he has had a rough time of it this past year.  So Jarick, I hope you don't mind that I dedicate this post to your father, 

Patrick Simbol.  He would have been so proud of you.  I know I am.

I think Jarick surprised himself with how well his watercolor came out, because he started out feeling very unsure.  He has brought in a bit of paper collage thru the little diamond shapes that are a great accent.  I also love his composition, how he has blown up his flower so large that is seems to be flowing across the page. And the colors are terrific together.  Fantastic job, I couldn't be more pleased. 

Megan began classes with me in her sophomore year, so this is her 3rd year with me.  She knows she wants to be an art major, so this, her senior year, she is also taking my Ceramics I and Beginning 3-D classes.  Pretty great schedule I'd say  LOL  

Megan has a lovely style with the watercolors, she isn't afraid to layer her shadows over top her lighter values.  She came into the piece with a bit of pen and ink, as well as some running stitches with perle cotton that she learned in my 3-D class.  Very cool!

Shape of Shadow Drawing - Student Work

Every year these drawings seem to get more and more lovely.  This year my T.A. senior Gisel Zabala graciously volunteered to be our model for my Intermediate 2-d students.  I set her up in the corner of the art room in a comfy chair and turned off the main lights then put a spotlight on the side of her face.  This created wonderful cast shadows.  On a smooth piece of Bristol board the kids were only allowed to draw the shapes of her shadows lightly in pencil then later India ink them in.  They were also required to bring in one additional medium.

So let's see what junior Megan Yeu did with the assignment.  Besides drawing a beautiful portrait of Gisel... 

she brought in a touch of Prismacolor pencil right over top the India ink.  Here is a close up above for you to see the subtle and almost shimmery effect this brings to the work.  She also did some gorgeous paper cut-out work and mounted the piece on top of silver poster board to show it off, again in a very subtle way.  Plus she watercolored in the background.  Really brilliant work Megan!

In this next piece above, senior Belinda Wu has once again show us her extraordinary skills in this very detailed piece.  Belinda chose to bring in watercolor in a very unique way.  She dabbed it on with her fingers, so that when you look up close you see her fingerprints.  It's so much fun!  Sorry I didn't think to get a close up of this.  I also really like how she bordered her piece out, it really pulls it all together. 

Junior Michaela Platt has brought in so much sensitivity to her work thru paper collage and watercolor.  The paper she chose also brings in some great looking texture.  The monochromatic color scheme ties it all together.  

And lastly we have senior Halah Elsahhar, who I honestly felt captured Gisel's likeness the best, as well as her very relaxed pose.  Halah brought in watercolor for her extra medium.  I really like how she painted birds flying thru Gisel's face. Super cool woman!

If you would like to see these pieces as well as all the other work I've been posting and more to come, our Annual Open House Art Show and Sale is going to be held on April 17th, so please mark your calenders.  More details to come.    

Stick & Ink Drawings w/ Watercolor & Collage

I love showing off the results of this project because the assignment just keeps evolving and changing with each year that we do it.  It started off as a simple pen & ink work that grew into including ink washes, then watercolor, then collage.  What happens is a student will ask permission to try something outside the framework of the assignment, I say sure, go ahead; and then it turns out so well, I feel inspired to try it with the whole group the next year.

These works are done by my Intermediate 2-D kids.  They were allowed to pick their own subject matter, and then draw it in Modified Contour (again a Betty Edward's Right Brain thing) using only a thin wood dowel sharpened and dipped in india ink (my idea :).  So no pencil, no erasing.  This really freaks them out at first, so we do a practice piece before the original.  Then they find they love the technique, and off they go.

After the ink drawing they must mix up 3 values of ink wash and brush those in their appropriate places to create shadows.  Two more techniques remain.  Collage and watercolor to finish them off with in any order they want.  I do usually recommend collage before the watercolor though.

Now senior Belinda Wu (above and below) has taken her piece even one step farther by puncturing pin holes into her paper and sewing the heart with red thread.  Brilliant piece kiddo!  And get this, it's Belinda's first time watercoloring and look at how she took to it like a duck to water in her little mouse below.  A very talented young woman who is in the process of applying to Art Center and Rhode Island School of Design.  Should be a piece of cake for you, they will probably be fighting over you Belinda  LOL  

In this next one by senior Halah Elsahhar I really feel she has created a sensitive, lovely mood with her work.  Every time I see it I just kind of go ahhhhhh and relax.  :)

The students were required to frame out their pieces as well, and one of my favorite frames was made by senior Kevin Tang.  Plus I love his piece he created as well. The eucalyptus leaves are such a nice touch.

Junior Megan Fong belongs to this next one.  Sorry Megan that I shot it tilted.  Beautiful layers of collaged tissue with gold flecks surround her flower.  Megan totally got what I wanted with the ink washes used to shade the piece with.

And this last one was done by junior Michaela Platt, and again, I'm so sorry Michaela that it's out of focus.  I really need to work on photography skills.  :)  Look at the value range she has achieved with her tissue collage in the foreground, and her lovely use of watercolor.  Such a pretty piece. 

Shapes of Shadows Portraits with Mixed Media- Student Work

These works by my 2nd level 2-D kids always turn out great and I'm thrilled to show them off.  Our model this year was junior Marison Arcilla who is a beautiful young woman with long flowing hair.  We closed the lights in the room and set Marison up under a spotlight to showcase the shapes of the shadows on her face.  Then the students sat very close and were allowed to only draw the shapes of the shadows they saw, nothing else.  This is very difficult because they are used to drawing with line not with shapes.

The spectacular piece above was done by my mega talented senior, who just recently heard she was accepted to Otis Art Institute in L.A., Michelle Lee.  Incredible work, right??   Besides the india ink, Michelle brought in watercolor, acrylic, and felt tip markers into her piece.

Once the shapes are drawn the kids all fill them in with a brush and india ink.  Then they get wiggy, and are required to bring in additional media.  This is where the fun begins.

And speaking of fun, this next stunning piece was completed by gifted senior Jessica Liu.  Because each of the students sat and drew from a different spot, we have Marison in several points of view.  We are seeing profiles, 3/4 and frontal views of her.  What I love about this piece (so many things) is how she let the birds fly outside her border edges, and how she backed them with aluminum foil, who would have thought?  She has also brought in watercolor and tissue collage.  What a treat this piece is for the senses.

Another brilliant senior artist, Michael Chen, has totally worked outside his usual comfort zone (fighting, military subjects), and done a very lovely & peaceful composition for a change  :) in the work above.  I believe Mr. Z already has dibs on this one to purchase it from Michael at Open House.  Michael has brought in a lot of paper collage.

Below is senior Crislyn Ogawa, another of my very talented art majors.  We've seen many of her works this year, and in each one she manages to convey a sense of isolation and thoughtfulness within her subjects and their locations and backgrounds.  Love the monochromatic color scheme, and the drips and splatters.

Above senior Sarah Zhang, who has improved by leaps and bounds this year, and gaining confidence with each assignment, did this cool piece above.  She brought in both watercolor and paper collage.

And junior Laura Kadi, below, who came back to me after a 4 year absence, is also making great strides in her art work.  Just look at her lovely, sensitive piece below.   

Watercolor Flowers with Collage and Ink

Aren't these lovely?  They belong to juniors Sam Arias and Cindy Kim who are the only 2 kids in level 3 or Advanced 2-D Art.  They were completed quite a while ago but I'm just now getting around to posting them.

The assignment was to draw a flower from real life or from a photo and to enlarge it onto the paper.  Then they had a choose whether to lay down their collage papers before or after watercoloring or both.  And after watercoloring to bring in a bit of pen and ink for emphasis.  The hardest part was to work to such a large scale.  

Stick & Ink Drawings with Collage, Ink and Watercolor Washes - Student Work

Stunning aren't they?  I pulled out some shells from the beach and gave my Intermediate 2-d kids some sharpened dowels and asked them to dip the dowels in ink and draw the shells in modified contour.

Above we have senior Janice Min with her breathtaking landscape.  

After the ink drawings were dry the kids added collage elements along with 3 values of ink washes and some watercolor pigment as well.

Above is senior Crislyn Ogawa and junior Laura Kadi.  I find these works to be highly expressive which is very difficult to achieve with students this young. 

The results were spectacular and showed off the flexibility of these kids moving seamlessly from one medium into another.

And this complex work belongs to highly talented senior Michelle Lee.  I shot a close-p so you can see all the details she brought into this piece.  Do you see the tiny pieces of shredded, dried leaves?  and the lattice work over top?  So well thought out and executed.  All of you make me so very proud. 

 Keep up the great work!

Sewing Machine Review w/ Watercolor & Collage

These cuties belong to seniors Kelsea Lee and Nandi Best.  They are the only two in my 3rd year 3-d art class, that's cuz they are very, very good.  They hadn't used the sewing machines since last year so I wanted to make the review fun and colorful.   

I had them do several loose drawings in pen and ink.  Then lay down some paper collage elements.  Then I showed them a few watercolor techniques and off they went.  When everything was dry they used their sewing machines to loosely outline their ink drawings. A close up of Kelsea' s work above.

Nandi's 3 pieces above and below. 

Professional Watercolor Artist Judy Schroeder

Today I'd like to showcase a local watercolor artist and gallery owner, Judy Schroeder. Her gallery, Schroeder Studio/Gallery is located in the Orange Circle in Old Town Orange, Ca., home also to Chapman College. Judy teaches great watercolor classes at her studio there; in fact 3 years ago I took a fundamentals class from her to brush up on my own techniques. I learned so much from her that I didn't pick up in art school, and now I incorporate her lessons into my curriculum whenever I teach watercolor (see Label- Watercolor Lemons). Jim and I went to visit her gallery last Friday nite after eating dinner in the Circle at Watson's Drug Store and Soda Fountain. The burgers there are yummy, and the portions generous. Anyways, Judy was working the store that night and she remembered me and we got to chatting about blogs, so I went on hers the next day and really enjoyed all that she had posted, from her drawings above

to her on location pieces above and her watercolor collages below. What I really appreciated was her showing her step by step process for watercolor collage. Very interesting and informative. Her gallery showcases many crafts artists as well as other watercolor painters. So drop on by if you can and tell Judy I sent you.