Mrs.Williams Art Room

Here are a few examples of a middle school project using cubism. Students chose one favorite character and used the three characteristics of cubism learned in class ( rearranged, simplified shapes and different points of view) and made a cubist inspired work of art.

I love monkey's, and I thought, how cool would it be to do an art project using a monkey.   In fourth grade, we have been focusing on our elements of art specifically texture. I thought, why not use the fur on the monkey as a way to create texture in a drawing. Ta da! Monkey drawing! We started out with a painted bright colored background because we were only using black crayon to draw the monkey and fur. A dark background would have made it difficult to see the black crayon drawn monkey. The kids had a ball painting their background with sponges it also created some great texture. Lastly, I gave each student a few handouts that had pictures of different kinds of monkey's on it. The students chose their monkey and began drawing using the scribble technique to create their fur. I think they turned out great.

Third grade students just finished a lesson inspired by the book" The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush" by Tomie dePaola.  My students had to draw at least three Native American figures on their paper focusing on the back of the head, hair and body. We talked about patterns, repetition and warm colors. We used tempera paint to create the background focusing on patterns. Once completed and dried we mounted are paintings on construction paper and added some extra details like yarn. Below you will find a few examples.

I like to teach value to my middle school students and one of my favorite lessons is Value Portraits. We start with a simple portrait drawing including the head, neck and shoulders. Students use geometric shapes to break of the simple portrait. Lastly, students choose a color family like warm, cool, primary, secondary to color in each shape. Students must use value in each shape, this is a colored pencil project outlined with sharpie marker. I think that they turned out great.

I just love these clay owl pots that my middle school ceramics class created. We used a small balloon to keep our slabs nice and round. The fun part was as the clay hardened we were able to pop our balloon with a pin or toothpick. We used a low fire glaze after we bisque each piece. Below is one of our owl pots that was completed this week. I will post more pics as the kids compete them.        

  Welcome Back!  This year I've decided to focus even more on Elements and Principles of design. So my room is dedicated to the Elements. I love cartoon characters and so do  my students so as an attention getter I used my characters to display the elements. I used student artwork as examples of each element. Color- Mondrian project using primary colors. Space-Notan design representing positive and negative space.                   There are a few things that I decided to continue from previous years. My Student Artist of the Month has always been a huge hit. I have students already asking me about becoming a student artist of the month. I will continue to choose one boy and one girl, middle school student and one elementary student. They must show 100% effort, Moral Focus, display a since of responsibility, determination and great attitude. They do not have to be a great artist but their character mus...

    Well, I think things are slowing down for me. Now I can get back to blogging. The last thing that I needed to complete before really getting down to business, was having a house warming party. Many friends and family members were dying to check out the house so, the invitations were sent, gifts were brought, food was great and the cake was cut. We had a ball. Now that that's over, get ready for more lessons to come.            

    Like I promised, here are a few picks from this years art show 2012-2013. This years show filled the gym and extended into the hallway. We had a great turnout with parents. This year we continued with our make and take art tables and our Artist Affirmation Box. A big hit every year.          

  Well, I know that I have been missing in action, but i have a good excuse. I had the pleasure of going on two back to back field trips with my seventh and eighth grade students. I started out in Chicago for two days with seventh grade, came back to Michigan and woke up at 4:00am to catch the next trip to Washington D.C. The East Coast trip was great this was my second time going but enjoyed it even more.  Below are a few pictures of a cyclorama. It was amazing...this life size mural is unreal, the details are life like and the special lighting and effects are an added plus. This mural depicts the battle between the Confederates and the Union Army. A must see....photos do not do it justice.