Class: Walking the Line Unit: Painting

Teacher: Mrs. Houk Lesson: Figurative Painting

Lesson Start Date: 10/01/07

Objectives

Students will be able to stretch and prepare their own custom-sized canvas.

Students will be able to choose the theme of their painting from the following options: self-portrait, still life, or paint from a photograph.

Students will be able to mix their own secondary and tertiary colors.

Students will be able to paint in layers, starting with a ground.

Instructions

Each student will be given the following materials:

4 wooden stretcher bars

A piece of canvas

Access to a staple gun

Gesso

Paper for planning

Red, blue, yellow, white, and black acrylic paint

A palette

Various paintbrushes

First, students will prepare their canvas by assembling a frame with 4 stretcher bars. Next, students will cut an appropriate sized piece of canvas from the roll. (Canvas should be approximately 2 inches longer and wider than the frame.) The canvas will be attached to the outside of the frame with a staple gun, starting with opposite corners and working toward the middle.

Next, students will Gesso their canvases and allow them to dry overnight.

Examples of figurative paintings like self portraits, still life, and painting from photographs will be shown on the projector.

Sketching and planning for the composition will be done on paper, while the Gesso is drying.

Students will sketch a contour drawing of their figurative choice, directly onto the canvas with a pencil. This will be a guide for painting.

The ground is the first area to paint. The ground is the largest continuous space of the composition, often negative space or background. Basically, the background gets painted first.

All secondary colors, tertiary colors, tints, and shades will be derived from the primary colors, black, and white paint.

A helpful hint for painting is to paint in layers, starting with the largest objects and ending with the smallest details.

EALR/GLE Connection

The Arts

3.2. The student will use the arts to communicate for a specific purpose.

1. The student understands and applies arts knowledge and skills.

Reading

3.1. Read to learn new information.

3.2. Read to perform a task.

Assessment

The finished paintings will be assessed with the following rubric.

Did the student assemble a sturdy canvas?

0 1 2 3 4 5

Did the student choose one of the figurative options? (Self portrait, still life, or painting from a photograph?)

0 1 2 3 4 5

Does the painting demonstrate effective color mixing?

0 1 2 3 4 5

Does the composition appear to have been painted in layers?

0 1 2 3 4 5

Is there an overall feeling of quality craftsmanship?

0 1 2 3 4 5