Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Menacing Mandrills





Wonderful expressive lines and Fauvist colors Zoe!





 This was the first art class for this kindergarten student
as well as the first time using chalk pastels.
Awesome job Butch!






My K-4th grade group kicked off our Animals of the Rain forest and Desert class with these striking Mandrills in chalk pastel. We learned that they are the largest monkeys in the world and live in the rain forests of Africa. The mature males have the unmistakable colorful characteristics of the bright red nose and blue ridged cheeks. They also have enormous canine teeth that they like to show off (for whatever reason, this group preferred to draw them with closed mouths). And while they look menacing, they are in fact quite shy.

We followed a direct line drawing lesson starting with those mysterious deep set eyes. They were encouraged to use their pastels in a way to create the texture of fur, blending outward. I think each has a very distinct personality.

7 comments:

  1. Fabulous! Will pin this for the future, thanks so much
    :)Elizabeth

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  2. These are fabulous!! They turned out great and the furry texture is AWESOME, and the contrast of the crazy fur with the soft pastels and bright colors looks beautiful!! These guys are always acting inappropriately when we go to the zoo in Houston, I had to cover my girls eyes and walk them out the last time!! But the mandrill, Rafiki in Lion King, was my fav character. I love when he says "Correction, I KNOOOW your Fatha!" to Simba. :-)

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  3. Haha Jenna is such a Perfectionist, would have loved to see your example.. Love the bright colors..

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  4. These mandrills are delightful.
    I love the intensity of the lines and the softness of the pastels.

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  5. Thanks Ladies! Too funny Natalie! I showed the kids a video of mandrills in the wild. Of course they were most amused with their rainbow colored rumps. :)

    Tina, I love to tease Jenna about being such a perfectionist; she can be very hard on herself. She is such a realistic artist, sometimes I feel like asking her to get up and lead the class on the whiteboard. ;)

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  6. LOL Mary : ) Have a Great Day see you Tuesday..

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  7. Love this.
    come check out http://bluemoonpalette1.blogspot.com

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