Fauvist Dog Portraits

Anneliese

Sabrina

Genyss

Rachel

Jillian

Wolfe (Yes, it says Wu Tang Clan)

This artist is a true original :)

Corrina

Abby

Shelby

I've done my fair share of commissioned dog portraits. They are straightforward and detailed pastels. But I really love the expressive pet portraits of artists like Carrie Jacobson.

My sister-in-law is on the board of directors for the SPCA of Northern Nevada (Reno's only no-kill animal shelter.) I thought it would be great to use my student's artwork towards a fundraising purpose or at the very least, compose prints of their art into a poster to give to the shelter. So my 4th-6th graders used a very cute terrier-mix, Sebastian (one of the shelter's adoptable dogs), as their model. They were encouraged to use analogous colors (colors that sit next to each other on the color wheel) to paint their pooch. We talked about trying to emulate Jacobson's expressive brush strokes. I think each painting has great personality. Well done all of you!

Paper Bag African Elephants

The above pieces were created by pre-K thru 2nd graders

(same background with a side view elephant )

Sharpie on paper bag

I've been working on an elephant art project that might suit my younger children more than the smaller format ink elephants. These are created using a paper grocery bag. I have used brown bags to create walruses in the past. I thought the wrinkly texture would work well with elephants as well. After drawing their animal and outlining in Sharpie, paint over with watered down gray. This step could be omitted as African elephants take on the reddish brown color of the soil that they wallow in. Lines can be darkened again with Sharpie before the elephant is cut out. The paper is gently crumpled and flattened out several times to mimic the wonderful wrinkly texture of the animal. A colorful savanna landscape is painted with acrylics or tempera and finally some oil pastel Acacia or "umbrella" trees are drawn in oil pastel.

Below are a from modified lesson from my 4th-6th graders

I think these elephants came out amazingly well considering we had just 40 minutes to complete the whole project at the end of our art camp. Half the class was finishing up other work, while the other half was ready to keep creating. (40 minutes is a bit too long for "free draw"). I had originally intended these elephants to be drawn in washable maker and gone over in water to create an ink effect. (As seen in my Indian Elephant post). But since we were crushed for time, the children shaded their elephants in charcoal or colored pencil instead. The African landscapes were done in chalk pastel.

Glue and Chalk Pastel Cats

My example on tan paper

I like the impact of the pastel on black

My 4th-6th graders created these graphic cats with gel glue on black construction paper. We followed a simple line drawing on the white board. Once the glue dried, chalk pastel was added to give their feline their own unique personality. We didn't look at Laurel Birch examples, but I can definitely see some similarities in a few. I think they did a fabulous job! It was our last day together, but I have more great artwork to post. What a nice group of kids! Offering to help clean up, an abundance of "please" and "thank you's", and hugs good-bye. Yes, these are tweens! :)

Multi-Media Pandas

I have a wonderful group of 4th-6th graders in my 3-day art camp this week. Here are a few of their finished pandas. Pandas were done in acrylic and eyes in oil pastel. Most chose to create oil pastel bamboo with a watercolor wash background. More pandas to post tomorrow, as well as glue and chalk pastel cats and artwork inspired by the children's book, "Zen Shorts".

Non-Objective Art Collage

I love Savannah's bright palette and bold black lines

My daughter and I have been having fun with a non-objective collage idea I found on Mrs. Picasso's Art Room (details and directions shown here) last year. I thought it would be perfect for my Messy Art Fun class. We added a few extra elements to the top two pieces (decoupaged tissue paper, newspaper, yellow pages, magazine cut-outs, and foam stamps.) Once dry, I cut it into 2" x 3" pieces and we re-assembled it into an interesting composition. I'd love to modify this idea to create unique artist trading cards.

Animal Art Fun

"Dylan" Acrylic and Oil Pastel on Cardboard by 9 year old

Expressive Rescue Dog Portraits with Fauve Colors

African Elephants using washable markers and water

and chalk pastel landscapes

Pandas in acrylics, oil pastels and watercolor

Panda by Savannah (9)

Whiteboard example

Chalk and Oil Pastel Lion Profiles

In a couple weeks I will begin a series of six, three day themed art camps.(Messy Art Fun, Animal Art, Children's Book Art, Around the World Art Projects, and a Multi-themed class.) By far the most popular was Animal Art. (I even had to add an extra class.) We will be creating a variety of animals, wild and domestic, realistic and cartoon. This is just a preview of some of our scheduled projects. I will post the children's artwork with more details as they complete their pieces.