Art For Homeschool

Do you want to draw or paint today? Are you out of ideas of what to do? Maybe you need a suggestion. Maybe you need to draw something that will then get the  creative thoughts coming.  We all have days like that. I know sometimes I go into my studio and I have no idea of what I want to work on.

So today I am providing some pictures that you can draw. There are two pictures of still life setups that I have used in my classroom. The items in the still life do not really go together. There are art supplies, books, cow skulls and bones, flowers, and other things I have collected. Putting all these different items creates interest and gives you a lot to look at.

If you decide you want to draw one of these you can change it up to your liking. You can add to or subtract from the picture. Maybe you only want to draw one section of the photo. That is perfectly fine. Make it more your own. I have even included one photo in black and white  to help you see the values in it.

In fact, looking at the pictures might inspire you to create a still life of your own. You can even create a still life with only a few items or 4 or 5. You do not have to spend a great amount of time finding things to put in the still life. One place you can find great items for a still life is the refrigerator. Fruit and vegetables are great for drawing. You can draw and then eat.

Hope you have a great day. If you draw a still life, I would love to see them. Upload them to the AFH flickr group if you are a member or send me an email.

Get Those Art Supplies Out!

This is a short reminder that the next Art For Homeschool Art Show is coming up. You still have almost a month to prepare. There is no theme. That means you can enter any subject matter that inspires you.  The deadline is February 1, 2012 at midnight CST.

Entries must be two – dimensional. Entries can be photography, electronic media, colored pencil, oil pastel, oil painting, watercolor, collage, pastel, pencil, charcoal, marker, etc.  Homeschool students and parents can participate and enter up to two pieces of artwork in the show.

Entering the show is free.  There are a few prizes and not too many requirements. To see the requirements, go to the following link below.

 AFH ART SHOW

Please tell your fellow homeschooling friends. I get nothing out of hosting this show except the satisfaction of knowing that the show may encourage budding artists to continue creating art. I truly believe that we are all artists. We just need a nudge here and there to get us inspired. If you need some ideas for inspiration you can go to my other blog, My Creativity Blog.

Happy New Year! I hope you will give yourself some time to create original art this year.

Recently I spent time with my art classes studying the work of artist Georgia O’Keeffe. I really admire her work and have been inspired by her spirit. I wanted to share that feeling with my students. I know this type of lesson could very easily be used with homeschool students. So I thought I would share the experience.

I created a power point presentation showing my students the work of Georgia O’Keeffe. As I showed the presentation, I told them some interesting bits of information about her work, her life, and also showed a short video that I found on You Tube. Here is a link to that video: Georgia in New Mexico at age 92.

I also had two tables set up in the middle of the room with cow skulls, a ram skull, vertebrae, ribs, and a pelvis of a cow. I placed the bones on draped cloth with silk flowers. These bones and flowers would be the subject matter the students would work with. After the introduction, I had the students walk around the room to find the skull, ribs, vertebrae, or pelvis that they wanted to draw. They were told to draw only the contours of these bones and at least one flower. The students spent the class time drawing their chosen bone subject without adding detail or values. Here are some photographs of the set up:

Cow Skull

The next day the students were told to sit in the same seat. This time they were asked to begin adding shading and detail to their drawing. The background cloth was not to be included. I wanted the skulls or bones to appear to be floating. The students had to look closely to see all the cracks and crevices in the bones. They worked all class period adding the detail. Their drawings were starting to take shape. I was pleased with their progress.

As the students worked on their drawings, I also worked on one a short time in each class. Taking ten minutes here and ten minutes there, I was able to complete a sketch. I feel that it is important for me as an art teacher to model the behavior I expect from them. I also wanted to have a drawing I could show as an example of what I wanted them to create. Having a sketch to show for the third day was important. I wanted the students to understand fully.

On the third day I asked them to use colored pencil to create an imaginary landscape behind their bone drawing in the style of Georgia O’Keeffe. They were given a choice of doing a sky only or adding a landscape at the bottom of the page. So after school the second day I quickly created a colored pencil sky and desert scene as an example. I also collected numerous magazine photographs of skies, mountains, and deserts that the students could use if they wished.

My Example for the Class.

So the next day when the students came in I showed them my creation with background and told them to create one of their own. So there was very little instruction. I did go around the room giving advice to students as they asked about ideas of how to complete the assignment.  I reminded the class of the work of Georgia O’Keeffe and showed them her work from a book I carried around with me in order to inspire any students that seemed to be confused. The class ran well and the work the students created really turned out great. I actually ended up giving the students a fourth day to work on their drawings because of the size of their work. Most students needed that extra day to finish.

I was very impressed and felt that the students really had been inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe. I certainly was when I created this lesson. I am including some of the student work for you to see.

Student Work - Vertebrae

Student Work - Skulls

Student Work - Skull with Sunset

In summary:

Day One: The students created a contour sketch of the chosen skull or  bone.

Day Two: The students added shading and detail in the bone drawing without adding any background.

Day Three and Four: The students used colored pencil to create a sky and desert background behind the bones.

Homeschool parents can use this same lesson using Georgia O’Keeffe as an artist to study. You can find many images of her work, save them to your computer and show them to your children. I choose to use her bone paintings as inspiration but you could also use her flowers.  You may not have a collection of skulls or bones but you can find photographs online or in books. I hope this art lesson will give home school parents some ideas they can incorporate in their homeschooling.  Have fun!

We have a wonderful grouping of artwork in the November 2011 Art For Homeschool Art Show. I am proud of all the artists and the work representing homeschool students from many different places in the world. Congratulations to all involved. Participating in this show is a giant leap for some of these children.

Thank you parents for supporting your child’s interest in art by helping them enter the show. Please spread the word in the homeschool community. I hope that in some way this art show will encourage these young artists to continue a life of creativity. If you are proud of these kids, please let them know. If you know of someone that would like to encourage children in this manner, tell them about the show. If you know someone that would like to donate awards, please contact me. Maybe we can get more interest with more awards for the future.

I also want to thank my Art II students for taking interest in the art work and writing encouraging comments for the artists.  I have placed their comments in italics and added some suggestions that they made as well. Please remember that these comments are meant to encourage and help in future art work created. Also remember that everyone has an opinion about art. You certainly do not have to agree with their opinions at all. It is just food for thought.

So here are the awards:

5 to 8 years old:

FIRST PLACE

Graceanne, 5 years, Harvest Moon

Our first place award goes to Graceanne for her pastel titled Harvest Moon.  Comments:  The work is imaginative, with good color choices and great texture.  The reflection adds to the composition and makes it more interesting. One way you could have improved the work would be to add more detail to the moon. Congratulations Graceanne!

SECOND PLACE 

Ignacio, almost 5, Solar System

Art work by almost five year old Ignacio receives second place with his pastel titled, Solar System.  The judges really liked the detail and proportion used in the drawing of the planets. The organization and neatness of the composition is impressive. Keep up the good work! Some students thought that they might have liked the background better if it had been black and had stars.

9 to 13 years old:

FIRST PLACE

Rebecca, 11 years, Summer Branch

Rebecca is the first place winner of the 9 through 13 years old category. She did a lovely colored pencil sketch titled, Summer Branch. Some quotes from the judges are: The highlights in the berries really create form in the work and the values in the flowers are great.  I love the colors and the shading in the berries and flowers. Great blending of colors. Well detailed. Wouldn’t change anything. A few student judges thought the composition might have been better if the end of the branch would have gone off the page. Another thought was to turn the drawing and make the flowers go up vertically.  Great work!

SECOND PLACE

Maggie, 9 years, Hot Chocolate

Maggie created our second place winner with her pastel titled, Hot Chocolate. The student judges had an emotional reaction to the painting saying that it made them think of Willy Wonka or made them want to go get some hot chocolate. Comments are: You make the chocolate drink come alive with the steam rising. I love the simplicity of detail. Wonderful job on shading. I want some hot chocolate! I like the color and hearts in the cup. As far as a suggestion for improvement, the students thought that the picture of the art work could have been improved by cropping the edge of the table top out of the image.  Congratulations Maggie.

14 to 18 years old:

FIRST PLACE

Luci, 14 years, Kitty

Luci is our award winner in this age group. She won first place with her photograph titled, Kitty. The student judges liked the fact that Luci created a close up image that was off center. Comments: The contrast in the kitty’s face and the darkness of the eyes creates interest. The slight out of focus effect creates a softness to the fur that is pleasing. Good work. 

SECOND PLACE 

Luci, 14 years, Splatters

Luci is also our second place winner with her watercolor mosaic titled, Splatters.  Comments: I like how you cut up the painting and mixed it up. Doing that made it more interesting. Very creative. Good color choices. Some students suggested using a different color for the background. Thank you, Luci for participating in our online show!

Parent Entries:

We had two parent entries in the Art For Homeschool art show. Eva Rendon entered a photograph and a collage that she created. They are both lovely and show a diversity in how one subject can be presented. Enjoy!

Fall Colors

Eva took this photograph on a trip to the zoo with her son, Ignacio.

Fall Tree

Eva commented that this is a  sample collage she made for her son using leaves picked up during a walk to the library.  She used leaves and maple tree seeds on canvas with Mod-Podge. I think this is a wonderful idea for a project using items from nature. An added bonus is that the collage is beautiful as well. Thanks Eva for sharing this idea with us!

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD

Rebecca, 11 years, Summer Branch

People’s Choice Award goes to Rebecca with Summer Branch. The detail in this colored pencil is impressive. The berries look as if you could reach out and touch them. The shading and texture in the branch and the leaves adds to the three dimensional feel of the drawing. Working with colored pencil is difficult and takes a lot of patience and layering of color. Rebecca, I hope you will keep drawing with colored pencil! I can’t wait to see what you create next. Thank you for sharing your work with us.

Award winners will receive an email from me asking for their physical email address. I want to tell our sponsor, Dick Blick, where to mail the gift certificates. The next art show deadline will be February 1, 2012. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Hello! Welcome to the November 2011 Art For Homeschool Art Show! We have some really great art work for everyone to view. I hope you enjoy seeing this work created by homeschool students. We had 12 pieces of art entered in the show by 8 artists and two pieces from a homeschool parent. Yeah!!!! I love it when our parents enter their work. When a child creates artwork alongside a parent or grandparent fond memories are created as well.

I have uploaded the artwork to a gallery. You can click on the thumbnails to see a larger view of the work. There are photographs, colored pencil drawings, pastels,oil pastels, collages, watercolors, and pencil with marker. This art show was created to give homeschool students a safe place to showcase their work and to also get recognition for their efforts. The show is judged and awards will be announced November 15. This time the show will be judged by my Art II Students at Navasota High School. Be sure to come back on November 15 to see the results.

You, the viewer, can also be a part of the judging experience. In addition to awards given in the different age groups, 5 to 8 years, 9 to 13 years, and 14 to 18 years; I ask the public to vote for “People’s Choice”. I like to spread the awards around, so having a People’s Choice award gives the general public a chance to voice their opinion. You may not have any art training, but you know what you like. So, if you have found our show, I would appreciate it if you would participate and place a vote for your favorite. If you are going to vote please take the time to look at all the art work. Voting is done by making a comment on this post telling me the title of your favorite and the artist’s name. I will close the judging at midnight CST on November 13. In addition, if you want to encourage these budding artists, go to the Art For Homeschool Flickr Group and make comments on each entry. Gift certificates donated by Dick Blick Art Supply will be awarded to the winners. Thanks Dick Blick.

Creating artwork is very personal. I remember how hard it was for me to enter my first entry in an art show. It takes a lot of courage. I applaud all these students for entering the art show and putting their work on display. Thank you for your participation and for supporting this blog! Please take a moment to tweet about the show or announce it on facebook or whatever social network you may be a part of. Thanks.

I was looking at the calendar and realized that the month of October was getting away from me. The November art show deadline is right around the corner. So, this is your reminder about the show. There is no theme. You may enter two pieces of art work for the show. Parents may enter the show also.

If you do not know what I am talking about, go to the link at the top of the page that says AFH Art Show to get all the details or click here. In a nutshell, you must subscribe to this blog through email, join the Art For Homeschool Flickr group, wait to be accepted and then upload entries to the Flickr group. I try to stay on top of the requests for membership daily.  If you have never been to this site before, check out the previous art show winners and entries by choosing art show in the category list.

The purpose of the Art For Homeschool Art Show is to give homeschool students and parents a place to showcase their art work and to get feedback. The art will be judged and awards will be announced November 15.

When the deadline has passed and all the art work is in, I will post the art entries here on this website. I post the work so that all may see the work and may write comments. I also ask viewers to participate by looking at the work and voting for their favorite. Voting is done by leaving a comment with the name of the artist and the title of the work.

People’s Choice and First Place awards in each age group will receive donated gift certificates from Dick Blick. When you need to purchase art supplies I hope you will remember the support that Dick Blick has given Art For Homeschool. If you happen to know of a company or homeschool group that might be interested in sponsoring our show, please give them the website address or let me know.

I look forward to seeing all the great artwork. Don’t forget, November 1st is the deadline. Come on homeschool students and parents, let’s make some art!

The variety of art information available on the internet that can be used for educational purposes is astounding. Sorting through it all can be time consuming. Here are some sites homeschoolers and homeschool parents might be interested in checking out. Some are just for fun and some could be used for gathering information about a particular artist, art technique, or artistic process. Enjoy trying them and let me know if there are any in particular that you end up using.

• http://jacksonpollock.org/ - FOR FUN!  Create Jackson Pollock type art work using your computer and mouse. The video link will take you to a You Tube video that shows you how it works.
• http://thisissand.com/ - FOR FUN! Create artwork on your computer with colored sand. You can change the color of the sand by pressing C on your keyboard. Go to http://thisissand.com/gallery/ to see other artwork created at this website. You can even submit yours there also.
• Slide Share - http://www.slideshare.net/ -This website is not specifically art related.  With this website you can find thousands of slide presentations that people have shared on any number of subjects. All you have to do is search the subject you are looking for and preview. The presentations are in many different languages, so you will need to sift through the slide shows to find the one that meet your needs. This site would be great for homeschool parents wanting to show works of a particular artist without having to spend the time on the internet searching for the artists work.  I am using several of the presentations here in my art classes on various artists. You do not have to join their site to see the presentations.
• You Tube - http://www.youtube.com/ - You Tube is such a bonus to teachers. There are so many great educational videos on You Tube that are art related. If you have a You Tube account, you can create a playlist of the videos for a particular artist or subject. Just recently I have created a playlist of videos teaching how to create tessellations. That playlist remains and I can use it for my classes each time I need it. So when I find a video that I feel is worthwhile, I add it to a Playlist for that subject. For example, I have a playlist for drawing eyes, drawing noses, tessellations, Rene Magritte, balance, and weaving.
• Mr. Picasso Head - http://www.picassohead.com/ - Create art work in the style of Pablo Picasso.
• The Art Zone – From the National Gallery of Art in Washington - http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/zone.htm - This site is full of activities art related. You need Adobe Shockwave to do the activities here. I found that I needed to use Internet Explorer to do the activities here. There was some sort of compatibility problem with Google Chrome. Examples of activities: Brushster – paint abstract works of art, Collage Machine and Still Life.

I hope you enjoy trying out these websites.

5 to 8 Year Olds:

Portrait by July - Age 6

 

Volcano Erupting by Scott - Age 5

 

Your drawing is quite interesting!  It is hard to draw action in a picture.  You have done a great job illustrating what it might be like to experience a volcano erupting.  I especially like how you used collage to layer the figure into your drawing; it really adds to the drama and action that is going on in the background.  Combining cut out drawn images over another drawing is a daring way to break the rules in traditional drawing. How brave you are! Try drawing, cutting, and pasting more parts of your picture in the future; lay the parts out and arrange them before you decide where they should be glued down.  This will allow you to experiment with the composition of your drawing. Nice work, keep experimenting!

 

9 to 13 Year Olds:First Place 

 

My Little Brother by Jake - Age 10

 

 

What a wonderful and spontaneous photographic portrait!  I like how you captured your little brother’s response to his environment.  It is hard to tell whether he is covering his ears to sound or if he is just not real sure about suddenly having his picture taken.  The natural lighting in your photo really adds life to your brother’s eyes, as well as interest to the up close and personal composition you have created.  Lighting is the single most important element in photography.  Looking for and identifying the light source in photographs will help you to become more aware of its important role in the photographs you want to take.  Throughout your day, think about where the light is coming from and how it changes. Great job photographing your little brother!

Second Place

 

Path to the Beach by Graham - Age 12

 

 The landscape scene you have made is very inviting.  It draws me in!  As the viewer, I can almost hear the wind and the waves.  I want to walk that path so I can get to the shore.  You have managed to create a very realistic atmosphere in your artwork.  You did a nice job contrasting the textures of the beach, grass, and the sand, as well as creating perspective in the foreground.  I also appreciate the clever use of purples in your clouds, as well as the sharp horizon line between the sea and the sky.  Altogether, you have created the necessary illusion of distance; an important and challenging quality in any landscape.  The more you work with a new medium, such as oil pastel; you will learn that unintended fingerprint smudges can happen.  Once you are aware of this, you will become more conscious of where you don’t want to touch as well as what is on your fingers. Great work!

That ends all the comments by our judge. Thank you again Marcia for judging our show!!!

Homeschool Parent Art Work:

Summer Peaches

I want to acknowledge our parent that entered the art show. Thank you Tricia Hodges for taking the time to participate in our show.  I love the simplicity of the subject matter, the neutral middle-ground, and the cool out of focus background. Parents can encourage and teach their children so much by example. I am hopeful that more parents will begin creating art work in order to teach the art process to their children. Great work, Tricia!

People’s Choice

 

People’s Choice Award is given to the artwork that gets the most votes through comments. Voting ended midnight August 14th. I appreciate all the people that took time to look at all the art entries and make their comments. This time our winner is Path to the Beach by Graham. Congratulations Graham!

Path to the Beach by Graham - Age 12

Congratulations to all our award winners! First place and People’s Choice winners will receive a gift certificate from our sponsor, Dick Blick. I will send you an email asking for your physical address so I can get the certificates sent to you. Thank you Dick Blick for being supportive of our homeschool students!  It is greatly appreciated.

The next Art For Homeschool Art Show deadline is November 1. Don’t let it sneak up on you! I am hoping that we will receive some entries in the older age group. The last few shows we have not had any entries in the 14 through 18 year olds. I know there have to be some homeschoolers that age out there somewhere.

****Note: I am having trouble with my Wordpress theme. I apologize for the strange spacing, centering, and bolding of text. I have worked on this article for hours trying to get it correctly written. But, I figure that the announcement of award winners is more important to you. So, I am having to give into my perfectionism to publish the article as is. I hope everyone understands. I may have to change themes for this blog in order to get things to work correctly. Ugh! Computers! Aren’t they supposed to make our lives easier?

Hi Everyone! I hope you are having a great summer. I have been out of town most of the summer traveling with my husband. We spent over a month RV-ing which is a new experience for both of us. We traveled over 7400 miles which included 11 States. It was fun and exciting, but I have to say that I am now glad to be home. Although coming back to Texas after spending time in the coolness of Oregon and Washington takes a little getting used to. We are in a very severe drought with temperatures in the triple digits almost every day. So, prayers for rain and cooler temperatures would be greatly appreciated.

Okay, so let’s get to the art show….

We have 19 art entries created by 13 students plus one entry by a homeschool parent. Thank you, Tricia! Our AFH Student group has grown to 20 families. That is awesome! Some of the show entries are from some of our new members. Welcome new group members! We are so glad to have you participate in this online art show.

The art entries are very diverse in media and subject matter. Entries include photography, pencil, pastels, pen and ink, crayon, and mixed media. The subject matter ranges from portraits, still life, and landscapes.  Once again there will be a People’s Choice Award.

• Look at the art work. Click on the thumbnails to get a full view of the work.
• Choose your favorite piece. You get to vote for one only. I will not count votes for people that vote more than once. (I hope you will actually look at each and every piece of art work. We don’t want this to become a popularity contest.)
• Make a comment at the end of this post with the title of the artwork and the name of the artist that you feel deserves the award.
• Tell others to come see the art show.
• Come back to this site on August 15th to see the awards given by age group.

You can also go to the AFH Student Group to make comments on individual art work that will go directly to the artists. I think our students would really enjoy hearing from you.  Enjoy viewing the work!  See you August 15th.

Voting for People’s Choice will close midnight CDT, August 14th.

The deadline for the next Art For Homeschool Online Art Show will be here before you know it. There is no theme. You can enter two pieces of art work in any medium you wish. If you are new to this site, be sure to check out the link AFH Art Show to find all the information you need to enter the show. If you have entered the show before, just get busy making art!!!! I can’t wait to see what you come up with.

If you are not interested in putting artwork in the show, we would love to have you participate in voting for the People’s Choice award. So please come back in August to see the entries and vote.