Non-traditional portrait

I choose to do a portrait of my kitten named Sally because I wanted to try to do something other than a dog. I decided to do this project with colored pencil tips because I felt this material could best portray the kitten. My material choice impacted the look of my piece because it added another element to the portrait. The pencil lead gave the picture a texture but it also kind of made all the colors blend. This material choice was very important because the material really brought the kitten to life and if I used a different material it wood look totally different almost night and day. I took the risk of using pencil tips which was a difficult material to attach to the paper and it has not really been used before. One of the major challenges I faced was trying to get the lead out of a pencil and glueing it on was a little difficult. The portrait look very textured because of the use of pencil leaf and it felt rough. The feeling changed to a more fun and spontaneous which is similar to the kitten. My kitten had a connection to colored pencils because the first day that I brought the kitten home she got into the colored pencils and carried them around and we knew then that she was a little bit different. 

Sticky situation

I developed my idea for "Sticky Situation" from the idea of a dog who got in a very sticky situation and  got into some paint buckets. Yes I feel I was able to think outside of the box when I was thinking of this idea because a dog near wet paint is a sticky situation let a lone him getting into the paint. Also having dog can be a bit sticky at times because they tend to get into things which is also why it's a bit sticky. Repetition was incorporated into this painting because of the paw prints on the floor. As well as the wood grin which adds rhythm to this painting but it does not distract from the dog. These both flowed and improved the painting but it also told the story of this situation. Acrylic was chosen for the choice of media because I had used this before and I though it would best portray my idea of a sticky situation. Also it is best for layering which is what is required in this piece because when you are painting an animal with a lot of fur layers are required. The mini lessons were important because I used some of those skills on my final product. I feel this project was successful because I portrayed the theme and the rhythm and repetition was incorporated into this painting as well. This painting also told a story and makes you think what might happen next say this dog gets onto your new couch or maybe he jumps on you in your favorite dress you don't know but hopefully you just get a good memory of when something like this happened to you or even a laugh at the idea of such a sticky situation. 

Up close and personal

I developed my idea for this project from Pinterest because I saw an publish picture of a flower to show a different perspective. I added shading to demonstrate emphasis as well as different colors to make other things stand out. Colored pencils were my medium for this project because I thought the flower would look the best drawn with colored pencils. The colored pencils fit the best and enhance my piece. The risk I took was by learning a new skill in using colored pencils which I don't do very often. I used the technique of texture in the flower to show the text close up or as they say up close and personal. This project seemed some what successful because I tried very hardto make it realistic. It could be better if I used more value and a deeper concept I will use this blog to improve on my next project in order to grow as an artist. 

What's the point

      For the project " What's the Point" some of my solutions where cacti, and a rambutan which is a pointy Australian fruit. Another solution I had was to draw a circle made completely of points which would be neat to make something without out them. In the end I choose to draw a cactus for my solution because I felt that out of all the ideas I came up with I could best exhibit cacti. I showed contrast by shading and blending lights and darks with a tortillon. I used the scribble sort of technique to show the value in the cacti. The medium I used was charcoal to draw because you can easily blend the shading. I was also interested in trying a new technique of drawing. I used the shading techniques to draw the cacti as well as the skills needed to use charcoal that I learned during this unit. We encourage risk taking in art. Risk taking can be as simple as trying a new technique or learning about a new medium to as complex as trying something totally new. Yes I did indeed take risk with this project because I used charcoal which is something I have never done. Therefore I was a little nervous about it but I feel it turned out well. I am conveying that cacti are pointy and that it is okay to take risk sometime when drawing and even if it is an out of the box idea it can turn out well. I used charcoal unlike many other which is a risk and not a lot of people thought about cacti when they thought of points which is why I feel my project was successful. 

Printmaking Project

The process for making this print was some what time consuming and long. First you chose your animal you would like to make; then you make a clean line sketch using your reference pictures. Line sketch means without shading or any value, instead you make a clean sketch with distinct lines. Then you make a view finder and chose the view you want to portray. After choosing your view you take trace paper and trace over the lines in that area then you flip over the paper and retrace. This way the animal is not backwards when it is printed. Finally you proceed to transfer the sketch to the linoleum. After that you cut out the parts that you do not want the ink to touch you get a bench hook and a roller and you roll the ink and cover the roller. Then you roll it onto the linoleum put it on the paper and smooth it. Finally you have a finished print. I sort of liked this project, but at times it was challenging to not let the ink smear. I learned from this project that it is better to plan before cutting into the linoleum.

Lab days

Spray Paint Stencil

I thought this project was really fun and interesting and also that I went through the process well. It takes a long time, but it was worth the time, because it turned out really well even better than I expected. I learned it is better to take your time rather than mess up and have to redo the stencil. Luckily I did not mess up and cut out the wrong color, but the process was some what extensive. First you design the picture in photo shop to make it into something that could be made into stencils. Then, you project the image and trace over the different colors on poster boards. After, that you have to cut out the parts you traced; this was my least favorite part. I did not like it, because it took the most time and it was at times very hard to cut the paper and it got old and boring very quickly. Finally you spray painted the cardboard by taping the stencils to the board. This was my favorite part of the project because you got to be outside and it was very fun. My stencil project was successful because you could tell it was a dog and it look really neat and somewhat put together. I enjoyed this project and would happily do it again because it was very fun and I learned a lot.

IPad Value Study

The similarities between using oil pastels in the class room and doing layers on art pro was that you can blend and choose different colors and be making art. The difference was that you could not create different and separate layers in real life but you are able to do this on the app and the blending is different. I feel accomplished, because I have improved from when we started the value drawing but I have done it before this class. I found the technology very useful because it was a different way to learn and kept it interesting.

CONTOUR SHOE DRAWING

My drawing improved a lot with developing the contour line skill because I learned to pay attention to the details. My hand went from the classic hand to a hand that looks realistic and has the wrinkles of the skin. The contour line unit has showed m rather than to outline the shape if you fill in the details you don’t need the outline. My drawings improved tremendously from my original drawings and I found this unit very helpful.

Cartoon Skeleton

For my cartoon skeleton I did tweety bird I based the skeleton off of a human skeleton. We drew the human skeleton the day before, so our job was to base the cartoon skeleton off of the human one. I used some of the main and most important bone structures. For example the rib cage, spine, skull, and the arm and leg bones. I had to exagerate the head because it is very large, as well as the feet which are also exaggerated. When I was told we would be doing a cartoon skeleton I was very overwhelmed, but after we practiced drawing skeletons I was more comfrotable with the idea. My sketch was successful because I worked hard to make the bone structures as realistic as possibly yet I put my own spin into the drawing. Another contributing factor to this sucess was the fact that we practiced drawing skeletons.