Lesson: Exquisite Corpse

Grade Level: Elementary - 4th Grade

Overview:

Students will be in groups of 4 and each complete ¼ of the exquisite corpse by drawing one portion, passing their paper to the next student to their right, then they draw the second portion, then they pass the paper to the right, then they draw the third portion, then they pass the paper to the right, then the last student draws the last portion then they finally pass it to the right ending up at the original drawer. The paper goes in a circle ending back to the original artist.

 

Content Focus

• Art production – pencil drawings with markers
• Art History – Surrealism
• Language Arts – Nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs

 

Ohio Department of Education Standards:

• Visual Arts Ohio State Standard 2- Creative Expression and Communication
• Language Arts Ohio State Standard 1 - Phonemic Awareness, Word Recognition and Fluency

 

Objectives:

• TSW choose one noun, verb, adjective, and adverb and put each word in each of the four sections of paper.
• TSW illustrate a noun, verb, adjective, and adverb into their 4 drawings.
• TSW setup 2 lines into the next section below that will connect their drawing to the next section.
• TSW complete 4 drawings that include (name, pencil/marker, figure, and part of speech word) in each drawing.

 

Materials:

• Sheets of 8 ½ x 11 drawing paper
• Boxes of markers
• Pre-sharpened pencils with erasers

 

Teaching Instructions:

Anticipatory Set – Introduce the lesson by telling students they are going to make Exquisite Corpses.

• Begin by showing them a PowerPoint of Surrealist artwork and examples of the real Exquisite Corpses.
• First describe Surrealism and the characteristics of Surrealism.
• Exquisite Corpse was a game that the Surrealists played.
• I will explain how it originated as a word game.
• I will show them the artists that made the exquisite corpses.
• How this technique got its name.
• Show examples.
• Explain how they created these artworks.

Step 2: Review/Discuss – Discuss the information with the class. It is important for them to understand that the drawings were not perfect, or truly representing anything real, it was more abstract like something in a dream. It is important not to show your neighbors your drawing so they don’t know what the rest of the drawing will turn out like until the very end.

Step 3: Objectives – The following are the objectives I will have written on the board:

1. Write your name in the top left of the folded section.
2. Write a word on the top right side of the page in the folded section:
1. Section 1: Adjective
2. Section 2: Noun
3. Section 3: Verb
4. Section 4: Adverb
3. Draw a part of the figure in the folded section. Have it represent the adjective, noun, verb, and adverb.
1. Section 1: Head to Neck
2. Section 2: Shoulders, Arms, Stomach (Torso)
3. Section 3: Waste to Knees
4. Section 4: Knees to Feet
4. Draw 2 lines passed the fold at the bottom.
5. Each student will complete 4 drawings total with (name, pencil/marker, figure, and part of speech word) in each drawing.

Step 4: Input and Modeling – Have two Exquisite Corpse examples already created, and one in the process.

1. I will display them on the board for everyone to see.
2. I will explain that we will first fold our paper into 4 equal parts.When we break into groups of 4 (1 group of 5), each of you in the group will get a chance to draw each section.
1. Section 1: Head to Neck
2. Section 2: Shoulders, Arms, Stomach (Torso)
3. Section 3: Waste to Knees
4. Section 4: Knees to Feet
3. When you pass the paper, the first thing you need to do is put your name in the top left so I know who drew what section.
4. Then you will write your (adjective, noun, verb, or adverb) in the top right.
1. I will ask who knows what these terms are and ask for an example:
1. Adjective: describing word (describes the Alien): smelly
2. Noun: person, place or thing: Alien
3. Verb: an action, use present tense (add “s” or “es”) walks
4. Adverb: modifies the verb (answers the question “How?” describes how it walks): sloppily
5. It is important to draw 2 lines into the next fold so the next person can connect to it.
6. I will give you 5 minutes to write your name, part of speech, and draw. (Start with pencil, if you have time you can add color.)
7. When the time is up you will fold back your drawing so the next person CANNOT see it.
8. We will pass our paper in a circle to the right so everyone will draw on the paper in the different sections.
9. t is important to fold back your drawing before you pass it on, because the drawing is not supposed to be seen until the end.
10. When your paper comes back to you there will be a completed drawing on it for you to see and a Consequences-line sentence. (The group of 5 will have to return the paper to the first drawer).
11. To help you think of what to draw each time, use the part of speech word, and draw from that. If you wrote, “smelly” maybe have smell squiggles coming off of the body.
12. There is no talking when we are drawing, this way there is no way your neighbors will know what you are drawing and it will be a bigger surprise.

Checking for Understanding:

Step 5: Checking Understanding – I will ask students what a noun, verb, adjective, and adverb are. I will ask students how many sections the paper must be folded into. I will ask students what must go passed the folded line. I will ask students what they must do before they pass their paper to the right when the time is up. Finally I will ask students if talking is permitted during the drawing part of class.

Step 6: Guided Practice - I will count the students off by 4 and break them into their groups by my dismissal. I will then pass out the paper, pencils, and markers. We will all fold our paper together with my demonstration on how to make 4 even portions. “Half like a hamburger, then half again.” When everyone has their paper folded into 4 even sections we will begin our Exquisite Corpse’s.

Step 7: Independent Practice – Each student will begin with their own blank piece of paper divided into 4 even sections.

I will say “ready, set, begin,” and there will be no more talking.

All the students will begin with their own paper in the FIRST section. They will first write their name in the top left, then write their ADJECTIVE in the top right. After that they can start drawing the HEAD to NECK using their adjective as a guide, and making sure they have drawn 2 lines into the next section.

“Times up, pencils and markers down, fold your section back, and pass to the person on your right.”

All the students will begin in the SECOND section now. They will first write their name in the top left, then write their NOUN in the top right. After that they can start drawing the SHOULDERS/ARMS/STOMACH using their noun as a guide, and making sure they have drawn 2 lines into the next section.

“Times up, pencils and markers down, fold your section back, and pass to the person on your right.”

All the students will begin in the THIRD section now. They will first write their name in the top left, then write their VERB in the top right. After that they can start drawing the WASTE to KNEES using their verb as a guide, and making sure they have drawn 2 lines into the next section.

“Times up, pencils and markers down, fold your section back, and pass to the person on your right.”

All the students will begin in the FOURTH section now. They will first write their name in the top left, then write their ADVERB in the top right. After that they can start drawing the KNEES to FEET using their adverb as a guide. This will complete the drawing.

“Times up, pencils and markers down. Pass to the person on your right.”

This will return the paper back to the original drawer.

 

Closure:

I will end the class by telling the students to clean up their materials and return them to their designated areas. With the time that is remaining we will review our Exquisite Corpse drawings. Anyone who would like to share their Exquisite Corpse and Consequences sentence that goes with it can do so. I will tell the students to look for these to be hung in the hallway to show off their excellent teamwork in creating these wonderful Exquisite Corpses’ like the Surrealists did.

Extensions/Modifications:

• One extension is with the time remaining to add color to the drawing. This is not required, but will add more detail to the drawing for those who finish early within their 5 minutes.
• Another extension is to have students draw a background for their Exquisite Corpse.

 Rubric:

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Criteria	3	2	1
Student can give an example of the following parts of speech (noun, verb, adjective, and adverb) within their folded area. The part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, or adverb) relates to the illustration.	Student can give an example of 3 of the 4 parts of speech (noun, verb, adjective, and adverb) within their folded area. The part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, or adverb) relates to the illustration.	Student can give an example of 2 or 4 parts of speech (noun, verb, adjective, and adverb) within their folded area. The part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, or adverb) somewhat relates to the illustration.	Student can give 1 or zero examples of the parts of speech (noun, verb, adjective, and adverb) within their folded area. The part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, or adverb) does not relate to the illustration.
Student has drawn 2 lines into the next section below.	Student has drawn 2 lines into the next section below.	Student has drawn more than 2 lines into the next section below.	Student has drawn no lines into the next section below.
Student completed 4 drawings that include (name, pencil/marker, figure and part of speech word) in each drawing.	Student completed 4 drawings that include (name, pencil/marker, figure, and part of speech word) in each drawing.	Student completed 2 or 3 of the drawings that include (name, pencil/marker, figure, and part of speech word) in each drawing.	Student completed 0 or 1 of the drawings that include (name, pencil/marker, figure, and part of speech word) in each drawing.

Lesson: Cubist Contour Still Life

Grade Level: High School - Art I/Beginning Art

Overview:

The students will learn about still life and cubism in this lesson. They will each bring in an object for the teacher to assemble one still life for the center of the room. The students will sit in a circle around the still life. They will have a designated amount of time to draw in the contour lines of the still life from that angle. They when time is up they must move four seats to the right and begin drawing from a new angle. This will be repeated 5 times for 5 different drawings. From there the students will use the multiple angles of the drawing in a collage like a cubist artwork in which fractures the picture plane into multiple angles. They will then choose an appropriate limited color palette to complete the artwork.

Objectives:

The student will be able to…
Knowledge

• Identify styles and techniques used in Cubist artwork
• Use 5 different views of the still life in the drawings

Skill

• Draw 5 still life contour drawings from the class still life
• Construct a cubist composition of multiple sides using all 5 contour drawings
• Compose a unified negative space to accompany the contour drawings

Value

• Discuss their thoughts and opinions on the Cubist style
• Select their own object to bring in and add to the class still life
• Choose a color palette for their composition (complementary, analogous, etc.)

• Standard 1: Student Choice and Vision - Students' emerging interests are at the core of visual literacy and an arts curriculum that promotes voice and ownership in learning.
• Standard 2: Critical and Creative Thinking – Students coordinate artistic processes to imagine, create, realize and refine ideas in both conventional and innovative ways.
• Standard 3: Authentic Application and Collaboration - Students engage in artistic production individually and collaboratively to address genuine local and global community needs

Vocabulary:

• Cubism
• Pablo Picasso
• Contour Line
• Drawing
• Collage
• Juxtaposition
• Still Life
• Planes
• Fractured
• Planes
• Complementary
• Analogous
• Tertiary
• Monochrome
• Primary
• Secondary

Materials:

• Objects for still life
• Water color paper
• Pencils
• Scissors
• Glue
• Water colors
• Paint brushes

Teaching Instructions:

1. Prior to the lesson the students are asked to each bring in an object for a still life.
2. Introduction: "Who knows who Pablo Picasso is?" "What is he known for?" "Did you know he began training as an artist at the age of 7?"
3. Show examples of his early works. "In the early years, he painted in a realistic manner. As he got older his style changes as he experimented with various types of media and techniques."
4. Show examples of his cubism: Portrait of Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler, Bread and Fruit Dish on a Table, and Still Life with Chair Caning.
5. "Cubism is a style of painting Picasso developed with artist, Georges Braque using monochrome colors. He took apart objects and looked at them in terms of their shapes, fracturing the planes into sections."
6. Ask students, "What objects do you see in these paintings?" "How has be broken up those objects?" "What colors did he choose?"
7. Transition, "Now lets look at Picasso's line drawings.
8. Show students a few examples of his line drawings.
9. Ask students, "What do you notice about these drawings?"
10. Explain that these are contour line drawings because the shape is what the artist is focusing on, not the shading or shadows.
11. Instructions: "You will pick a seat around the still life, and take your 5 pieces of water color paper, a pencil, and an eraser with you. I want you to draw a portion of the still life that you see from the seat you are at. Focus on completing a contour drawing. I will give you 10 minutes to make the drawing. When the time is up, I will ask you to rotate four seats to your right, and take a seat. You will begin on the next piece of paper, a contour drawing from this angle. In the end you will have five drawings of the still life from 5 different angles."
12. "It is important that you only focus on the contour lines, no shading."
13. By the end of class the students will have their 5 contour drawings completed.
14. The students will cut out each of their contour drawings how they please along the lines.
15. After all of the objects are cut out the students will arrange them on their sixth piece of paper in a composition showing the fractured planes of the objects.
16. The students will glue down the pieces when they have decided on a composition.
17. They will then choose a color palette to color their collaged contour drawing.
18. Remind students of the color wheel.
19. Show the color wheel, and ask students, "What are the primary colors, what are the secondary colors, what are the tertiary colors, what is monochromatic, what is analogous, what is complementary?"
20. Tell students, "Choose one of these types of color palettes to paint your collage.
21. The students will begin to paint in their drawing with the desired color palette.
22. Tell students, "Keep in mind the negative space on the paper. What could you do with the negative space to make it look like part of the painting?"
23. Closure: The students will hang their paintings on the wall for a class critique. Each student will talk about the successes and troubles with the project and process. They will also say what they could add or remove or do different to make their project better.

Extensions/Modifications:

• For students who may need extra assistance I can allow them to focus on one object in the still life each time they rotate seats. I can have a printout of one of Picasso's contour drawings so they can refer to it to remind them to only draw the lines. When choosing a color palette, I will show the student what they look like together and have them pick which one they want to use.
• For advanced students, they can add other materials to their collage, such as printed papers, fabrics, etc and explain that Picasso played around with collage frequently experimenting with other objects. The students must have a specific choice for using such materials and they should complement the composition.

Resources:

Images:

• Portrait of Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler
• Bread and Fruit Dish on a Table
• Still Life with Chair Caning

Books:

• Picasso Line Drawings and Prints, by Pablo Picasso
• Projector and Computer: to show images

Lesson: 1, 2, 3 Point Perspective

Grade Level: High School - Drawing/Art II

Overview:

This lesson provides students the opportunity to develop the basic drawing knowledge and understanding of perspective. The students will be introduced to one, two, and three point perspective and learn the characteristics of each type of perspective. This technique is the foundation for realistic drawing and drafting. It is used across many professional careers too. The students will have a chance to practice their skills using a worksheet in which they draw perspective boxes within a circle. This exercise will increase their understanding of perspective so they can apply it to their perspective project.

The students will have the choice of drawing their final project in one, two, or three point perspective. Once they have chosen which perspective they want to draw in, they will apply the skills they have developed on their Circle Worksheet to their final project. The students will draw as intricately as they wish various size boxes, some with overlap some not (imagine a 3-dimensional Tetris).

After they have completed the drawing they will add appropriate shading to their drawing. They can choose pencil or colored pencil for shading. The students will be introduced to light, and how it affects shades. They will apply this knowledge to their drawing, adding three tones of shading: light, light gray, dark gray, and black.

Objectives:

Objectives: The student will be able to…
Knowledge

• Distinguish the changes in value from the effect of one light source on the drawing.

Skill

• Show an understanding of 1, 2, and 3 point perspective by completing the 3 Perspective Circle Practice Worksheets.
• Illustrate a final perspective drawing accurately in the student's choice of 1, 2, or 3 point perspective.
• Construct 4 levels of shading in their perspective drawing in respect to the student's chosen direction of light.

Value

• Practice excellent craftsmanship by cleaning up any inconsistencies in their final artwork.

Ohio Department of Education Standards:

• Standard 3: Critical and Creative Thinking – Students coordinate artistic processes to imagine, create, realize and refine ideas in both conventional and innovative ways.

Vocabulary:

• 1 Point Perspective
• 2 Point Perspective
• 3 Point Perspective
• Direction of Light
• Shading
• Reflected Light
• Distort
• Vanishing point
• Horizon line
• Horizontal
• Vertical
• Secondary

• (27) Illustration board (8x10)
• (27) Drawing Pencil Set of 4 (2H, HB, 3B, 6B)
• (27) Rulers
• (27) Erasers
• Colored Pencils (optional)

Teaching Instructions:

1. Introduction – ask students, "What is perspective?" Assess students' prior knowledge of perspective. Ask students, "What is one-point perspective?" "Two-point?" and "Three-point?"
2. Ask students, "Where do we see perspective in our everyday lives?"
3. Ask students, "What type of professionals use perspective?"
4. Show students web sites of examples of one, two, and three point perspective. Point out where the vanishing points are. Ask students to point out where vanishing points are too.
5. Show M. C. Escher images. Point out where the vanishing points are, and show students how Escher distorted perspective and also applied perspective to realistic and abstract objects. Ask students to identify what type of perspective Escher is using in various examples.
6. Introduce Perspective Circle Worksheet to students.
7. Read instructions as a class for each.
8. One-point perspective: If you hold a box in front of you it is in one point perspective. This means all lines appear to converge at one point on the horizon. (Draw a one-point box on the board).
9. Two-point perspective: Turn the box so that you are looking at the edge of the box. The two sides appear to converge in opposite directions, or to two points on the horizon. (Draw a two-point box on the board).
10. Three-point perspective: Look down on or up at the box now. The lines appear to converge at three different points. (Draw a three-point box on the board).
11. Have students start with Two-Point perspective, then One-Point, then finish with Three-Point worksheet.
12. Demonstrate to the class how to draw in the first box for each worksheet.
13. Tell students, "The horizontal line represents the horizon line." Ask students, "Who can tell me what the horizon line is?"
14. Tell students the purpose of the circle. "Whenever you draw things in perspective, you will find it helpful to imagine a circle, and to draw within the circle. If you draw things outside this circle they appear distorted and don't seem real."
15. Demonstrate a distorted box outside the circle to explain.
16. Tell students some of the common errors when drawing boxes in perspective: "Vanishing points should appear behind the box. Parallel lines should go to the same vanishing point. Vertical lines should be vertical, never slanted. Horizon line always is horizontal."
17. Have students begin two-point worksheet.
18. Have students begin one-point worksheet.
19. Have students begin three-point worksheet.
20. Have students choose which perspective they feel most comfortable with to use for their final drawing project.
21. When students have completed the 3 worksheets, have them individually get the materials to begin the final drawing.
22. Assist with drawing in the vanishing points.
23. They may tape their drawings down to a large piece of scrap paper to extend their vanishing points off the page and to help when drawing.
24. The students will be drawing various size boxes in a well thought out composition similar to a 3-d version of Tetris. (Long boxes, short boxes, hollow boxes, solid boxes, intersecting boxes, overlapping boxes, etc.)
25. Once the majority of the students are almost through the line drawing, introduce shading.
26. "We are going to add shading to our drawings from one direct light source. You can choose to stay with pencil, or choose colored pencil."
27. Explain to students, "We see everything because of a light source reflects off the surface of something. In this case we are using one imaginary ray of light reflecting off of multiple boxes."
28. "The light produces various tones on the surface of something. The closer to the direct light an object is the light the tone; the farther from the light an object is, the darker it is."
29. Ask students, "If my light source is coming from the top, what would my lightest and darkest areas be?"
30. Ask students, "If my light source is coming from the left, what would my lightest and darkest areas be?"
31. To simplify this idea I want you to use just 4 shades: light, light gray, dark gray, and black. If you are using colors, apply this concept to colors.
32. You can apply shading in many ways to incorporate a type of style to a drawing: solid shading, dots, and lines, cross hatching.
33. Tell the students, "Once you have your drawings completed, you can begin shading them in."
34. "If you want to practice first on your worksheets you can do so."
35. Walk the room continuously to observe the progress students are making and call students' attention to areas that are inaccurate and ask them what needs corrected.
36. Challenge students who are grasping the concept to add realistic or abstract elements like Escher does, and see how those objects relate to the space and perspective.
37. Remind students to refer to the rubric while they are working to make sure their project aligns to the objectives of the project.
38. At the end of the project students will display their work for a critique where they can explain the challenges, their likes and dislikes, etc. Have students point out where the vanishing points are in each others work.
39. Students will turn in their final drawings for grading."

Extensions/Modifications:

• Students can add realistic or abstract elements within their perspective drawing.
• Students can practice the various types of perspective in Adobe Illustrator to render an object.

Resources:

Book:

• Hanks, K., & Belliston, L. (1990). Rapid viz: A new method for the rapid visualization of ideas. Menlo Park, CA: Crisp Publications, Inc.

Web Sites:

• One Point Perspective: http://www.boostinspiration.com/photography/one-point-perspective-black-and-white-photography/
• Two Point Perspective: http://www.flickr.com/groups/1261090@N24/
• Three Point Perspective: http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=3+point+perspective&f=hp
• M.C. Escher: http://www.google.com/search?q=m.+c.+escher+perspective&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&prmd=imvnso&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=6_4_T4LcNYH1ggf32YGGCA&ved=0CCkQsAQ&biw=1024&bih=571

Projector and Computer: to show websites and images