A Beautiful Owl Painting

I was so amazed when I found that my students researched "owls" on the Internet.  I heard questions like "Would they come and live here if we put up owl boxes?" "Are there other sanctuaries where we can see them?" I would be happy to know who handles owls and would be willing to receive a visit from the class.

 

When a subject is so interesting to the children, we carry the theme into a further session. For the acrylic painting class on owls, the journals were put aside. From the moment this girl started her owl, I kept well away. I only mentioned Sap Green as a possible colour to brighten the foliage, and reminded her that the white owl must really stand out in the painting and must not disappear in the busy foliage.

 

This went so well. Just look at the confident
and rhythmic strokes of the foliage!



A truly successful painting for a 14-year old!
Owl is camouflaged, yet well defined.
 

The best test to determine whether
 the tonal values are successful,
 is to look at the subject in black and white.
Yes, it worked a 100% and the detail can be seen!

And so, a confession: this young artist is my
granddaughter, a fifth generation artist in the family.
I hope to surround her with strong young artists continuously. I love the class dynamic and work ethic that we are establishing.





Not too Young to think out of the Box

In 2017 I settled into a retirement centre. Four of my young students (they later became five) wanted drawing classes (painting was already happening in another venue) and my tiny flat was ideal as a small drawing studio. To seat them all around a round table, I had to consider a smaller scale for their work. Journaling was the best choice. The drawings would be together in one book.

My Drawing and Creative Journaling classes consist of the following

• A theme is discussed. It could be books, still life, self knowledge, "plein-air", shells, etc.
• The students make an accurate drawing first, in which they learn observation and investigate the use of pencils, pens or brushes as drawing tools.
• The second part of the lesson is where the students think about the subject, telling more in the form of writing, illustration and affirmations.
• I always provide my students with small sketchbooks or journals so that they can draw wherever they go. To show me what they do at home is not compulsory, but they love to do it!

Having all their drawings together in one journal leads to pride in their work and the journals are sometimes taken away so that a parent or teacher can see the interesting collection of drawings and thoughts.

Lesson: Let's draw some boxes! As an artist from a young age, I was totally bored and irritated by formal perspective lessons. By drawing almost daily, my students will pick up on the vanishing point in boxes and street scenes.

You are only nine years old, and somebody put a box in front of you to draw. There is a lot of merit in this drawing: yes, there are lines that remain straight and lines moving away from the eye and there are sides and angles! I was happy with how the lid was placed! Slowly, we learn to observe! My older students created lighter and darker sides and shadows underneath and even drew the carved design. 

 

 

The creative and more relaxed part of the lesson brought lovely results. I handed out squares of paper to glue randomly onto the second page. Each square had to be turned into 3D-looking box! I loved the box with motivs on the sides and a shadow....and he knew he was "thinking out of the box" there! Other clever bits slipped in. These journals are going to be full of surprises!