Second Grade Monster Portraits

Second graders have been exploring texture, pattern and watercolor resist. For this quick project, we created monster portraits. We were inspired by the work of Jim Henson. We looked at many of his monster-like creatures and noticed how they often included textures, crazy colors and silly details.

To create their own monster portrait, students began by using black oil pastel. They first created the outline of their creature. Next, they colored in the whole background black, allowing the finished monster to stand out. They used colored oil pastel to add texture, pattern and details. Finally, they painted their work using watercolor. Because watercolor resists oil pastel, the paint did not cover their drawing, but instead allowed their line work to show. Here are a few finished examples, but check for more on Digication:

Happy Halloween!

Second Grade

Second grade artists have been working on a variety of projects in the past few weeks. The first was creating "texture cities." We explored how the architecture of a city is different than that of a place like New Canaan. Students reflected on their neighborhood collages and thought about what would have been different if they were depicting a city. Next, we looked at examples of art and architecture from New York City. Students looked at how illustrator Melanie Hope Greenberg depicts a city. We also looked at some examples of interesting architecture such as the Guggenheim Museum.

Students were then asked to create a drawing of an imaginary city. They needed to create all of the large elements by tracing basic shapes. They could then add free handed details. Students were reminded of how we can show background, middle ground and foreground by overlapping and varying size.

Next, artists added color to their work using crayon. Instead of simply coloring the shapes in, students explored how texture could add interest to their work. They used texture rubbing to fill their work with color.


Next, students began working on monster portraits. For the next two projects, we will be exploring watercolor resist. Here is a sneak peek, but I will post more about this project once all of the classes are finished.

Keep up the good work second graders!

The Year So Far: Second Grade

Second grade artists have been learning about foreground and background. We have also been brushing up on warm and cool colors. In our first project, students created collages of where they live. The first week, students only used cool colors (blues, purples and greens). We remembered to include the horizon line (where the ground meets the sky) and lots of details.

The following class, we discussed foreground and background. We noticed that things in the background are usually smaller and closer to the top of the paper. We also noticed that things in the foreground are bigger, lower to the bottom of the paper and often overlap objects in the background. Students then used only warm colors to create their foreground. This time, we made streets with a variety of modes of transportation. We also discovered that because of the warm and cool color contrast, the foreground stands out from the background.

These will soon be on display at South. Keep an eye out for this excellent work!

The Year So Far: The First Day of Art

Welcome to the South School Art Studio! Here are some photos of the studio:

This year, in South tradition, students in every grade created a self-portrait on the first day of art. They will repeat this activity on their final day of the year to see how much has changed about their drawings and themselves. Here are some examples:

See more examples on display outside of the art studio!