Tag: Classical Conversations art

  • Cycle 1 Week 17- Michelangelo

    Cycle 1 Week 17- Michelangelo

    When I think of Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel ceiling, I picture him lying on his back atop huge scaffolds, working in this position for years and years.  I’m not sure if I was formerly taught this, but come to find out, it’s a widespread misconception!  He did work atop tall scaffolds, but stood upright…

  • Cycle 1 Week 15- Angelico

    Cycle 1 Week 15- Angelico

    Fra Angelico is well-known for his altarpieces and frescoes, his most notable being The Annunciation painted in the Convent of San Marco in Florence, Italy.  He painted several paintings on this same theme throughout his life, but this is by far his most well-known work.  To help students get a firm grasp on his subject matter,…

  • Cycle 1 Week 14- Ghiberti

    Cycle 1 Week 14- Ghiberti

    Ghiberti’s masterpiece, dubbed the “Gates of Paradise”, are beautiful relief panels adorning the doors of the Baptistry of San Giovanni in Florence.  It took over twenty years for Ghiberti to complete this project!  He first carved wax molds, then cast them in bronze, and then polished, sanded, and incised details.  Finally, he covered them with…

  • Cycle 1 Week 6- Chinese Kites

    Cycle 1 Week 6- Chinese Kites

    To complete the first six weeks of Cycle 1 we’ll be drawing Chinese kites.  The lesson plan touches on mirror-image drawing, one-point perspective, and abstract design.  That’s a lot, but I hope the kids feel confident in their knowledge and enjoy drawing their final piece. Many historians believe that China is the birthplace of the…

  • Cycle 1 Week 2- Greek Vases

    Cycle 1 Week 2- Greek Vases

    The Foundations Guide suggests using Greek vases to practice mirror-image drawing, and whad’ya know!  That works perfectly for Cycle 1 and ancient civilizations. We know that the Greeks used symmetry in architecture, and we can see this same love of order and balance in their art.  Most of their pottery was symmetrical in shape and…

  • Cycle 1 Week 1- Egyptian Art

    Cycle 1 Week 1- Egyptian Art

    The new Foundations Guide came out this year, but you’ll notice that drawing for weeks 1-6 are the same as in the past. Since Cycle 1 looks at the history of ancient kingdoms, I will be combining the drawing concepts alongside art from ancient civilizations. Week 1 starts out with the basic elements of drawing…

  • Cycle 3 Week 13- Grandma Moses

    Cycle 3 Week 13- Grandma Moses

    Starting out the “Great Artists” this year we have Grandma Moses. Her work is considered folk art, meaning her art pieces reflect her community, culture, and the everyday things around her. She was not a formally trained artist, and amazingly did not even begin painting until her late seventies. In her paintings we see the…

  • Cycle 3 Week 6- The White House (final drawing)

    Cycle 3 Week 6- The White House (final drawing)

    For the final drawing I usually don’t try and include all the concepts from the previous five weeks, but this year I gave it a go.  In order to pound those pegs in a little deeper, this project will touch on mirror-image drawing, perspective, shading, and, just by its nature of being a drawing, OiLs.…

  • Cycle 3 Week 3- Statue of Liberty (upside down drawing)

    Cycle 3 Week 3- Statue of Liberty (upside down drawing)

    When I practiced this lesson with my own kids, it made me laugh because they begged for me to to turn the image right-side up for them to draw it.  Something about an upside-down drawing drives kids nuts.  Its hard to shut off the part of the brain that wants to see an image and…

  • Cycle 3 Introduction

    Cycle 3 Introduction

    Welcome back!  I hope you are excited and encouraged to start the new school year! As we go through the next six weeks, I will be using the phrase “let’s study what we see”.  As tutors, we want this to become part of our art vocabulary, and, most importantly, we want to equip our student’s…