Fall 2010 / Manipulated Line Drawings
Session 1: We talked about lines and doodles and graffiti and patterns … and then we got to work! The students started with covering their large piece of white paper with swirling lines, done while standing to allow arm movement, and with Sharpie markers so they could not fuss over them by erasing.
With some examples of lines and doodles on the board and their own shared imaginations, they began filling in the resulting sections with doodles, still keeping to the black Sharpie. I directed them to keep some area white, to be left that way or to be coloured in single blocks of bright colour. They really enjoyed the freedom of these choices, and we encouraged some of them to go further than they would have by filling in and varying their doodles.
Session 2: I came back to them with their drawings laminated, and a smaller piece of black bristol board. They were curious as to what was next, and happy to see their work so bright and shiny … Then I told them to cut into their drawings, following along the lines already made, turning it to do so all the way around. They were a little horrified that they would be cutting up their own drawings, until they learned that they had to keep it as one piece, rather like an orange peel that remains a single strand – cutting in toward the center, but never all the way through.
The next step was to mount the cut drawing on the black board using a stapler, and bunching up some sections and tucking others under, intersecting and winding on themselves. There was an audible “Aaaah!” when we got to that part. Finally, they had to name their piece and write a tag for it to hang in the hallway gallery. You can tell by the titles (one boy named his “The Mona Lisa”) how highly they thought of their work. A favourite, this one!
Thanks to the Incredible Art Department. Check it out and more, at www.incredibleart.org