4th Grade

Abstract Jacksseeing shape

• Materials

– paper to practice sketch

– pencils

– 12x18 black paper

– oil pastels (fall colors)

– crayons (fall colors, for blending)

– white pencils to sketch out design

• Class Periods - 1

• SET UP

-Before class enters, give each place practice paper, pencil, eraser.

-Have groups of pastels, crayons, white pencil and black paper ready for each group of tables.

Hand out after they have their final idea ready.

• Make sure the students put their name and date on the back of paper with white pencil.

1Show students slides of Georgia O’Keefe’s flowers

Talk about what makes them “abstract”

(SLIDE 5 and 6)

She is best known for her large and extreme close-ups of flowers. She cropped in on the

flower.

These images make the viewer notice small details which would have gone unnoticed before

At the same time caused a distorted abstraction of the subject making it nearly

unrecognizable.

Show slide 6.

Our lesson will be doing the same thing with Jack o’ lanterns.

2.On the practice paper, have students create at least three different Jack o’ lantern designs. Show examples as inspiration, on

slide 7. They should create something only they would come up with. (Don’t say “be creative” it can make them freeze up.)

They will choose the most interesting one.

Talk to them about making the inside of the carving look three dimensional with angling/perspective.

3.Choose the drawing they like most.

Using the viewfinder, show them how to crop in around the drawing so very little or none of the space around the pumpkin is

visible. In the style of O’Keefe’s flowers. See slide 8.

Cropping in on the drawing creates an abstract image.

Show slide 7, 8, 9 to show the progression from

full image

viewfinder to crop

cropped image

4.Sketching lightly with the white pencil, enlarge the cropped image onto the black paper.

***FILL THE PAPER***

Remind them about making the inside of the carving look three dimensional with angling/perspective. It will add more interest.

5.Use oil pastels to add color and highlight.

Use the sides of the pastels to cover large areas.

Procedure

What is this?

vocabulary• Shape - the outward outline of a form. Basic geometric shapes include circles,

squares and triangles.

• abstract - not realistic but expressive, imaginative or creative way to show the essence of something

• view finder - a small window cut in a piece of paper or card, that shows what will be in a picture

• crop in - zoom in on