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Basquiat Drawings

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Jean-Michel Basquiat is a legendary Neo-expressionist artist, who first started at as a street artist writing thought provoking phrases all over NYC.  He then developed into paintings and mixed media artwork, and his pieces are loaded with symbols and meanings relating to incredibly important themes still viable and ever present in our society today.  Basquiat's abstracted, expressive style is exciting and liberating.  His work truly deserves to be looked at and analyzed on a deeper level not only appreciate it's beauty but also significance of the themes he addresses.  

For this unit, student spend some time getting to know the artist's life story, the time period of his work, the vocabulary and terminology associated with his style, and how to visually analyze his work in order to extract it's deeper meaning.  We discuss poetry also related to this artist: "The Genius Child" by Langston Hughes.  The culminating assignment is for the student to create their own Basquiat inspired work, complete with a poem to accompany it..  ​

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In preparation for our next project, please research the artist,  Jean Michel Basquiat.  Do your best to answer the questions in the file attached.  One question asks you to do a small sketch of one of his works of art and add color.  Please complete this in your sketchbook by Wednesday, February 14.

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Steps:

  1. Choose one of the poems from class. Read through each one carefully.

  2.  Choose anchor words and circle supporting text that will help you create imagery.

  3. Complete the "brainstorm sheet" given in class.

  4. Create thumbnails to sketch out imagery, words, and symbols that capture the MOOD and STORY of the poem.

  5. Choose on thumbnail that best represents the imagery in the poem you've chose.

  6. Begin with black acrylic paint or watercolor. Create a background.

  7. Create shapes and symbols that represent your poem.

  8. Add other primary colors.

  9. Add oil pastel for detail.

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Rubric:

  • Creativity, craftsmanship, work habit, efficient use of time spent to create quality piece of art, is not tiny in size (10 points)

  • A theme with meaning that can be explained by the artist, connects the drawing, poem, words and imagery (20 points)

  • At least 3 words and 3 symbols representing imagery shown within the poem (20 points)

  • Captures Basquiat’s Abstract Expressionist style with messy, edgy brushstrokes, that show emotion, “childlike” in style but conceptually meaningful (20 points)

  • Poem/Story that is the required length, thoughtfully chosen and pertains to painting’s theme (10 points)

  • Mixed Media- other materials used in addition to pencil (10 points)                 

  • Artist Statement thoughtfully completed with detail (10 points)

​Total = 100 points

Watercolor Calendars

Acrylic Painting

Everyone can use some color mixing practice!  Make sure for this exercise you are ONLY using red, yellow, and blue paint= the PRIMARY colors.  Remember how we created colors with oil pastel! From those three colors, all other colors will be made.  Black and white paint will be needed to help you create your tints and shades.  Be sure to mix your colors in your palette, not on the paper, and DO NOT blend across your squares in one swoop.  Each individual square is slightly different in color and needs to be created on the palette before applying it to the paper.  Be as neat as you can and be sure to label everything.
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Rubric

  • Use of acrylic paint to create a color wheel with 12 "pie" pieces/colors (25 points)

  • Create 3 more rows, with 7 boxes per each= 1 row of a tint, 1 shade, 1 complementary color pair (10 points per row)

  • Be neat with your paint, keep paint within wheel and rows (10 points)

                Total = 75 points

Collage Painting

Create a collage in your sketchbook. Make sure your collage contains color and isn't entirely made of up black and white images.  When complete, use a viewfinder to choose an area of your collage that you will blow-up and re-create on an 6"x 6" bristol board. Use the quarter grid method to help you re-draw the cropped image as close as you can to the original, but now on a larger scale.  But, here's the real challenge: Paint your drawing, with your goal to being to mix your colors as precise to the colors in the original image as possible!  Be as hypersensitive as you can to the colors you see, and be relentless in trying to mix it yourself.  This is a fabulous way to practice color mixing with paint, as well as train yourself to be aware of all the fabulous variations of colors there are out there.

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Rubric:

  • Create a collage (10 points)

  • Grid/drawn accurately (25 points)

  • Color matching INCLUDING value/ tints and shades (25 points)

  • Neatness, no white space, paint covering all areas (15 points)

Total= 75 points

Optical Art

Op art, short for optical art, is a style of visual art that uses optical illusions. Op art works are abstract, with many better known pieces created in black and white. Typically, they give the viewer the impression of movement, hidden images, flashing and vibrating patterns, or of swelling or warping. We will become familiar with two Op artists, Bridget Riley and Victor Vasarely and look at their famous work. For our assignment, we will be focusing on manipulating lines to create an illusion of depth in our drawings using repetition and pattern alongside value and color. 

Rubric:

  • 12-14 vertical tubes

  • Curved lines representing cylinder form

  • Analogous color relationship throughout individual tubes

  • Value created using colored pencils, including light source and dark midtones

  • Craftsmanship= neat, 3D forms, convincing of Op Art

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Total: 50 points

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Lichtenstein Pics

We will continue or colored pencil skills and begin to explore the Pop Art movement and Pop artist, Roy Lictenstein! After we take a look at some of his work, you will utilize the your colored pencil skills to create a Pop Art creation of your own. You will select one comic frame or image from popular culture to enlarge, using the grid technique, to transfer to an 11X14 bristol board.  You will use markers and colored pencils to finish the drawing in the style of Roy Lichtenstein.

STEPS:

  1. Choose a single image to draw in order to comment on a particular part of popular culture- turn this into a comic book still frame.

    • ​Choose a simple image. 
    • Choose a frame that has at least one thought or comment bubble- Text should be a direct comment on subject matter.​
      • What kind of comment are you making?​

  2. Use the grid method to enlarge your image onto your bristol board.

  3. First, lay in your contour lines. Draw WHAT YOU SEE, not what YOU THINK you see.

  4. Then, choose your color palette. (Which colors will you use or create: primary, secondary, or tertiary).

  5. Do your best to mimic the colors, tints, and shades in the image you choose to enlarge. 

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Rubric:

  • Subject matter is relevant and representative of current popular culture 20 points

  • Subject matter is drawn to scale using either the grid method (photograph, image) or freehand (physical object) 20 points

  • Makes a comment, parody, exaggeration, "pokes fun" at item/person in popular culture 20 points

  • Includes a speech bubble that gives insight into what is happening in the composition15 points

  • Drawing is created in Lichtenstein style- a single comic book frame 20 points

  • Includes ben-day dots in place of value 15 points

  • Appropriate use of color (primary colors) 15 points

  • Includes a background that relates to subject matter and parody 15 points

  • Complete and artist's statement 10 points

Total: 150 points

Street Art

In this unit, we will be studying the evolution and meaning of public works of art, through artists that create them. You will be creating your own street art inspired artwork while learning the new medium of block printmaking. See the attached PDF for detailed instructions as well as the Investigative Worksheet, that will be completed prior to beginning the project. 

Block Printing Rubric:

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  • Complete Investigative Worksheet 20 points

  • Two complete thumbnails in sketchbook approved by due date 20 points

  • 5 test prints, experimenting with colors and ink application 50 points

  • Submission of final project: 4 successful prints on printmaking paper​: 80 points

    • 1 with chosen color

    • 1 with multiple colors

    • 1 with successful ghost print

  • Artist statement: 30 points

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Total: 200 points

Stencil Printing Rubric

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  • Complete Investigative Worksheet: 20 points

  • Two complete thumbnails in sketchbook approved by due date: 20 points

  • 5 test prints, experimenting with colors and ink application: 50 points

  • Submission of final project: 3 successful prints on printmaking paper + 1 print on a found object​: Prints should be clean, no bleeding and easily legible.      80 points

    • Stencil print with color

    • Stencil print with at least 2 colors

    • Stencil print using a classmate’s stencil

    • Stencil print on a found object (attach to other 3)

  • Artist statement: 30 points

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Total: 200 points

 

Blackout Poetry

A blackout poem ​is when a poet ​takes a marker (usually black marker) to already established text–like in a newspaper–and starts taking out words until a poem ​is formed. So, by taking text that already exists, you are using appropriation. Blackout poems can be created using the pages of old books or even articles cut from yesterday’s newspaper. Using the pages of an existing text, blackout poets isolate then piece together single words or short phrases from these texts to create lyrical masterpieces! Creating a blackout poem involves steps that are all about deconstruction then reconstruction. 

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Rubric:

  • Medium: colored pencils

  • Create a poem using appropriation and the blackout poetry technique.

  • Poem is created using printed text, carefully thought out to create a new meaning.

  • Use the value through cross hatching, hatching and/or stippling techniques within the composition.

  • Demonstrate good craftsmanship. (Clean pages, proper use of materials)

Total= 50 points

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