The Circus is Coming

Summer is here!  And that means time for more art lessons and shows. :)  Right now I am working on a carnival/ circus theme set of lessons.  My "inspiration" for this type of lessons and show came from a few things- one of my children can grab his uvula and wanted to show this off at an art show a few years back- I said maybe if we do a circus art show he could do that kind of thing.  Also a few years back my mom sent me a link to this short film & I loved it.  Many an artist has been fascinated with the way the body moves and that makes dancers and acrobats great subjects.  Degas, Seurat, Alexander Calder and Charles Demuth are a few artists with some circus/performer themed art.  Another thing is a book I love called Louise, The Adventures of a Chicken.  Another book I read just this summer, "A Sawdust Heart" My Life in Medicine and Tent Shows Henry Wood, added to the fun of this theme.  Finally, this seemed like the summer to do it.
One day we are making sculptures of something you might see in a circus parade while listening to Carnival of the Animals (Saint Saens).  Another day we are painting large circus posters while listening to The Beatles For the Benefit of Mr. Kite along with the rest of Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band and Magical Mystery Tour.  A third day we are learning about stippling and drawing a circus act while listening to Devotchka (not exactly circus music, but gypsy punk- gypsies- it kind of goes right?).  A fourth day we are making masks (inspired by the carnival masks in Venice) while listening to Cecilia Bartoli and Vivaldi.
Authenticity has never really been my goal, but fun is; and fun we do... Here is a sneak peek at some of the projects (I'll post more detailed blogs about each project soon):

Spring Contour Line Drawings

Another project we did for our spring art show was contour line drawings.  We drew a tricycle, rain boots, and an umbrella. We used a nice-off white drawing paper and felt tip pens. 
A contour line is a line that follows the contour of a subject; or follows the outline and includes wrinkles, bumps, insides of folds, outlines of highlights,etc. 
How to do it- look at something, put your pen on the paper, let your pen take a walk on the paper where your eye travels.  Like making a map of what you see.  No lifting the pen, that's cheating, it's supposed to be one continuous line that goes up, down, in and out, and makes a picture.  :) 
It can be hard.  I let little kids cheat a bit.  Once you get the hang of it it's a great exercise to get yourself to really "see" what you're looking at; to get to know your subject.  Contour line drawings also look really great- a nice simple piece to frame and hang on the wall.