Monochromatic Self Portraits

During the first two weeks of school, students in every grade level created monochromatic self portraits using different shades of just one color. Students used crayons, markers, and colored pencils to represent themselves in realistic, cartoon and abstract ways. Students had made self portraits in the past, but this time it was challenging to be limited to just one color family! Older students were encouraged to show emphasis using these materials, separating their self portrait from the background to help their work stand out. Learn more about our process here.

Then all of the monochromatic self portraits were sorted by color and counted, with the help of after school 5th grade volunteers, and arranged in rainbow order before being stapled and taped onto larger panels.

This week, all of the monochromatic self portraits were put together in two separate rainbow displays. There are more than 570 students here at Hosmer, so we could not fit them all on one bulletin board! Below are our monochromatic self portrait murals on display. Check them out in person at Back to School Night, this Wednesday, September 28 from 6-8pm. 

First Week of School

During the first weeks of school, artists discuss expectations we have of each other in the art room and also get reacquainted with the space. This year, we played an art room "I Spy" game. Students looked at photos of places in the art room. These photos were intentionally taken from close up or interesting angles so that it would be more challenging to identify. Students rotated around the room to look at all the photos and correctly identify the different places and parts of the art room and their purpose.

Students also began their monochromatic self portraits. Monochromatic means one color, so students used one color to draw a picture of themselves. Even though students were limited to one color, there were many different shades of that color available through markers, crayons and colored pencils. Students could represent themselves in a variety of different ways. Below are some photos of work in progress. 

These monochromatic self portraits will be put together in large rainbow displays, so keep a look out for those coming soon!

Happy First Day of School!

 

Welcome back, Hosmer artists and families, for another year of art! And welcome to our new PK and Kindergarten artists and families. Looking forward to making more art with everyone and exploring new materials and different techniques!