This week’s project is of a FLOWER using MIXED MEDIA (including PRISMACOLOR MARKERS and CHALK PASTELS) as the medium.
In this picture, your child explored:
- Mixed media
- Warm & cool colors
- Composition, including realistic drawing
THE DRAWING:
Gecko & Hibiscus
This week’s drawing is a picture of a gecko posing by a hibiscus flower. The hibiscus flower is a bright tropical flower which can be very fun to draw. The Hawaiian hibiscus is the state flower of Hawaii; these flowers bear blooms almost every day, but the blossoms last only for a day, even when on the bush. The flowers bloom from spring through the early summer.
Fun facts About Geckos:
- Adult geckos can range in size anywhere from 3/4 inch to 14 inches long.
- Most geckos are nocturnal; their large eyes see very well in the dark.
- Geckos are found on every continent except Antarctica.
- Most domesticated geckos are leopard geckos. They have an extremely long lifespan (usually 15-20 years – and some have lived up to 30 years!).
- Geckos are the only reptiles who can use their “voice.” They can make barking, chirping or clicking noises when interacting socially with other geckos.
- Some geckos can be fairly aggressive, and will bite when provoked. Some geckos eat other lizards and small rodents, and some species of geckos are able to spray an irritating liquid from the end of their tails.
- One of the strangest geckos is the flying gecko (Ptychozoon kuhli), which is found the tropical rain forests of Malaysia. It has wide flaps of skin along its abdomen and webbed feet, legs and tail, which makes it able to glide through the air from tree to tree.
- Teflon is the only known surface to which geckos cannot cling.
THE MEDIUM:
Mixed Media
Mixing mediums (the materials used to create a picture) is a fun technique to create contrast in a picture. Encourage your child to try more multimedia projects at home. Mixing mediums encourages children to think carefully about the effect created by different mediums – the contrast between the texture created by markers and that created by chalk, for example, can be better understood by children when the elements are presented side-by-side.
Using NuPastel Chalk Pastels
At KidzArt we use Prismacolor NuPastel color sticks. This form of chalk has a slightly varnished surface, which keeps it harder and cleaner than other varieties. They come in thin sticks which can be easily broken to be more manageable for small hands.
We show the kids how to use their fingers or a tissue to blend the chalk pastels; q-tips blend well in smaller areas. Because of the medium’s texture, the pictures can smear easily; you may want to spray the finished artwork with hairspray to help the chalk adhere to the page. When coloring with chalk pastels, it is important for right handed kids to start coloring on the left side of their paper, and vice-versa for left-handed students. This minimizes smearing with the hand as it moves across the page. Start with lighter colors and then add darker colors on top.
Using Prismacolor Markers:
Prismacolor Markers are fun and easy to use. These artist quality markers have two tips: a fine tip for coloring small spaces, and a broad, flat tip for coloring larger areas. These markers provide rich color saturation and smooth ink coverage.
Ask Your Child:
· What he learned about geckos.
· To explain various design elements (symmetry, color, etc) within her flower.
· To discuss the techniques he used while mixing prismacolor markers and chalk pastels in his drawing.