Circus figures from squares, triangles, circles, and ovals. Student drawings, adult art class, 3/24/14

Shapes into figures: 

Divide 8.5 x 11 card stock into quarters 

Divide first box into rectangles of various sizes and proportions touching each other - like a quilt, a crazy quilt. 

Box 2- triangles 

Box 3- circles 

Box 4- ovals 

Cut out the shapes. 

Create a figure out of each set of shapes:

One at a time, tracing around the shapes as you go, and creating your composition or design as you go.

Option 2: Create the figures on cardstock or copy paper quarter pieces. Cut out the figures. Use them as templates  to create a large composition. Many more options to try as well! 

Demo drawing in random order but at least numbered:

Catinka Knoth

241 Broadway, Apt. B

Rockland, Maine 04841

207-596-0069, 207-691-5544

Website:

http://www.catinkacards.com

Blog:

http://catinkacards.com/cknotes

Prints at Fine Art America

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/catinka-knoth.html

Facebook Artist Fan Page 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Catinka-Knoth/76702205114

Youtube channel:

http://www.youtube.com/user/catinkarts

Whirley Burley Squirrel Crosses the Road - story, and drawing to color.

Whirley Burley Squirrel Crosses the Road

Whirley Burley Squirrel cannot find any more acorns around his favorite oak tree.

He sees many more trees on the other side of the road. Whirley Burley Squirrel wanders further around and across the big lawn to a curbside by the big area of tar paving. It is the road. He sees a couple of squirrels and some crows across the road too.

Whirley Burley Squirrel puts a foot off the curb onto the paving when suddenly a loud rumble and a rush and roaring of wind fly past him. He tumbles over from the vibration and runs back across the lawn to safety. It gets quiet. He returns to the curb and sets off across the road.

Suddenly he feels vibration underneath and then that same loud noise. This time it is dark all around overhead, with the noise so loud and passing right above him. Again he tumbles and manages to run back across the lawn to safety. He had been underneath something as it passed over him, just missing him.

Whirley Burley Squirrel  waits  and watches. Now he sees what makes those loud sounds and rushes of wind. It is cars and trucks. Just before he sees them, he can feel the traffic vibrations through the ground under his feet.

When it gets quiet and still, he tries again to cross the road.

This time he makes it across safely. And, he can feel the sound and airblasts behind him when another wave of cars passes.

Whirley Burley Squirrel  meets the other squirrels, whom he had  seen from the other side of the road. And, he finds  some more acorns. There are so many more trees and acorns on this side. Whirley Burley Squirrel had found extra food and new friends. And, he had learned how to listen and feel for when it would be safe to cross the road.

Written by Catinka Knoth on 3/23/14

Catinka Knoth

241 Broadway, Apt. B

Rockland, Maine 04841

207-596-0069, 207-691-5544

Website:

http://www.catinkacards.com

Blog:

http://catinkacards.com/cknotes

Prints at Fine Art America

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/catinka-knoth.html

Facebook Artist Fan Page 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Catinka-Knoth/76702205114

Youtube channel:

http://www.youtube.com/user/catinkarts

Chippy Chipmunk Goes to the Store.

Chippy the Chipmunk found a bag of grain in the back of a truck . He has been taking grain for days. One day the truck goes to a store, with Chippy in it. Chippy and the grain sacks get unloaded into the store. The sack leaves a trail of grain. Chippy comes out that night, after a day of fright and upheaval. He scurries around the store looking for an escape - but finds no way out. He is trapped.

Next day someone moves a box and sees Chippy. They are both frightened to see each other. Chippy takes off running around the store with people chasing him. He finally finds his way to a quiet storage room. There he curls up to sleep and hide out in a pile of burlap sacks in a box. He had had to chew his way into the box.

The next day the box gets loaded onto the same truck that Chippy had come in on. The box then gets unloaded back where Chippy first found the truck. Chippy, who had been in the box all this time, creeps out of the box when everything is quiet and still. He is home again!
Catinka Knoth
3/22/14

Papercut scraps as templates for bird paper sculptures.

Cutaway parts from my birds & worms papercut sculptures post.

Letter size copy paper, 8.5 x 11", cut in quarters. Fold a quarter piece in half the long way. The cutaway parts here go along the fold. Use them as templates. Trace and cut out. Then experiment to fold them as you wish. Draw and color them too if you like. Mine are experiments.

The engineering is not perfected, but they did manage to stand. The last in the line is a skinny rocket shape. A child had made one in such a fashion and was disappointed that it was not more like a bird. So, I tried one too, to see if one could make a bird from it. Of course one can. The 'bird' pulling up a worm is in a previous post.

Birds and worms - cut paperfold sculpture arrangements, 3/21/14

Happy First Day of Spring! Papercut and pop-up card.

Happy Spring! At least by calendar, on this first day of Spring, at last. Freehand papercut & pop-up card. C.K., 3/20/14

Soren Squirrel argues with a Cat - coloring page and 10 squirrel story ideas.

10 squirrel story ideas. 3/19/14, C. K.

1. Squirrel goes in search of 10 kinds of nuts and acorns and seeds, inspired by a page from a nature guide he had  found.

2. Squirrel buries his loot, but forgets where everything is hidden .  

3. Squirrel is followed by a pair of crows and a bluejay in his nut finding hunt and burying. 

4. Squirrel argues with a cat and scolds him a long time. 

5. Soren Squirrel chases Sonya Squirrel,  who he likes. 

6. Soren Squirrel and Stevie Squirrel chase each other round and round, up and down the trees, and forget all about Sonya Squirrel, who they had been trying to impress. 

7. Soren Squirrel gets soaked in his leaf nest one rainy night. 

8. Soren Squirrel sets out to learn from the birds about their nests. 

9. Soren Squirrel builds a better nest. 

10. 
a)Soren wants to show Sonya his new nest. He is anxious about this. 
b) Soren cannot wait to show Sonya his new nest. 

11. 
a) Sonya Squirrel is very impressed with his new nest. 
b) Soren shows Sonya his new nest. She likes it 
c) Soren shows Sonya his new nest. She is very impressed.


C.K. 3/19/14

St. Patrick's Day, student shadow box drawings, set 2, adult art class, 3/17/15

Students brainstormed story ideas - two each about leprechauns and two about St. Patrick. The ideas, written on slips of paper, were passed around and chosen grab bag style. Each student drew one framed box and made an illustration for one of the four slips they had each selected. This set includes a pic of the story ideas slips, though not sure they are big enough to read.

St. Patrick's Day, student shadow box drawings, set 1, adult art class, 3/17/15

Students brainstormed story ideas - two each about leprechauns and two about St. Patrick. The ideas, written on slips of paper, were passed around and chosen grab bag style. Each student drew one framed box and made an illustration for one of the four slips they had each selected. The next set includes a pic of the story ideas slips.

Lucky Leprechauns folded papercut pop-up card, 3/16/14.

Freehand folded papercut in two pieces - one continuous cut. The positive and the negative.
. Lettering cut separately, a single cut. CK. 3/16/17

St. Patrick's Day papercut pop-up cards & papercut arrangements, CK, 3/15/14

'Poetry Sings', papercut pop-up card, 3/14/14. Freehand single fold papercut.

25 St. Patrick's Day Art Lesson Ideas - March ideas lists, CK, 3/11/14

1) paper cut patterns of Shamrocks
       for cards
       for repeats
       tried in different aspect ratio recangles
       
   2) Celtic patterns
   
   3) Quickie illustrations for existing stories
   
   4) Create Poem & illustration

   5) Make up a story - illustrate or do vignettes for

   6) Rainbow lessons

   7) Greens lessons -
       different greens as found in pallette or crayon box, etc
       explore how to mix greens using yellows and blues

   8) Greens landscapes
   
   9) Irish scenes & landscapes

   10) Irish Calligraphy - letter a proverb, or quote

   -----------------  More??--------
   11) Book Illumination - ie. Book of Cells

   12) Stained Glass window design

   13) Irish Castle

   14) Irish dragon, gargoyle, serpent

   15) Stone works & buildings
   
   --------------- 5 More???
   16) Shadow boxes for above art lessons
       drawn    
           colored pencils
           crayon
       painted
       collaged
       modelled    

   17) Irish poets & poetry    
   18) Cards
   19) Irish & Celtic myths - illustrate
   20) Leprechaun stories  - illustrate
   ----------- and, 5 more?
   21) Leprechaun profiles folded papercut
   22) Collaborative story illustration set - divy a srory into x number of scenes.    Each person does one they have randomly selected by lottery draw.        Compile for booklet, slideshow, display, video
   23) Make quickie puppets and act out a story
   24) Leprechaun jokes?
   25) Make some paper hats - use cardstock, decorate the hat band w celtic    designs, shamrocks..

Each time a new idea pops up the challenge becomes to see if one can come up with a set of five more idea

Greens play for St. Patrick's Day - watercolor class lesson, 3/11/14

Make color charts and experiments with the yellows and blues in your palette.
Overlay blues on yellows, then yellows on blues. Use varying strengths. Label the colors as you go. Label what you did for each version.

Sheet two is two versions of a shamrock. Lay down a wash. Dry. Create the shamrock by negative painting the background. Note the colors. Do another variation. Note the colors. Even note how you applied paint and what kind of brush you used. (Though I have done neither here.)

Greens for Spring (& St. Patrick's Day) - student art, adult art class, 3/10/14.

Greens for Spring (& St. Patrick's Day) - student art, adult art class, 3/10/14. Charts of yellow & blue crayons to make greens, and other green mixes. Landscapes & shamrocks for final drawings, inspired by photo references.

Exercises

Two sheets, four windows/boxes each -  A,B,C,D. 

Set 1

A) patches of the yellow and blues you have with name labels for each color.

B) patches of crayon greens with name labels, from light to dark.

C) Yellows first. 

Light across the horizontal top half. 

'Darker' yellow across bottom half. Label names in margin.

Blues (four - green blue, cerulean, blue, indigo in these crayon boxes). Color these blues across the yellows in perpendicular sections, lightest on the left to darkest on the right.

D) Blues first - just as above, BUT application order is reversed.

Set 2

A) Crayon greens in 3 horizontal bands, lightest across the top, darkest across the bottom.

Oranges & purples vertical bands across the greens; lightest on left, darkest on right. Label colors in margins AS you lay down each color.

B) Crayon greens in 3 horizontal bands, lightest across the top, darkest across the bottom.

Apricot, brown, grey, black (neutral crayon colors) in perpendicular bands across the greens. Label colors in margins as you go.

C) Quickie landscape using the 3 crayon greens. Even green for sky.

D) Lightest green covers the whole box first. 

Color in background w a darker color to negatively shape a shamrock. 

As you start with this you think of more possibilities for variations. 

Value experiments...

Gradations..

Textures..

Marks & strokes

Application methods..

--------

Catinka Knoth

241 Broadway, Apt. B

Rockland, Maine 04841

207-596-0069, 207-691-5544

Website:

http://www.catinkacards.com

Blog:

http://catinkacards.com/cknotes

Prints at Fine Art America

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/catinka-knoth.html

Facebook Artist Fan Page 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Catinka-Knoth/76702205114

Youtube channel:

http://www.youtube.com/user/catinkarts