LESSON PRESENTATION INSTRUCTIONS
SPACE
FALL LEAVES
Lesson Objectives: Students will learn about perspective while painting a watercolor tree.
Time Required: 1 hour
Artist: John Constable, Wivenhoe Park, Essex
Source: The Usborne Complete Book of Art Projects, pgs 140-141
Materials:
Watercolor paper 9×12 taped to a cardboard board
Watercolors (orange, red, brown, blue)
Acrylic paint (brown
Brown oil pastel
Paintbrushes
Paper towels
Water and cups
Presentation:
Discuss space in art: creating a picture that appears 3-dimensional and on 2-dimensional piece of paper. Note that objects closer to you are larger and more detailed. Things further away from you are smaller and less detailed.
Procedure:
- Pass out watercolor paper taped to a board. Write names on blue tape. Turn the paper vertically.
- Paint orange watercolor across the bottom ½ of the paper, creating a hilly horizon line. Paint in a blue sky. While still wet, dip a paintbrush into the water and let it drip over the sky. The paint will spread a little.
- With brown acrylic paint, paint a tree with branches.
- Use a brown oil pastel to draw wavy lines for the middle vein in the leaves.
- Paint a leaf shape around the veins with different shades or orange, red, and brown watercolors.
- The leaves closest to you should be big, while the leaves further away, i.e. on the tree, should be smaller.
- When the leaves are dry, add in the fine veins on the leaves with a Sharpie or acrylic paint.
