Enlarging the Mona Lisa With Grids
Submitted by: April Duda,
Art teacher at Rotolo Middle School
Grade level / Age: Middle School, but easily adapted to elementary or high school.
Goals / Objectives:
Students gain understanding of the concept of using a grid for the purpose of enlarging a picture by enlarging given 1" (2.5 cm) squares of an image onto 3" (7.6 cm) squares of paper, and putting them together as a class.
Materials Needed:
An image of your choice (I chose this one of the Mona Lisa),
Notecards or cardstock in 3-4 different colors,
Post-it notes
are 3x3 (7.6 x 7.6 cm) and perfect for this lesson! They come in white (the yellow ones make it a little harder to see) and then the students don't have to bother with tape.
Packing tape
or White Glue
& Laminate
.
Lesson Description:
This lesson takes a bit to prep, but then it is reusable and proved to be very valuable to my students.
First, I printed my image to be 9x14" (23 x 35.5 cm) (I did this by splitting it in half in photoshop and printing two regular pages). I then created a 1 inch grid over the image. (I suppose you can do this on the computer if you can do so quickly and accurately). I then put the image up to the window so I could see my grid lines while I had to write on the back. I wrote coordinates on the back, A1 all the way through I14 (letters (A-I) across the top, and numbers (1-14) down the side). I wrote in each square so I did not have to worry about keeping track of them once they were cut. This allowed me to cut them fairly quickly.
Now comes the most tedious part. I had 4 colors of card stock - yellow, orange, red, and blue. I cut each sheet into 4 squares, around 4x5" (10 x 11.5 cm). I then began to tape each square to a card. I put the 'easy' ones on yellow, 'medium' on orange, and 'hard' on red. The blue were for blank spaces. I put several of these one one blue card, because they were more for my reference, to keep track of blank spaces in the image. I used packing tape so the little square was nice and protected. I plan to laminate them now, knowing how well the lesson went!
I then cut enough 3" (7.6 cm) squares for our image (126).
Now for the lesson:
I had 2 student helpers pass out 2 of the blank 3" (7.6 x 7.6 cm) squares to each student. I then explained that yellows were simple, orange were medium, and red were the most challenging. I asked the class to raise their hand if they wanted a more challenging square. I walked around and gave each of these students 2 reds. I then dispersed the oranges and yellows (giving each other student 1 yellow and 1 orange, unless they asked specifically). I asked the students not to begin drawing until everyone had their cards, so I could explain a few things first.
Once everyone had their cards, I explained how they can visually (without drawing on their card) break their square into quarters to help see exactly where each line and/or shape should be placed on their larger square. There were also asked to pay attention to the weight of the lines, as they do very and that will matter in the end.
I had a masking tape dispenser up by the chalkboard, and a 3" (7.6 x 7.6 cm) grid drawn on the board (totaling 27"w x 42"h / 69 x 107 cm) with the letters and numbers. I could have just labeled rows and columns, but I ran out of room for the letters. (Next time, I will put a strip of them already written on the tack strip above the board).
Students were told once they finished their squares, to come tape it where it belongs (I also had them write their coordinate on the back in case it fell off). After taping it, they were to put their used card in the "Done" basket and go pick up another card from the "To Do" basket.
Everyone stayed busy and this lesson lasted a perfect amount of time for me (about 35min). The more advanced students chose all of the reds, and others quickly completed yellows and challenged themselves with the oranges and even more reds! It was great to see them so excited when it all came together and they realized what it was (fairly early on).
Assessment(s):
The lesson is deemed successful if the majority of the lines match up, and its original source (the Mona Lisa) is obvious. We discussed focusing on one square, and how helpful it can be. Students commented that, had I given them that image and told them to draw it, without breaking it up, how complicated it would be. Because of this lesson, they will now be more confident to tackle their realistic drawing of an animal. (A first realistic attempt for some).
Resources
Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci
Book
Vanished Smile: The Mysterious Theft of the Mona Lisa
Links
The Mona Lisa La Gioconda - A page on the history of Da Vinci's most famous work.
The Louvre - A piece by the museum that houses the work of art.
WebMuseum's Page - A short summary on the painting.
Lair Web's page - A longer summary on the painting.
Mona Lisa Mania - A fun page that covers the lighter side of the painting.
Exploratorium's page - What happens when you put the painting, or parts of the painting, upside down?
IAD Lessons
Mona-Lisa - A lesson for 4th through 6th graders.
Monochromatic Mona Lisa - A lesson for 4th through 6th graders.
Upside Down Mona - An elementary lesson utilizing techniques by Betty Edwards.
Mona Lisa Role-Play - A lesson integrating drama and the visual arts.
As a reward for their works of art, give them Mona Bucks!
Enlarging Abstract Drawings and Paintings
Submitted by: Chrissy Poinsett, Art Teacher
Grades: 6 - 8th
West Bloomfield Schools- Our Lady of Refuge
Procedure:
Experimenting with Tracers, Rulers, and Compasses, middle schoolers created small pencil sketches maquette (scale model) drawings that were then enlarged and became larger Painting-Drawings.
They were given various layout and color options such as Radial-Symmetrical, Emerging from Opposite Corners, Zig-Zag Traveling Shape, or Opposite Mirror Layout. Color combinations such as Cool, Warm, Complementary, Earth Tones, and High Contrast Options (Black plus Neon) were introduced. We also discussed revealing value changes to give depth to shapes and areas of their drawing-designs. Students can brain-storm new layout ideas as well. The initial maquette drawings led to an enlarged better version of their drawing. This assignment can also be annotated and become a Mandela relating to Culture or a personal theme relating to students.
Vocabulary:
Maquette- Scale model, sometimes referred to by the Italian names plastico or modello) is a small scale model or rough draft of an unfinished architectural work or a sculpture. It is used to visualize and test shapes and ideas without incurring the cost and effort of producing a full scale product. It is the analogue of the painter's cartoon, modello, oil sketch or drawn sketch.
Supplies:
6" x 6" (15.25 x 15.25 cm) Sketchbooks
Drawing Pencils
18' x 18" (45.75 x 45.75 cm) or any square size) Watercolor Paper
Shape tracers, Compasses
Colored Pencils
Black Sharpie Fine Point Markers
Tempera Cakes
Paint Brushes
AquaMarkers
