21st Century Art Education : Parents / Tweens : Creative Series

by Patricia Britt

Art is an infinite gift for a talented child in the choir, band, sports, who can build any Lego project in minutes, etc, or a quiet child that you see something special in their crayon pictures, or sketches then here’s some see art suggestions below. 

From the time I picked up a pencil I became an artist many years ago, and am still one to this day no matter how sporadic my drawing interludes are. Right now it’s been a few years between serious 2-6 hour sessions to complete a good work. Although my work is mediocre, I always like it, because I always capture the eyes, which are the window to the soul, and reinforces my talent. I’m working up to a session soon, I can feel it in my limbs as I organize my supplies to relaunch the best hobby in the world.

Supply Requirements :

1. Strathmore Drawing Pad ( medium weight) 2. metal pencil 3. Old fashioned pencil hb8 or your preference from an art store 4. A tissue, or Kleenex for shading if you’re drawing a human, or a flower 5. a flat gray gum eraser to lightly eraser tiny, or large amounts of mistakes.

Art Supply Source: Hobby Lobby Art Supply : Book : Animation 1 Learn to animate cartoons step by step ~ book by Preston Blair

This book has a double ISBN #

isbn13:978-0-929261-51-5
Isbn – 10:0929261-51-5

www.walterfoster.com  is the distributor If I could buy every child in thru k12 in, or out of school an art program this book is the equivalent, because it has the silly fundamentals of art in goofy characters. It runs about $10.00.

Say you have a child who’s good at art takes two or three classes, and hones their talent on their own with the supplies above. Then where do they go with it? Are there classes in the neighborhood or at a safe distance from home? Do you, or the child have an Ipad to collect images for a drawing source? Does the family subscribe to  magazines like the Avon catalog, Ebony, Cosmopolitan, GQ, Car magazines, and even People so the child can practice on portraits the child finds interesting to draw, and not give up, because it’s just an average tiny gumpy picture with a nerdy pose, or are the guy models saying I can conquer the world, and the girls are saying come closer to see my heart, just not to close with their eyes, if portraits are your preference.

With portraits you should use both types of pencils until you get a feel which one suits you best.

If architecture is your specialty potential stick with mechanical pencils.

Beyond sketching I’m at a loss for the techniques of art, but this can get you started.

The best item to begin with is a good animation book carried by Hobby Lobby.

Once you have these supplies you can started on your own. To get back to the initial question where does the child, teen, adult go from here? You draw the same character 100 times until you’re satisfied that it looks like the original in all aspects, but feel free to move to a different character if you’re having difficulty, because the goal is to master the entire book. That can take a month, a year, or 10 years. But once you have the elements of animation portraits are easy.

Art Instruction Studios is one avenue for testing after you’ve mastered the book, although for most people there is a fee, they may have scholarships.

Your goal with art can be leisurely for yourself, or you can improve as your goal to be a graphic artists learning computer software, or fine artists using oil paints.

To draw for yourself is an easy therapeutic way to loosen up, and feel like you’ve achieved something.
Sometimes the Lord gives us a multitude of gifts to develop that gives us personal satisfaction, and possibly a career. Explore art, and see what happens. 

http://www.artinstructionschools.edu/enrollment/scholarships  Perhaps this my help your budding artist.

Merry Christmas families…

Zimation Arts & Letters 21st Century Education ~ Creative Series