8TH GRADE

8th grade artists chose their best artwork for display in an informal school show. I am so proud of them! We have worked hard over the last few months to practice drawing, painting, visual communication, and printmaking techniques as we discussed art historical styles and individual artists. 
Here are some of our amazing 8th graders with their work! This show was on display for just over one month. We will have another art show at the end of the year, with first, second, and third prizes awarded for drawings, paintings, and sculptures! 

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018 ART SHOW

(Several students were absent the day we completed this assignment and did not get their pictures taken). 

DuanJhae is pictured here with her observational, realistic drawing of a "paper word sculpture" she designed and built. She also completed a beautiful tempera painting featuring a soldier and his canine friend as well as several multi-color relief prints of a stunning peacock. These three art pieces represent quite an accomplishment! It isn't easy achieving success across so many art media!

Mason chose two exceptional pieces for the show; his relief prints as well as his observational drawing. He first designed and constructed a paper sculpture of the word, "Jesus," and then carefully drew the image with subtle shading to create the illusion of space. This is outstanding work, Mason!

Chris chose his carved relief prints as well as his beautiful observational drawing of a word sculpture for display in our show. He used a variety of lines to describe his pumpkin and followed printmaking procedures to the letter to accomplish these exceptional prints. Printmaking can be tricky, but these are extremely well done. Way to go, Chris! 

Andrew is pictured with two amazing tempera paintings and one of his fine drawings completed this semester at HCA. Paint is a tough medium to master; liquids have their own mind sometimes and are hard to control, but Andrew proves his skill with this medium is exceptional! Both the clean edge technique and the color gradation technique are beautifully done here! 

Michael shows off his design, printmaking, and painting skills for our hallway show. One of his prints features a "rainbow roll," which is extremely difficult to accomplish. His painting is exceptionally done as well with the soft-edge technique! Attention to detail and practice will lead to success every time! 

Madison is pictured here with a fun, witty painting of Einstein, a fine drawing, and two beautiful carved relief prints. She always has wonderful, unique ideas for her artwork and her joyful spirit comes through in the pieces! These artworks show how good her design skills are becoming, as well as the highly intelligent thought process behind the work. 

Ethan is pictured here with three wonderful pieces; a superb observational drawing, two carved relief prints, and a fun tempera painting representing the idea of "sweet." Ethan shows off his exceptional drawing, design, and painting skills for our show! Awesome work, Ethan! 

Carson's tempera painting and drawing represent some remarkable skills; we can almost hear the roar of the plane as it breaks the sound barrier in this extremely well designed painting! Also, the soft value gradations in the drawing, the highlighted edges of the letters, and the dark/light contrast all work together to make the 3-D illusion. Way to go, Carson! 

CERAMICS!

Mason's finished flower ceramic sculpture

For the last portion of the semester, students applied skills, knowledge, and techniques during a unit on ceramics (the art of making things out of clay). We learned the different stages of clay, how to correctly attach pieces together, and a variety of techniques (including wheel-thrown pottery!) in forming and modeling the material. We also discussed the physical and chemical changes of the clay before and after firing. 

Many thanks to Mr. Larry Gibson of Pizitz Middle School for firing our pieces for us! 

To finish the ceramic sculptures, most students chose to wait until next semester to glaze their piece. A few students decided to finish theirs for Christmas gifts and used oil pastels and a black tempera paint dip. Mrs. Nichols completed the surface finish by spraying a gloss coat of paint! They are gorgeous and we can't wait to see the rest after the second glaze firing! 

November 7, 2018

Edition of Prints

October 12, 2018

Communication Paintings

September 12, 2018

Observational Drawings

August 13, 2018

Welcome back! I am excited to have our 8th graders back in art class this year and I can't wait to see the amazing artwork they do. During the first two weeks of school we have achieved a lot! 

Students worked together in teams to collaboratively construct word sculptures for a hallway installation honoring the different names of God, such as Yahweh, Living Water, Wonderful, Prince of Peace, etc. We then learned more about famous installation artists such as Christo and Jean Claude, Sandy Skoglund, Robert Smithson, and Do Ho Suh. 

Installation art is different from a freestanding sculpture; it is designed to create an environment for the viewer to experience, rather than a single art piece to look at. We are grateful to have the opportunity to create our installation art in preparation for Spiritual Emphasis Week. Hopefully, the hallway will bring to mind Who God is, and inspire worshipful contemplation in the viewers as they walk through it! 

Finally, 8th grade artists are working on improving their drawing accuracy skills by completing several drawing exercises this week. Each student made their own original word sculpture and then attempted to draw it as accurately as possible. We will use a variety of drawing media to learn different shading techniques next!