MADISON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Grade 8 Art
Authored by: Kate Gebstaedt
Reviewed by: Lee Nittel,
Director of Curriculum and Instruction
Stacy Snider,
Supervisor of Visual and Performing Arts
Adopted by the Board: January, 2013
Members of the Board of Education:
Lisa Ellis, President
Patrick Rowe, Vice-President
David Arthur
Kevin Blair
Shade Grahling
Linda Gilbert
Thomas Haralampoudis
James Novotny
Superintendent: Dr. Michael Rossi
Madison Public Schools
359 Woodland Road, Madison, NJ 07940
www.madisonpublicschools.org
I. OVERVIEW
Grade 8 Art is a required semester-long art program that is designed to both build upon the previous Junior
School cycles and provide a strong foundation for the more rigorous elective program offered at Madison
High School. Students are given four major assignments: graffiti design, still life pastel drawing, clay
sculpture, and painting in the style of Van Gogh. As they explore the use of different media to complete
these assignments, students are encouraged to focus on the concept of “composition” in a work of art in a
conscious way. 8th graders are expected to write about their artistic interpretation of each assignment after
completion, and group critiques are scheduled regularly to give students an opportunity to discuss their
own and each other’s work.
II. RATIONALE
Grade 8 Art is designed to provide a studio atmosphere for students who are already familiar with the
workings of the art room. “Old” concepts, such as shading, are reintroduced, but at a more sophisticated
level. New concepts, such as composition, are taught both two and three-dimensionally. For some
students, Grade 8 Art may the final formal visual arts training they receive in a school setting. For others,
it marks the start of a commitment to exploring the pleasures and passions of the serious study of art. In
order to embrace all student levels of commitment and talent, this course is first and foremost provides a
setting in which there is ample room for adolescent self-expression.
III. STUDENT OUTCOMES (Linked to New Jersey Core Curriculum Standards)
1. Students will decide if graffiti is really art. (Standards 1.4)
2. Students will recognize the hallmarks of graffiti. (Standards 1.3, 1.4)
3. Students will consider their own names from the viewpoint of a graphic designer. (Standards1.1, 1.3)
4. Students will make use of overlap to create visual interest in a work of art. (Standards 1.1, 1.3)
5. Students will master consistent light source and shading. (Standards 1.3, 1.4)
6. Students will know the meaning of the term “composition” in a work of art. (Standards 1.1, 1.4)
7. Students will be able to analyze famous artists’ compositions. (For example: Andrew Wyeth’s
“Christina’s World”). (Standards 1.1, 1.4)
8. Students will know and use composition terms: overlap, zoom in, crop, focal point,
(Standards 1.4)
balance.
9. Students will be able to create multiple compositions based on the same still life set-up. (Standards 1.1,
1.3)
10. Students will know how to mix colors with pastels. (Standards 1.1, 1.3)
11. Students will understand how white can be used to create the illusion of wet or shiny. (Standards 1.1,
1.3)
12. Students will use glue as a drawing medium. (Standards 1.3)
13. Students will use a simplified grid process to enlarge drawings accurately. (Standards 1.1, 1.3)
14. Students will understand that sculpture is three-dimensional art. (Standards 1.4)
15. Students will know the origins of clay and how other cultures use it. (Standards 1.4)
16. Students will learn to think and draw 3-D when planning a sculpture. (Standards 1.1, 1.3, 1.4)
17. Students will know basic clay techniques (slab, slip and score) and use of tools. (Standards 1.1, 1.3, 1.4)
18. Students will understand clay chemistry and procedure: wedge, sculpt, air dry, fire, glaze, fire.
(Standards 1.1, 1.3)
19. Students will know Van Gogh’s life story. (Standards 1.4)
20. Students will recognize Van Gogh’s distinctive use of brushstroke and color. (Standards 1.3, 1.4)
21. Students will emulate Van Gogh’s technique in a study of one of his paintings. (Standards 1.3, 1.4)
IV. ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS AND CONTENT
Unit 1: Graffiti Names (3 – 4 weeks)
Obj. 1: Using principles of graphic design, create a poster in graffiti style
QUESTION: How does the student artist use elements of graffiti to produce a poster that
resembles graffiti and also reveals something personal about the artist?
Suggested Activities:
A. Graffiti analysis – View work of professionals on screen to define the hallmarks of
graffiti.
B. “Crime Art” discussion – Is graffiti really art?
C. Shading School – Students use charcoal on newsprint to draw large letter and shade it
to look 3-D; group critique to analyze consistency.
D. Graffiti poster – Students use their own names for poster design, draw in a graffiti style,
and add pictorial element that reveals something personal about the artist.
Unit 2: Pastel Painting (4 weeks)
Obj. 1: What does “composition” refer to in a work of art?
QUESTION: How does the student artist make use of “composition” consciously to produce
strong and bold art work with a particular point of view?
Suggested Activities:
A. Analysis of famous works: Andrew Wyeth’s “Christina’s World” (Why does Wyeth
paint Christina from the back?)
B. Using composition tricks in drawing – Students draw same still life set-up three times,
on a large scale, using different composition techniques in each. (Black marker on
newsprint)
C. Picking the better composition – Students draw two thumbnail contour sketches of the
same still life set-up using two different compositions, then pick the stronger of the two.
(Pencil on manila)
Obj. 2: How do artists enlarge or redraw accurately?
QUESTION: How does the student artist use a grid to copy accurately and in proportion?
Suggested Activities:
A. Changing drawing scale – Students use a simplified grid to “blow up” original
thumbnail sketch and radically change its scale. (White colored pencil on black paper)
B. Contour drawing with glue – Students emphasize the composition by covering all pencil
lines with glue
Obj. 3: Draw with pastels in a painterly manner that demands a sophisticated use of the medium.
QUESTION: How does the student artist use pastels as a medium that is more like paint than
chalk?
Suggested Activities:
A. Pastel Palettes – Students fill in a palette contour drawn on a neutral-toned paper with
splotches of “paint,” that is, mixtures or layers of differing combinations of raw pastel
color. Shading and reflections are added to each splotch to achieve a wet and 3-D look.
B. Pastel Still Life – Students draw large contour drawing on black paper with glue and use
pastel for a source of color with a heavy emphasis on smudging and mixing, striving to
achieve a painterly technique..
C. Self-Portrait Studies – Students draw a study of a famous artist self-portrait to stretch
their pastel skills and apply them to the human face.
Unit 3: Clay Sculpture (4 weeks)
Obj. 1: Identify how sculpture is different from other art and know the wide range of materials
sculptors use to make their art.
QUESTION: How does the student artist recognize art that is three-dimensional?
Suggested Activities:
A. Sculpture Poster Blitz – Students are exposed to a series of posters that illustrate
sculptures made in different time periods, in different cultures and regions of the world, and
in a variety of materials.
B. Sculpture Assemblage – Students bring a treasured object to the art room, and in showand-tell fashion, convince other students of its validity as a piece of sculpture.
Obj. 2: Think as a sculptor would, in three dimensions.
QUESTION: How does the student artist become a sculptor?
Suggested Activities:
A. Thinking and Drawing 3-D – Students make preliminary drawings of animals and
objects from front, back, and sides to begin visualizing from all points of view.
B. Clay Warm-Ups – Students become a “personal trainer” for a small piece of clay and
take their clay through a series of exercises: sphere, cube, pinch pot, coil, slab, etc.
Obj. 3: Make a sculpture using clay.
QUESTION: How does the student artist produce a three-dimensional work of art that is
structurally and aesthetically sound?
Suggested Activities:
A. Food with Mood – Students sculpt a food and, using alliteration, assign a human mood
to the food (Devious Doughnut, Pugnacious Pizza, etc.)
B. Personified Pottery – Students sculpt a piece of functional pottery and personify it with
human (or animal) appendages.
C. 3-D Postcards – Students identify a favorite place, either real or imagined, and using a
slab for the “card,” turn the slab into a 3-D postcard.
Obj. 4: Demonstrate knowledge of clay chemistry, tools, and procedure.
QUESTION: How does the student artist complete the entire clay process after sculpting with
clay?
Suggested Activities:
A. Air Drying – Students will monitor the air drying of their own piece.
B. Firing – Students will know the term “green ware,” and that clay undergoes a chemical
(and color) change when fired.
C. Glazing and Firing – Students will know that glaze is more glass than paint and that
their pieces need to be fired a second time after glazing.
Unit 4: Painting Like Van Gogh (4 weeks)
Obj. 1: Recapture early childhood passion for painting
QUESTION: How does the student artist overcome adolescent painting inhibitions and rediscover
the pleasure of painting?
Suggested Activities:
A. Painting Apples, Pears, Pumpkins, or Potatoes – Students quickly sketch a large contour
of fruit or vegetable, and using just one large brush, a limited palette, and double dipping
into the paint, students produce a finished still life painting.
B. Tint and Shade Scales – Students create scales with one color plus white, then one color
plus black to gain control of the paint.
Obj. 2: Learn the life story of Vincent Van Gogh
QUESTION: What can students learn about the making of art from a seriously disturbed but
gifted painter?
Suggested Activities:
A. Read article about Van Gogh and discuss his life and work.
B. Cover bulletin board with wide array of Van Gogh reproductions, and “present” key
paintings to students.
C. Using a lottery system, have students choose a reproduction from which to paint a
study.
Obj. 3: Paint a study of a Van Gogh painting
QUESTION: How does the student artist use Van Gogh’s distinctive brushstokes and raw
emotional color choices to become a better painter?
Suggested Activities:
A. Use grid method to make a drawing of Van Gogh painting on canvas.
B. Copy Van Gogh’s palette and brush technique as accurately as possible.
V. STRATEGIES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Teacher demonstration
Guided practice
Posting of visual aides on bulletin board
Multi-media presentation
Reading short articles about artists
Individual projects
Class discussion
8. Group critique
9. Written self-evaluation
VI. EVALUATION
Students in Grade 8 Art are assessed through formal and informal measures. Frequent informal
assessment and feedback are provided on a daily basis by the teacher. The studio art tradition of fostering
a relaxed, yet creatively charged, environment is followed so that students create art that is their own; that
is, students are encouraged with each assignment to “find their own way.” The following are areas to be
assessed:
•
•
•
Knowledge of basic vocabulary
Utilization of art tools and supplies, or
technique
Demonstration of willingness to clean up
Methods of Evaluation and Assessment:
• Observation
• Individual critique
• Participation in class activities
•
•
•
Participation in class discussion
Display of original or creative thinking
Evidence of pride in craftsmanship
•
•
Group critique
Self-evaluation
VII. INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES
Graffiti websites
How to Draw Lettering, Judy Tatchell, Usborne
Scholastic Art Magazine, Vincent Van Gogh: Working with Color
The Letters of Vincent Van Gogh to his Brother and Others, Constable
Van Gogh, Frank Milner, PRC Publishing Ltd.
Video: Who is the Artist? Cezanne, Van Gogh, Seurat
Video: Potters of Oaxaca
Sculpture Posters: Sculptures by Tom Doyle, Claes Oldenburg, Wayne Theibaud, George Segal, Cristo,
Duane Hanson, Stephen Posen, John Chamberlain, Chou Dynasty vessel, Nigerian cast bronze head,
Nepalese Buddha, Anasazi jars, New Mexican fiber horse, Australian ceramic vase, glass door knob
VIII. SCOPE AND SEQUENCE
The Units and Objectives of Grade 8 Art are designed to help students build upon past Jr. School art cycles
and prepare them for the art electives at Madison High School. They are intended to provide a rich
sampling of art media to adolescent artists. Both “Suggested Activities” and the time allotted for each unit
of study are flexible; additional activities may be added or substituted, and activities may be stretched or
condensed to accommodate classroom climate, learning styles of individual students, and practical
scheduling considerations.
Unit 1:
Unit 2:
Unit 3:
Unit 4:
Graffiti Names (4 weeks)
Pastel Painting (4 weeks)
Clay Sculpture (4 weeks)
Painting Like Van Gogh (4 weeks)