8th Grade Visual Art
The 8th Grade art class meets daily for a 9 week quarter. Students will be involved in creative endeavors which support the
Minnesota Academic Standards in the Arts.
Students will:
develop an understanding of aesthetics and art criticism
review and use the elements of art and the principles of design to produce works of art, and demonstrate an understanding of
composition
experience techniques in a variety of art media: drawing, painting, printmaking, and sculpture
solve visual problems
communicate artistic intent
view art of different times and cultures
create a portfolio to record their critiques of art works, and to develop, revise, and evaluate their works. The completed portfolio
will contain valuable reference material along with representations of the student’s individual artistic expressions and growth.
The visual arts provide a multitude of areas for the growth and development of individuals. Participation in the daily studio work is an
important experience which will provide students with opportunities to communicate ideas, problem solve, develop critical thinking skills,
practice daily responsibility, and gain confidence in themselves and their abilities.
Grading Scale:
A+
Exemplary - Exceeds Standards
A
Proficient - Meeting Standards
B
Novice - Meets Standards
C
Emerging - Progress toward Meeting Standards
D
Does Not Meet Standards
F
Little or No Attempt Made
Grading will be based on...
The creative process is equally and sometimes more important than the finished work of art. Because of this, students will earn
their art grade through a combination of portfolio assignments, final projects, group work, observations, class expectations, and growth in
the subject area.
Class Expectations:
Our class expectations require that all students be respectful, responsible, and trustworthy. Class members are expected to:
Respect others, materials, and the studio
Be on time & come prepared with pencil and planner
Listen and follow instructions
Use class time to complete assignments
Sign all work with first & last names
Help with clean up
No food or beverages are permitted in the art studio!
*Please read this document carefully before signing. Your signature indicates your agreement and understanding of the expectations.
Name:___________________________________________
Please print First and Last Name
Artist Signature:___________________________________
Please develop a way to sign your art work and include it here when you have.
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Elements of Art and Principles of Design
Elements of Art are the building blocks of creation, the parts that are put together to make a work of art.
They are the artists’ tools.
Line – a path made by a moving point. Line can show direction, define shapes as well as create texture and value.
Lines are vertical, horizontal, diagonal, curved, or zigzag.
Shape – is two dimensional (height and width) and encloses space.
Form – is three dimensional (height, width, and depth) and encloses space.
Shapes/Forms can be either geometric or organic (free-form):
Geometric: mathematical shapes
Organic/Free-form: shapes found in nature or made up
Space – the empty area between, around, above, below, or within objects.
Positive space is the area occupied by shape or form.
Negative space is the area surrounding shapes or forms.
Texture – refers to how things feel or appear to feel.
Actual texture is the way something feels.
Simulated/Visual texture is the way something appears to feel.
Value – darkness or lightness (amount of light a surface reflects)
Color – the eye’s response to different wavelengths of light – reflected light.
The three properties of color are hue, value, and intensity.
Principles of Design are the way the elements of art are put together to make a work of art.
They are the artists’ rules.
Pattern – repetition of an element of art as a decorative design.
Rhythm – repetition of elements to create the illusion of movement or feeling of action.
Random, regular, alternating, flowing, and progressive
Balance – arranging visual elements in a work of art equally, or to give the work a feeling of being equal by weight,
interest or contrast.
Formal or Symmetrical balance: both halves are equal/same
Informal or Asymmetrical balance: both halves are different but the work of art still seems even.
Radial balance: all elements of a composition converge from a central point.
Movement – creating the illusion of action or physical change in position or how the viewer’s eye is directed
through a work.
Contrast – create dramatic change in elements. Variety: to alter elements in a work
Emphasis – stresses one element or focal point to make it attract the viewers’ attention first.
Unity - allows the viewer to see a combination of the elements, principles, and media as a whole.
The elements work together which is our goal!
*Proportion – size relationships of one part of an object to the whole object (and/or one part to
another part).
* Scale – size relationship of one object to another object.
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Proportion & Scale (technically these are not principles of design, but are important in art works)
Proportion and scale can be very dominant in art works. Both deal with size and both can be
realistic or exaggerated.
Proportion deals with only one object, for example a face. In figuring out whether it is realistic or
exaggerated proportion, comparison happens between one part of the object (an eye) to the whole
object (the face). If proportions are realistic, the image looks right. If proportions are exaggerated,
the image will appear distorted.
Scale compares one object to another object. Think about comparing a model car to an actual car.
The scale is exaggerated smaller in the toy car (although the proportions of the model could be
identical to that of the actual car).
What principle is being emphasized in the
drawing?_______________
Is it a realistic or exaggerated example of the principle you
named? Explain your answer.
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This diagram shows approximate proportions of the average,
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adult, human man. Using the head as the unit of
___________
measurement- approximately 7 ½ head lengths stacked equal
the height of the human body. Each person’s head should be
proportionate to their body in this way. Choose a classmate
to test it out! Explain what you found.
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Art Styles and Movements
Realism: a type of art that shows things exactly as they appear in life. Artists: Close, Rembrandt, Whistler
Abstract: Twentieth-century art containing shapes that simplify real objects to emphasize form instead of
subject matter. You may not recognize specific objects. Artists: O’Keefe, Matisse, Chagall
Non-objective: Art that has no recognizable subject matter. Artists: Mondrian, Calder, Pollock, Rothko
Expressionism: Twentieth-century art movement. A style that emphasizes the expression of ones feelings.
Artists: VanGogh, Kollwitz
Impressionism: Style of painting starting in France in the 1860s. It featured everyday subjects and emphasized
the momentary effects of light on color. Impressionist paintings include relatively small, thin, yet visible brush
strokes; Artists: Monet, Hiroshige, Degas, Cassatt
Surrealism: Prefix: sur-beyond, Root Word: real-fact, Suffix: ism-school of thought. Twentieth-century art
movement that tried to represent the subconscious mind by creating fantastic imagery and juxtaposing ideas that
seem to contradict each other. Artists: Bacon, Dali, Chagall, Miro, Magritte
Fauvism: French for "wild beasts". It got this name because the paintings had bright and unusual colors. The
subjects in the paintings were shown in a simple way, and the colors and patterns were bright and wild. Artists:
Matisse, Marc
Cubism: Twentieth-century art movement that emphasizes structure and design. Three-dimensional objects are
pictured from many different points of view at the same time. Cubism was the beginning of the Abstract and
Non-objective art styles. Artists: Picasso, Braque, Duchamp
Pop art : Artistic style used in the early 1960s in the United States that portrayed images of popular culture
(mass media, commercial art, comic strips, advertising). Artists: Warhol, Lichtenstein, Oldenburg, Thiebaud
Op art: Optical art. A twentieth-century artistic style in which artists use scientific knowledge about vision to
create illusions of movement. Artists: Riley, Agam, Escher
Common Techniques (same word used to describe techniques in multiple mediums):
Medium is the art materials used in a specific art work, ie. oil on canvas, watercolor, graphite, colored pencil.
Blend ________________________________________________________________________
Burnish _______________________________________________________________________
Cross-hatching__________________________________________________________________
Frottage_______________________________________________________________________
Glaze_________________________________________________________________________
Hatching______________________________________________________________________
Implied________________________________________________________________________
Masking_______________________________________________________________________
Relief_________________________________________________________________________
Scoring_______________________________________________________________________
Sgrafitto______________________________________________________________________
Shade________________________________________________________________________
Stipple________________________________________________________________________
Wash_________________________________________________________________________
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Basic Facial Features
Left eye
Right eye
Nose
1
2
3
4
5
Mouth
Eye widths
Crown of Head
The eyes are ½ way
between the crown of
the head and the chin.
The bottom of the nose is ½
The ears are
way between the eyes and
between the middle
the chin.
of the eyes and the
bottom of the nose.
The middle of the mouth is ½
between the bottom of the nose
and the chin.
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Chin
Grid Drawing
Another way artists use scale and proportion is through grid drawings. If attempting to achieve correct
proportions in a larger or smaller format, the artist would create a grid over the image and again on a blank picture
plane. Then the artist enlarges or decreases the size accordingly box by box. Try it below. Include values as
they have been used in the original.
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Art Criticism
Title: ________________________________
Artist: _______________________________
Date: ________________________________
Size: _________________________________
Medium: _______________________________
Describe what you see (Fact; what is literally in the image) :
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Analyze how this work is organized (Elements and Principles):
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Interpret what the artist is trying to communicate:
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Judge what you think of the artwork:
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Art Element Color / ColorTheory
The properties of color are:
Hue: color name, pure color found on the color wheel
Value: lightness and darkness
A tint is a hue plus white. A shade is a hue plus black.
Intensity: brightness or dullness- (bright red, pale blue, etc…)
Primary colors are the hues from which all other colors are made. They cannot be made.
The primary colors are yellow, red and blue.
Secondary colors are made by mixing two primary hues.
The secondary colors are orange, violet and green.
Tertiary or Intermediate colors are made by mixing a primary and a secondary hue.
Tertiary colors are yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-violet, blue-green, red-violet,
and red-orange.
Color Schemes: specific arrangements of colors
Warm: red, orange, and yellow (these colors tend to come forward in a work of art)
Cool: blue, green, and violet (these colors tend to recede in a work of art)
Monochromatic: one color and its tints and shades
Complementary: colors opposite each other on the color wheel
Neutral: black, white, gray as well as browns which are made by mixing complements
Achromatic: black, white and grays (no color/hue)
Analogous: 3 to 5 colors which are right next to each other on the color wheel
Triad: three colors that form an equilateral triangle on the color wheel.
YO
O
Y
YO
YG
YO
G
BG
RO
B
R
RV
BV
V
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