We have art appreciation two times per week in the afternoon, around 45 minutes per session and I wanted my boys (ages 14 and 15) to not only spend their time learning about artists and their paintings but I really wanted some more advanced drawing practice. They both enjoy sketching so I was hoping they could build on their skills this year.
Before school started I scanned my art shelves for some books that I thought my boys might enjoy working through during their art time. I lined up a few books on the table and asked for their opinions.
They decided on Drawing in Pen and Ink by Claudia Nice.
I purchased each of them a hardback sketchbook and a few pens to get started. We tried the fancy technical pens and ink cartridges a few years ago with Artistic Pursuits and we decided they were just too much trouble and the results were not pleasing.
This time we went with a few inexpensive pens and their favorite has got to be the Sharpie Fine Tip pen.
They are working slowly through the Drawing in Pen and Ink book a few pages each week.
Here are some samples of their beginning pages.
Crosshatching lesson
Another crosshatching practice page.
They are really learning how to control the pen and use it in different ways to give different results. I love that I am starting to see the skills transferring over to their nature journal entries and their science lab drawings.
I highly recommend this book and any of the other books by Claudia Nice.
If you have younger children, you may be interested in my blog entries for Mark Kistler's Draw Squad and Drawing With Children.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom
7 comments:
This is great. I've been looking at your lesson plans that go along with year 3 TOG; Grade 3 and 7th. Is it possible they are available in ebook format somewhere and I've missed it? If not will they be made available in ebook.
Hi Darla,
I don't have any immediate plans to make either 3rd or 7th grades into ebooks. I am slowly making my way through the grades and grade 1 is next on the list.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom
Barb,
Please consider ebooks. We live overseas and it is soooo much cheaper for us to just download the materials we use rather than pay the extravagant prices for shipping and the long wait. :)
Darla
We love those Sharpie fine point pens. That's what we use because I wasn't about to buy expensive pens for my younger two. It's nice to know that you've tried the more expensive ones and found the Sharpies to work just as well.
I love your kids' drawings. I'll have to keep an eye out for that book. With us spending more purposeful time on art this year, I've found that it's something we all really enjoy, so I'd like to expand on that. The book you mentioned sounds like a great one to begin growing our collection.
I really enjoy sketching and I'll have to add this book to my wish list! Thanks for sharing. And, your boys are doing GREAT!
I just started my kids on Mark Kistler's programs. My ds7 and dd9 are doing Imagination Station and are starting to get the hang of it. My ds12 is doing Draw Squad and he LOVES it! I'll have to bookmark the pen and ink book for future reference.
Nice to see you teaching people pen and ink techniques. It's my favored technique as an illustrator so I love when other people enjoy it as much as I.
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