To begin, we "abstracted" ourselves in the style of Cubism. Abstraction means we are changing something from reality. There are many ways in art to "abstract" something. We changed or abstracted ourselves according to the rules of Cubism: use straight lines and geometric shapes. Students learned about different phases of Cubism, analytical and synthetic. The examples here are more of the synthetic style.
Next we added a background. Any background was acceptable, anything from an outdoor scene to just patterns or design (wherever you wanted yourself to be).
Then we started adding color. Students are were able to pick a color scheme if they wanted, or to use color in any way. Adding collage is a very traditional Cubist technique. We used newspaper, colored construction paper, and fabric.
We used collage in interesting ways by overlapping it and drawing back on top of it. A color scheme was also an option, but not required (warm and cool used above).
Lastly, to make it more abstract and interesting, we completed it with many media, turning it into a mixed media piece. We added pencil, colored pencil, crayon, oil pastel, and marker.
Throughout the project, students learned many techniques to add visual variety and interest. With pencil and colored pencil students heard how to create a value or gradient fade with different pressures. With crayon, students added texture rubbings to give visual texture. With oil pastel, students were able to blend colors together. Finally, with collage where were a number of ways students abstracted their piece like overlapping, using non-traditional items, and drawing back on top of collage.
