Fine Art III - Glass Renderings Homework

Now that Marking Period 2 is over (can you believe it! Just 4 months of school left!) I can share my Fine Art III's second long-term homework assignment: Glass Renderings.

Of course, I asked the kids to bring in their own photographs of glass objects from home, but the very few photos I got weren't lit or set up well.  A poor reference results in a poor drawing, so I took it upon myself to rummage through the prop room at school and grabbed a few different types of glass objects to shoot for the kids to use as their reference shots.

I have to admit, I didn't give too much guidance on this project.  In terms of the materials, it's very 101.  Graphite pencils, kneaded erasers, and a tortillion if you want to use it.  In terms of technique, I spent some time explaining that while glass objects look very difficult, they're actually surprisingly easy to render.  All you have to do is pay close attention to the changes in blacks and whites.  Follow each wiggle and squiggle and bend in the glass.  At first, till look like a weird surrealist mess, but once complete, if you follow it clearly enough, it will look exactly as you intended.

I found that when we had our first bi-week check-in, the kids hadn't done much work.  Some of it was laziness, but a lot of it was fear.  They were scared to try- but after I pushed them and let them start it off in class so they could ask me for advice or a demonstration, they warmed up to it.

I'm pretty proud of most of the results.  I think each piece represents the artist who created it really well.  I also think each student's level of effort is evident as well.  For most this is great, for some, not so much.

This student never disappoints.  His attention to detail and cleanliness is totally typical of his work ethic.  I'm very happy with this one- it'll make a great portfolio piece.

This one was a pleasant surprise.  While he decided to abandon a lot of the "harder" aspects of the glass shakers, I'm totally in love with how he rendered the top of the one in the foreground, even though it's technically more of a chrome and less of a glass. 

 I think the best part about this piece is the way she used her eraser as a tool to pull out her high lights.  Very realistic, and in a great spot compositionally- you can't help but notice it!  She took some liberties with the shape of the jar, particularly the lid- it's much more round in her rendering than in the photo, but in a way I think it gives it some character.  Also, her lettering is really well done.

I think this piece works, but could be pushed a little more.  I really love the tops of her shakers (particularly the one on the left) and I love how she rendered the glass dish beneath the other shaker.  However, I think she rushed the background and kind of danced her way around the glass facets of the shaker bodies.

 This piece is the one that stands out most, both in terms of contrast, and in terms of representing the student who rendered it.  He always works in heavy, dark marks.  I tease him about being "angry" with his art, but it's just a style he's developed.  I think it's really very interesting.  He's also the only student to crop in on his work this much.  It was definitely a good choice.

 Love, love, love.  This guy gave me heck over this project.  The day it was due, he had about 5% of it finished.  Because I know how good he is, I kept extending and extending and extending the due date, and I'm glad I did.  When he finally got around to it, he blew me away, as usual.

 This student's work is usually stronger than this piece.  I wish he had paid a little more attention to the details, and maybe worked a little larger, but overall I think it's a success.  I like how he rendered the dish, and I really like how he attempted the facets in the up-right shaker, which so many kids chose to simplify or ignore all together.  I also like that this follows the rule of 3rds regarding composition.

 This student really wow'd me on this piece.  He struggled for a few days working on it in class, but was able to take a step back, reassess how he was approaching it, and went full force with a new plan.  I think his lettering is really successful, and like the other student who did this same image, his high lights on the top of the jar are really great.  I think his shapes are accurate, but the glass is a little rigid- in the photo, it looks a little softer.

This student also worked through some self-doubt and some tricky issues, and I'm happy she did.  I love her glass, and the lettering on the jar, which she worked on for days.  There are some shape issues, but overall I think it's really successful.  I also like how she spent a lot of time blending in her background so her objects really pop.

 This student works her tail off and it's evident.  She's spot-on with her glass and chrome rendering, and I love her hatched background.  The smoothness of the glass and the scratchiness of the background are a nice mix.

 I think this piece might be the most photo-realistic of the bunch.  Her glass is so real it's unreal! And the lantern looks like you could pick it up right off the page!  What also helps is her attention to the background, particularly the strong shadows. Love, love, love it.

 This student usually takes to new things very quickly, but she struggled with this. To be fair, she chose the hardest photo to work from.  The vase on the left was a weird, twisty, textured square shape, and while I think there's still room for improvement, she did a pretty good job.  Her glass came out very nicely- lots of rich darks and bright whites.  I think maybe I would've preferred her to smooth out the background a bit so it wouldn't compete so much with the textures in the glasses, but overall, a really great effort.

 This was a fun version! This student loves creating on the ipad, so when this project came up, I decided it was the perfect one for her to experiment with.  I think she did an incredible job, although she kept insisting she could've done better...yeah, I don't get it either!

The kids were all too happy to hand these babies over and be done with them.  I've got a few of them matted and hanging in the hall, and every day I catch one or two students slow their pace or stop in their tracks to check them out.  I think my kids learned the same lesson that I learned recently, nothing is ever as bad as you think it's going to be.  I hope they also learned that trying new things can be challenging, and even scary, but usually the rewards are well worth the risks!