Video Sketching Exercise

Minnesota 9-12 Visual Art Standards
Used in this Lesson

  • 1. Demonstrate knowledge of the foundations of the arts area.
  • 1A. Analyze how the elements of visual art including color, line, shape, value, form, texture and space; and principles such as repetition, pattern, emphasis, contrast and balance are combined to communicate meaning in the creation of, presentation of, or response to visual artworks.

  • 1b. Evaluate how the principles of visual art such as repetition, pattern, emphasis, contrast and balance are used in the creation of, presentation of, or response to visual artworks.

  • 2. Demonstrate knowledge and use of the technical skills of the art form, integrating technology when applicable.
  • 2a. Integrate the characteristics of the tools, materials and techniques of a selected media in original artworks to support artistic purposes.

  • 3. Demonstrate understanding of the personal, social, cultural and historical contexts that influence the arts areas.
  • 3a. Analyze how visual artworks influence and are influenced by personal, social, cultural or historical contexts, including the contributions of Minnesota American Indian tribes and communities.

  • 3b. Synthesize and express an individual view of the meaning and functions of visual art.
  • 4. Create or make in a variety of contexts in the arts area using the artistic foundations.
  • 4a. Create a single, complex artwork or multiple artworks to express ideas.

  • 4b. Revise artworks based on artistic intent and using multiple sources of critique and feedback.

  • 6. Respond to or critique a variety of creations or performances using the artistic foundations.
  • 6a. Analyze, interpret and evaluate works of visual art by applying self-selected criteria within the traditions of the art form.

  • 6b. Justify choices of self-selected criteria based on knowledge of how criteria affects criticism.

    • Additional Tie-ins

  • Animation
  • Squash and Stretch
  • Gesture Drawing
    • A animated video is shown in class as an example of the difference between good and bad animation. Good animation has smooth movement and utilizes "squash and stretch". The video is a classic hand-drawn, not computer graphics, animated feature. Something like The Little Mermaid, The Road to Eldorado, Beauty and the Beast, Disney's Robin Hood, etc.

    The video is paused every few minutes and students are to quickly draw the main character in that frame. Slow motion is also used to illustrate how the animators achieved the motion or squash and stretch. At the end of the exercise, students will have nearly 20 quick sketches made.

    Evaluation:

    This is an exercise so no points are given for this assignment. Drawings will be collected and viewed by the teacher at the end of the unit.

    Below is a group of sketches made during only half of Disney's "Little Mermaid" movie. Many more will be made before the end of the exercise.


    Examples of screen shots from "The Road To Eldorado" are shown below to illustrate extreme frames utilizing squash and stretch.










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