Art 1: Foundations of Visual Art

River Hill High School Art Department

Course Outline
Please note: Major assignments will usually be worth 100 points. In most cases Visual Journal assignments and Feldman’s
Method essays will be started during class time and completed for homework. Visual Journal assignments and written essays
will usually be worth 25 – 50 points. Students should plan to spend 1-2 hours per week on assigned homework. All other art
problems listed in this outline will be created during class time. (Of course, as stated in the syllabus, some individual students
may find it necessary or desirable to occasionally spend time after school to finish, improve, or elaborate on a particular
artwork being created during class time.)

Marking Period One

Introduction
—Drawing of Record
—Introduction to Composition
—Paper Portfolios

Introduction to the Elements of Art and Principles of Design

-Visual Journal assignment: Evidence of the Elements and Principles, pt 1

It’s Magic! (Drawing, without drawing a thing!)

—Media: mixed media in black & white
—Artist: Richard Diebenkorn
—Visual Journal assignment: Searching for Shadows and Light

Sweet Treats (Drawing from Life)

—Media: crayon on paper
—Artist: Wayne Thiebaud
—Visual Journal assignment: You are What you Eat

Introduction to Feldman’s Method

—Ivan Chermayeff, Fernand Léger, Mexican/African Masks
—Group analysis, written response in outline form
—Homework: write essay

Pieces of Personality Sculpture

—Media: chipboard, scissors, glue, paint
—Artist: David Smith, Louise Nevelson, Alexander Calder
—Visual Journal assignment: Tribute to an Artist
Evidence of the Elements & Principles, pt 2
 Marking Period Two
Public Sculpture Proposal-Perspective Drawing
—Media: pencil or crayon on paper
—Artists: Alberto Giacometti, David Macauley, Henry Moore
—Visual Journal Assignment: All Mixed Up

Feldman’s Method: Part One

—Group work: Compare and contrast paintings by Pieter Breugel the Elder, William
Johnson, and Jean DuBuffet)
—Essay: analysis of Pablo Picasso’s Family of Saltimbanques
—Homework: write essay

Nostalgia Collage
—Media: Mixed media and photo transfers
—Artists and Sources: Kerry James Marshall, Robert Rauschenberg
—Visual Journal assignment: Evidence of the Elements and Principles, pt. 3

Mid-term Review

Mid-term Exam— written exam

Marking Period Three

Making Face: Self-Portraits
—Media: crayon on paper, mixed media
—Artist: variety of artists
—Visual Journal assignment: Eyes, ears, mouth, & nose!

Metamorphosis
—Media: crayon, charcoal on paper
—Artist: Honoré Daumier, Edgar Degas, Rembrandt van Rijn, Käthe Kollwitz
—Visual Journal assignment: One Crazy Day/Night

Printmaking
—Media: TBD
—Artist: TBD
—Visual Journal assignment: Gadget Printing

Feldman’s Method: Part Two

—Compare and contrast “realistic” and “expressive” self-portraits by master artists
—Essay: analysis of a selected painting
—Homework: write essay
Marking Period Four
Telling a Story with Candy: Color Pastel Drawing
—Media: oil pastel on paper
—Artist: Wayne Thiebaud, Louisa Matthiasdottir, David Park
—Visual Journal assignment: Still Life Metaphor

Feldman’s Method: Part Three

—Analyzing a three-dimensional work of art
—Essay: analysis of a selected sculptural form

“Play”-ful Still life

—Media: charcoal and/or pastel on paper
—Artist: Giorgio Morandi

Landscapes
_Media: oil pastel on paper
_Artist: Cezanne, Wolf Khan, Eugene Leake
_Visual Journal assignment: What time is it?-small sketches of light & color

Performance Assessment—Observation-based drawing

Final Exam

*This is a general outline. Adjustments may be made as class needs arise.