Basic Art Activities Using Elements of Design
~ Renee Goularte

 

Point

Paper, Scissors, and Glue
·Use a hole punch to punch holes in construction paper.
·Glue 'holes' onto construction paper, either randomly or to make lines or shapes.
·Glue sequins onto paper to make designs.
·Use tiny pieces of cut construction paper. Glue them close together to make a design.
·Make a mosaic face or landscape by gluing small pieces of cut construction paper close together.
Crayons, Markers, Chalk, and Pencils
·Use crayons or chalk to make pictures entirely of points.
·Draw or trace geometric shapes and shade them with points, varying the distance between the dots to create the illusion of volume.
·Draw an illustration using only points.
·Draw an object or a face using only points.
Paint
·Make 'fingertip' paintings by dipping fingertips only into paint and applying to paper one dot at a time.
·Use Q-Tips dipped in paint .
·Use only the tip of a brush.

 

Line

Paper, Scissors, and Glue
·Cut on preprinted lines of varying types.
·Glue narrow strips of paper to make designs.
·Glue narrow strips of paper or spaghetti to make letters, numbers, or words.
·Make pictures by gluing pieces of yarn or string onto paper.
Pencils, Crayons, Chalk and Markers
·Practice drawing parallel lines of varying distances from each other.
·Practice drawing short, numerous vertical, horizontal, zig-zag and curved lines.
·Draw a random line without removing the drawing instrument from the paper.
·Using crayons and only one piece of paper, draw a leaf or other item from nature using lines only. Do it again in another color. And again. And again.
·Draw a 'recognizable' shape without removing drawing instrument from the paper.
·In only one minute, draw a face without lifting the marker from the paper.
·Use only lines for shading in illustrations.
·Draw or trace geometric shapes, then use lines for shading to create the illusion of volume.
Paint
·Make a design by blowing paint or ink on paper with a straw.
·Practice painting different lengths and widths of lines.
·Paint a picture using only lines.
·Do a Japanese brush painting of bamboo or trees.

 

Shape

Paper, Scissors, and Glue
·Cut preprinted shapes from construction paper.
·Trace shapes from templates, cut and glue to make a design.
·Glue shapes onto construction paper to make a design or a pattern.
·Cut construction paper strips and make a weaving.
·Make a 'stained glass' picture by cutting shapes out of black construction paper and gluing colored tissue paper onto the back.
·Make snowflakes with six sides.
·Make people snowflakes.
·Make quilt blocks with pre-cut construction paper shapes.
·Use a light to project face silhouettes on the wall. Trace, cut, and glue onto paper.
Pencils, Crayons, Chalk, and Markers
·Draw freehand shapes.
·Draw shapes of different sizes on paper. Overlap some of them.
·Turn an object upside down and draw it.
Paints
·Make potato or sponge prints.
·Make a pattern with handprints.
·Use the side or tip of a paintbrush to make patterns.

 

Color

Paper, Scissors, and Glue
·Make a tissue paper collage.
Pencils, Crayons, Chalk, and Markers
·Draw a continuous, curved line that crosses itself many times. Color in the resulting shapes, using only primary colors, secondary colors, or a variety of colors.
·Draw an illustration using only 'warm' or 'cool' colors.
·Draw an illustration on black construction paper with colored chalk.
Paints
·Use colored water and eyedroppers to mix colors on coffee filters.
·Mix colors on your fingertips to create a fingertip color wheel.
·Use crayons to color a picture on white paper. Paint black over the whole thing.
·Make blue watercolor washes. Use them for sky on a landscape collage, or water on an ocean collage.
·Paint a watercolor rainbow, running the colors together.

Texture

Paper, Scissors, and Glue
·Cut shapes from differently textured pieces of fabric and make a collage.
·Make a collage from a variety of papers and fabrics that are all the same color.
·Make a design on construction paper or cardboard with glue, then sprinkle sand on it.
·Glue seeds onto construction paper to make a design.
·Draw a continuous, curved line that crosses itself many times. Glue sand, tiny seeds, sawdust, pieces of string or yarn, or fabric in the spaces.
·Make a fabric collage face.
·Make a picture design out of aluminum foil. Crinkle, roll and crush some of it for variety.
·Make a little aluminum foil sculpture of a human figure.
Pencils, Crayons, Chalk, and Markers
·Draw a continuous curved line that crosses itself many times. Fill in some of the shapes with lines, some with points, some with solid colors.
·Create a design with a mixture of drawn, colored-in shapes, and cut, glued shapes.
Paints
·Do a dry bush watercolor painting.
·Experiment with watercolor washes.
·Paint with watercolors on wet paper.
·Make a design using pieces of fabric and cut cardboard of different shapes and thicknesses glued onto another piece of cardboard. Paint it completely white.
·Make a design with rubber cement on watercolor paper. Watercolor over it, then rub off the rubber cement.

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