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Project #3: Value Studies: High Contrast + High keyed Value drawings

Drawing # 1 in a series of 3
High Contrast Drawings

i. Making use of found images from magazines, on the web, etc.,  you will make use of one of these for the base of your High Contrast drawing. The minimum edge on any side needs to by 7" or larger.

 ii. You may "scale" up on the copier machine if necessary.

 iii. On the found image, fill in the general value shapes to produce only a black and white image, as you see above. You may have to imagine where some of the open areas of white or black may be to define the form of your object clearer.

 iii.  Placing the found image on top of your drawing paper, use a hard pencil to fill in the general shapes of the image.  Press hard enough to emboss the paper underneath it. Alternatively, you may make soft pencil marks on the back of the image, so that when pressing down on it, the mark will transfer onto your drawing paper. 

 iv.  Fill in positive form with black marker, ink, crayon, even cut from black construction paper!  The above three images represent this concept beautifully.   

Note:  High Contrast drawings, express the subject matter as being super flat.

Student Work:








Drawing #2 of 3
The collage work Hannah Höch, a German Dada artist
1889 - 1978
High Keyed Drawings = light tonal range
Materials: Drawing paper, 6h, 4h, 4b, and 6b pencils

Drawing size (scale) = the size of your collage. Minimum size 14" x 9" either horizontal or vertical orientation. 
The collage work of Joseph Cornell
He was an American artist and filmmaker, one of the pioneers of 
assemblage and collage.
He was heavily Influenced by the Surrealists
1903 -1972
Making the collage, remember
i. Using found papers, find a textural background.  
This can simply be a tactile surface and not have any representational objects within it.  

ii. Find 3 other forms that illustrate a variety of value and cut away from their backgrounds.  Arrange these objects as if they are floating in a Surrealist* space. Remember to activate negative space into a visually interesting composition. Glue your shapes down. 
Joseph Cornell collage
*Surrealism  = a 20th-century avant-garde movement in art that sought to release the creative potential of the unconscious mind by the irrational juxtaposition of objects.
The drawing's image window (scale) = is the size of your initial collage (or may be doubled) 

 ii. For this drawing, you will use your 18 x 24" drawing paper.
However, instead of floating one image window on the inside of the drawing you will be floating two image windows, of the same scale, on the drawing.  Do the math the same way you would with floating one, just double it!

ii. Float two image windows of the same scale as your collage onto the drawing paper.  Your image windows need to be symmetrically balanced on both the vertical and horizontal edges. 

iii. Use only two of your lightest grey values, white and black for contrast.  Remember, this is a HIGH KEYED drawing, made up of lighter values and black for punctuation.
Materials: Drawing paper, black marker, ink or black crayon, or 6B or 8B pencil, collage materials, glue, scissors
i.  Making use of the collage materials brought in, you are to make a paper collage that may be representational or abstract. 

iii. Paste your actual collage into your sketchbook.

Student Collages







Drawing #3 of 3 Local Value
Using your collage as subject
Create a drawing that illustrates the values in the collage accurately. 

i.  In your second image window, you will be making your second drawing that will try to imitate the values in your collage.  You may take a quality copy of your collage to send it into a grayscale.  






Drawing #3
High Keyed Drawings

Materials: Drawing paper, 6h, 4h, 4b, and 6b pencils
Drawing size (scale) = the size of your collage

i. Float an image window of the same scale as your collage onto the drawing paper.  
> Remember the way in which we mathematically "float" to create an image window symmetrically balanced on the vertical and horizontal edges.  

ii.  Chose only the first last value tint steps from your scale closest to the white.  The values in a high keyed drawing are extremely light in their value range.

iii.  "Punctuate" detail into the drawing by adding a very little bit of tonal values.

iv. Complete the graphite drawing to exaggerate the high-value ranges of your collage. 

v. Again, you may use a viewfinder, you may take only a portion of the overall collage and "crop" an area that will be the inspiration of this drawing.

Student Work Samples

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