One Point Perspective Drawing/Painting

Grade: 4 Medium: Drawing and Painting Learning Objective: Students will use one point perspective to create a piece of art that has a 3D appearance.

Authors: Heather McClure-Coleman & Robin Reents

Elements of Art/Principles of Design Space: an element of visual arts; the area above, below, around, and within an artwork; the illusion of depth or space on a flat surface, created by means of the following techniques: rendering shapes and forms so that they overlap and using size, detail, value, color, and linear perspective.

Vocabulary Words Background: the area of a picture that appears to be farthest from the viewer. The background usually appears in the upper portion of the picture. Depth: the distance from the front to the back or the distance from near to the far part of a painting. Foreground: the area of a picture that appears closest to the viewer. The foreground begins at the bottom of a picture. Horizon Line: based on an artist’s eye level, an invisible plane that cuts through everything that exists at eye level; a line at which sky appears to meet earth. Middle Ground: the area in a picture that is between the foreground and the background. Perspective: a way to create the appearance of depth and three dimensions on a two-dimensional surface using vanishing points, horizon lines, converging lines or shading; types of perspective include one-point linear perspective (as illustrated in this lesson), two-point linear perspective, and atmospheric perspective. - One Point Perspective: a straight-on view with only one vanishing point. Parallel lines converge on one point in the distance to a single vanishing point. Vanishing Point: a point where parallel lines appear to meet in the distance. The lines almost appear to disappear in the distance.

Materials & Supplies • Watercolor paper 12 x 9” • Medium tip watercolor brushes • Pencils • Water cups – one cup per student or • Erasers –white or pink pearl one cup per two students • Black waterproof markers • 18” or 12” rulers. The rulers need to • Watercolor sets – one per student be long enough to make an “x” through the corners of the paper

Context (History and/or Artists) Bulb Fields - Vincent Van Gogh

Advance Preparation Prepare all materials listed above. Have water cups pre-poured for the watercolor portion of the lesson.

Tips & Tricks • 18 inch clear rulers are the best option if they are available. • This lesson can take a bit more time than the usual 1 hours. Perhaps allow 1.5 hours or move quickly. • Remind students to erase their pencil lines of the “x” so they do not have that mark running through their drawing. The “x” is just a tool to use while creating the illusion of depth in the painting. • Demonstrate using a darker color than pencil so students can see.

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Discussion Points Show the artwork “Bulb Fields” by Vincent Van Gogh. Ask students what is happening in the painting? Ask students how Van Gogh achieved the illusion of perspective in the artwork? Define perspective. Point out the foreground, middle ground, background and horizon line in the painting.

Assessment of Learning Objectives Can the student tell me about foreground, middle ground, and background? Did the student use the technique of creating a vanishing point for their artwork? Did the student create a one point perspective artwork that shows perspective?

Instructions for Lesson

First discuss Bulb Fields by Vincent Van Gogh as described above.

Tell the students how the lesson is structured: the drawing portion is a step-by-step process where the Art Docent will first draw a part of the drawing then students will copy that step. The whole class will first work in pencil and later outline their art in black marker. Last, the students will paint with watercolor which offers more free choice and flexibility.

1. Lightly with pencil, draw an “x” from corner to corner of the paper. 2. Draw a dot in the middle of the “x” (the vanishing point). 3. Draw a horizontal line through the middle of the paper, passing through the dot.

4. Next, draw the scene. One side will be a landscape with trees. The other side will be city buildings. 5. Draw the sidewalk first from the vanishing point. Draw the sidewalk on both sides of the paper. 6. On the left side, draw trees starting in the foreground, or the front of the paper. Draw the trees large in the foreground, then middle size, then smaller going toward the vanishing point. There is a tendency for students to want to make their trees tilt toward the center but make sure the trees are straight and parallel to the side of the paper.

7. Next, draw the buildings on the right side of the paper. 8. Draw a roof with a straight, horizontal line. This will be the side roof.

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9. Draw the vanishing point (top front edge) of the roof. Draw a small diagonal line. The line is parallel to the top half of the “x”. 10. Draw a straight vertical line to ground to make the side of the building. 11. Draw a straight vertical line again from the corner roof line. 12. Draw a horizontal line at the bottom to create the bottom of the building. 13. Draw a small diagonal line. Draw this line along the bottom “x” guidelines. Draw this parallel to the bottom half of the “x” guideline. 14. Add another building. Make the height of each building smaller as you near the vanishing point. 15. Finish the details by adding windows and front doors to the buildings. Take care the windows on the building fronts are angled parallel to the vanishing point.

16. Trace over the pencil lines with a black marker.

17. Add the line down the center of the road, details of the sky, etc.

18. Erase the pencil marks. 19. Paint with watercolor.

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Additional Examples and Lesson Variations:

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References and Attributions Gogh, Vincent Van. “Bulb Fields.” Van Gogh Online, www.vangoghonline.com/1983/04/bulb- fields.html. Student artwork by Creekside Elementary students.

Notes for Educators

21st Century Thinking Skills Observing – Using your senses to learn about something in detail. Making Connections – Connecting new information with scheme. Visualizing – Creating a mental image.

WA State Learning Standards (VA:Cr1.1.4) Investigate, plan, make. Brainstorm multiple approaches to a creative art or design problem. (VA:Cr1.2.4) Investigate, plan, make. Collaboratively set goals and create artwork that is meaningful and has purpose to the makers. (VA:Cr2.1.4) Investigate. Organize and develop artistic ideas and work. Explore and invent art- making techniques and approaches. (VA:Cr3.1.4) Reflect, refine, continue. Revise artwork in progress on the basis of insights gained through peer discussion.

Arts Integration Opportunities This lesson is great to use mathematics, fractions, division, measuring and computation. To find the vanishing point (in the middle of the paper), have the students measure and divide. They can use computation and study angles in a number of ways in this lesson.

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