Notes of Lessons: Nature Note-book Painting, Class III

Notes of Lessons: Nature Note-book Painting, Class III

[We have thought that it might be of use to our readers (in their own families) to publish from month to month during the current year, Notes of Lessons prepared by students of the House of Education for the pupils of the Practising School. We should like to say, however, that such a Lesson is never given as a tour de force, but is always an illustration or an expansion of some part of the children’s regular studies (in the Parents’ Review School), some passage in one or other of their school books.—Ed.]

Group: Art • Class III • Time: 30 minutes

By B. M. Dismorr
The Parents’ Review, 1903, pp. 792-793

Objects

I. To increase the pupil’s power of observation.

II. To give a greater appreciation of beauty.

III. To give practice in the choosing and laying on of colour.

IV. To paint berries.

Lesson

Step I.—See that the children sit in a good light. Let the children each choose a specimen and hold it in the position in which they would like to paint it. Draw their attention to the beauty of the specimen. Pin each specimen on to a piece of white paper and ask why this is done.

Step II.—Let the children look well at the specimens. Ask them which is the lightest and darkest part; and let them notice the relative heights and distances of the various parts. Ask the names of the colours they will use, and let them mix plenty of each before beginning.

Step III.—Ask the children how they would begin. First, faintly sketch in the direction of the stalk, indicating the position of the berries and leaves. Then paint the berries, laying on the colour at once in the right tone, and leaving the high light and the shadow to be put on after the first wash is dry. Then let the leaves and lastly the stalk be taken in the same way, altering the tone when necessary, but only putting one wash.

Step IV.—Let the shadows be put in. The shadow will be a darker tone of the same colour as the object. The shadow becomes lighter as it approaches the light side or part of the object, and is not bounded by a hard line.