Submitted by Lydia
Horvath, Alliance Academy of Toledo, Ohio
Unit: Printmaking - Pattern - Design
Lesson Title: Stamped Initial Patterns
Level: middle school - high school (but
could probably be used in upper elementary too)
Alternate Lesson: Use
1" Art Gum Erasers.
Content Standards:
-
Demonstrate mastery of materials, concepts and personal
concentration when creating original artworks.
-
Critique their own works, the works of peers and other
artists on the basis of the formal, technical and expressive
aspects in the works.
Objective:
Terms and Vocabulary:
Stamping, registration,
grid, rotation, negative space, ghost print, matrix
Materials:
Smooth paper, cut to
12”x12” squares; mat board cut to 2” squares; books of
lettering styles; adhesive-backed foam printing material, such
as Inovart (http://www.inovart.net/printmaking.htm)
, cut to 2” squares; pencils, scissors, and rulers; Crayola®
or other watercolor markers
Procedure:
1.
Students are introduced to stamping, a printmaking method
in which a small matrix is created, and it is usually repeated
to create a pattern. Most
students are familiar with this type of printmaking from rubber
stamping, which makes it a good introduction to a printmaking
class.
2.
Students look through the letter style books, and choose
a letter in an appropriate style (styles that are too ornate or
too thin should be discouraged, since this will have to be cut
out from thick material.) The
letter is drawn on the foam square so that it takes up the
majority of the space – students should be reminded that too
much empty (negative) space will detract from the overall impact
of the pattern! Let
the students know that the backing for the adhesive foam is
rather difficult to draw on – it is waxy and repels pencil and
pen (try ultra-fine point permanent marker).
However, they only need a line they can see to cut – it
doesn’t have to “look good”! They
won’t need to reverse the image if they are drawing on the
adhesive backing. (Variation
- students create any design of choice)
3.
Students cut the letter shape out, peel the backing, and
stick it the way they want it on the mat board square (it
doesn’t have to be “straight” – at an angle can be
interesting and effective, too)
4.
Students cut out additional abstract shapes from
their scraps of adhesive foam and add them to the matrix; again,
effective use of negative space, as well as creativity of
shapes, should be emphasized.
Very small shapes
may be prone to falling off sometime during the printing
process!
5.
Students create a 2” grid on their paper; they need
to make their lines very lightly, to facilitate erasing when the
design is done! Math/measuring
skills should be emphasized.
6.
Students ink their stamps by using AT LEAST 3
different colors of marker.
If they develop a “routine” for inking each separate
area, it will be less likely for them to forget an area (some of
the adhesive foam out there is black, which makes it nearly
impossible to tell just by looking whether an area has been
inked or not). The direction of the marker strokes will show up in the
stamped image, so students may want to take this into
consideration! Good
registration is important to create an effective pattern.
They will need to press firmly and evenly on the back of
the matrix, but pounding should be discouraged.
7.
Students will make a ¼ rotation each time they print
– this is easier if they mark one edge on the back of the
matrix, such as “top”.
Remind them to RE-INK each time they print, or they will
end up with ghost prints! (Alternate: Students experiment with
different rotations and decide what to do with their 12"
square).
8.
If they need to clean the stamp off to change colors,
they should stamp it several times on a damp (not wet or drippy)
paper towel until it no longer prints, then stamp it on a dry
towel. This avoids
“muddy” prints and muddy markers!
9.
When the design is complete, students erase pencil
lines and fill out their self-assessment form.
10.
A group critique can be held to discuss
craftsmanship, use of positive/negative space, and the overall
effectiveness of various approaches.
11. Extension: Experiment with
other types of pattern. Try glide pattern (no rotation) - Point
of symmetry (rotate around a point to make a four block square -
repeat process).
12. Relate patterns to Islamic
tile design.
13. Math Extension - Explore
Escher patterns http://library.wolfram.com/explorations/explorer/Escher.html
Assessment
Rubric: (adapted from Marianne Galyk)
|
Assessment Rubric
|
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Student Name:
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Class Period:
|
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Assignment:
Initial
Stamp Pattern
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Date Completed:
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Circle the
number in pencil that
best shows how well you feel that you completed that
criterion for the assignment.
|
Excellent
|
Good
|
Average
|
Needs
Improvement
|
Rate
Yourself
|
Teacher’s
Rating
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Criteria 1 –
Initial stamp - good design - good use of space
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10
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9 – 8
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7
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6 or less
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|
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Criteria 2 –
Overall pattern created with stamp
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10
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9 – 8
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7
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6 or less
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|
|
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Criteria 3 –
Consistency in inking stamp - print quality
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10
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9 – 8
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7
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6 or less
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|
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Criteria 4 – Effort: took time to
develop idea & complete project? (Didn’t rush.) Good
use of class time?
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10
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9 – 8
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7
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6 or less
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|
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Criteria 5 – Craftsmanship – Neat, clean & complete? Skillful use of the
art tools & media?
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10
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9 – 8
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7
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6 or less
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Total:
50
x
2 = 100
(possible
points)
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Grade:
|
|
|
|
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Your Total
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Teacher Total
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Student
Comments:
Teacher
Comments:
National
Standards: (standards covered depend on how much class
discussion and reflection)
1.
Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes
Students apply media, techniques, and processes with
sufficient skill, confidence, and sensitivity that their
intentions are carried out in their artworks
5. Reflecting upon and assessing the characteristics and
merits of their work and the work of others
6. Making connections between visual arts and other disciplines (make
connections to math)
