A ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAM
STATE DEPT OP PUBLIC JMSTEJJCTJOM
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WPA-E-579-U
UTAH WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION
DIVISION OF EDUCATION AND RECREATION
State Department of Publio Instruction, Sponsor
FINE ARTS
A Workbook
Prepared in the Summer Conference
University of Utah
C. L. vanderBie, Director
Published by
Works Progress Administration
Darrell J. Greenwell, Administrator
Division of Education and Recreation
Mack Nicolaysen, Director
Salt Lake City
1939
WPA-E-579-U
FOREWORD
Art is our emotional means of communication with our fellows.
Architecture, sculpture, painting, music, poetry, drama and the
dance are the arts. The first three are known as the fine arts
or the space arts. Art is universal and eternal. It belongs to
every creed and race. Every man is an artist in his degree and
every man is moved by art in his degree.
Art teaches us to see the beauties that surround us. It
gives us an increased appreciation of the home and the community.
The art taste of a city is no-better than the power of its people
to enjoy the arts of all ages, for if we know the art of the world
we know the history of the world — and it is just as true that
through the art of the individual we may know his inner soul. Art
must create - it must transfer sensation from the creator to the
observer.
Art in the adult education program from the social point of
view enriches the life of the individual by giving opportunity for
self-expression. It relieves the tension of our mechanistic struggle
and enables one to fill leisure hours with useful activities.
"The arts appear to be one of the greatest forces which stand
between maladjustment and mental breakdown, bringing men comfort,
serenity and joy."
The adult who comes into class brings his rich experiences
that can be given expression through the arts. The learner may
have his own technique developed, and through the opportunity
for further training will be enabled to acquire new skills.
"Living art is only to be found in the interpretation of
life - in the personal expressions of the impressions that life
has made upon the individual."
Art came from the people and belongs to the people, it is the
natural inheritance of every one who has a creative desire or
longing for cultural development.
Our aesthetic needs are as necessary to complete development
as our material ones, both to the individual and to the state.
The arts are absolutely necessary to civilized life*
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INTRODUCTION
This manual was compiled for the use of W.P.A. Adult teachers
to be employed as a guide in the class work. It was prepared by
a committee of teachers of Fine Arts at the 1958 Summer Institute
at the University of Utah. The material it contains is a summary
of the experiences and information contributed by the committee •
members in two weeks of informational discussion. Certain items,
however, have been written by individual members who were thought
to be best qualified in a particular branch of the fine arts.
The committee has endeavored to arrange this material to
meet the immediate and daily need of the adult learner in his
home and community life.
Report submitted by the Committee of Fine Art.
Zina R. Monson
Merlin C. Brown
Joseph C. Miller
Helen B. Schow
Irving T. Pratt
Caroline K. Parry - Chairman
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OBJECTIVES
1. The objectives sought in the teaching of the fine arts are to
open the door to a finer expression of the divine urges within the
soul, and through the expression of the creative impulses, to lift
the student into a finer, richer life.
2. To give to the individual a richer and more comprehensive
understanding of the beauties of all things.
3. To enable the individual to carry his artistic expression into
practical application to meet the needs of every day life.
4. To stimulate the student to express his ideas through his
chosen media.
5. To develop an intelligent understanding of the relationships
of art to life and establish a finer community culture.
6. To develop through art training, the individual into a more
sympathetic and understanding citizen in the community.
7. To enable the learner to interpret truthfully and beautifully
the life and nature around him.
8. To aid the student to understand and apply the fundamental
principles of art.
9. To aid the student in equipping himself with information which
will enable him to develop techniques adapted to the needs of
to-day.
10. To encourage participation in the arts in order to find mental
and spiritual growth and self-satisfaction.
11. To discover, encourage, and aid in the development of students
of unusual talent.
12. To establish art centers for the community as a means of
raising the standard of taste.
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CURRICULUM IN ART ADULT EDUCATION IN UTAH
The subjects are offered as a guide for leisure time activity,
self satisfaction, and home decoration.
Since the arts of the world enrich life, so courses in art
history and appreciation are offered. And for those who choose
participation in creative work, are offered landscape, portrait,-
and still life painting, drawing, design, modeling aM sculpture,
photography, and interior decoration for small homes. These
courses to be supplemented in terms of the desires and suggestions
of the learners.
The study of composition, perspective, and color as they
apply to all arts will be given careful consideration.
Lectures and demonstrations of work in various media will
supplement the regular class worki
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AIDS IN TEACHING ART
1. Sketoh from life, from nature, from anything that is interest¬
ing. Bring drawings to class for discussion.,
2. Demonstrate with some media. Do a piece of art work "before
the groups.
3. Illustrate by showing pictures of work done by learners of
a similar group as yours, or works of great artists.
4. Visit artists' studios.
3. Visit art galleries.
6. Experiment with new media.
7- Study the works and life history of great artists,
8. Study the work of local artists.
9. Become acquainted with other people who are working in your
field.
10. Study the beauty and opportunity of native environment.
11. Appreciate the potential power of self.
12. Study to appreciate the arts as they have recorded the religious,
the industrial and the social life of all people.
Standard of Art Measurement
(Arranged in order of importance)
A. Conception:
The Ideas: "Inspiration and thought are indispensable in
creation".
B. Composition
The unity of all the parts from the smallest to the largest
into a harmonious pattern satisfactory to the learner and the
observer.
C. Expression
In both dynamic and static art we are concerned with ideas
sentiments, feelings, beauty and truth.
D. Drawing
The encompassing by lines the mass within a given space so
that the idea of the creator is transmitted to the observer.
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E. In art colors are controlled to create an illusion of expres¬
sion which satisfies the artist in recording his thoughts and
emotions and the observer in seeing them. The artists•colors
are pigments known as oils, water colors, tempra, dyes, ink.
F. Technique.
The process or methods of handling medium to record thought.
Thought and inspiration are indispensable but labor or process
of recording gives us the message. The way of handling mediums
makes every one's work different.
GLOSSARY FOR FINE ARTS
1. Composition is a process of welding the aesthetic thought into
a complete whole by the aid of line, mass, light and shade,
form, contour, color, rhythm, balance, harmony, wherein every
part is dependent upon every other part, and the whole is ex¬
pressed through a medium, or the tool of the artist. Avoid
lines that lead out of the canvas, and avoid pivoting points.
2. Pigment - Artists colors are classified according to origin;
first are organic colors made from plant or animal substance;
and second inorganic colors made from mineral pigments; third
are the artificial colors which are produced by chemistry.
Chemical colors can always be pure; they have this advantage
over earth oolors. Some of our finest pigments are in this
class but much care in choosing "the palette" must be taken.
3. The palette. "A painter's thin wooden tablet with a thumb
hole at one end on which to lay and mix pigments. It often
refers to the set of colors used by an artist.
Artists' canvas is woven fabric made from flax, hemp, jute, or
cotton. It Is usually dressed with a harmless substance to
create a firm surface.
Stretchers - A wooden frame on which the canvas is stretched
tightly for the painting.
4. Perspective is a created illusion by which different distances
are recorded by the gradation of sizes of objects and the
controlling of light and shadows within a given space on a two-
dimensional surface.
3. Media; The material by whichthe artist conveys his thoughts
to an observer such as pencil, charcoal, pen and ink, oil
paint, water colors, clay, wood, stone, and metal.
6. Technique is the method used by each person to record his
particular thought in his unique way.
7 • Color
"That quality of an object by which it emits, reflects, or
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transmits certain raya of light and absorbs others, thus pro¬
ducing a specific effeot on the eye dependent upon the nature
of the rays reaching the nervous elements of the retina, the
immediate stimulus of whioh is photo-chemical."
Punk and Wagnall's Dictionary
Color is a powerful force which effeots our nervous system
very much as sound effects it.
8. Hue - Pure color-
9. Tint - Pure color mixed with light (white).
10. Shade - Pure color mixed with dark (or complementary color)
11. Value - Denotes the difference between the light and dark of
one color (violet and purple) or between different colors
(yellow and sage green).
12. Complementary colors - Opposite colors (hue, tint, shade) on
the color wheel.
13. Analagous harmony - is created by like colors or neighboring
colors used in color scheme.
14. Split harmony - where one or both of a pair of colors on
either side of the complements on the color chart are used,
an effect with less contrast is produced.
15. Monochromatic harmony is the use of tints, pure color, and
shades of one color with perhaps a bit of black, white or the
complementary color for emphasis.
16. Thumb-nail sketches - A small sketch to record a thought at
the time of its occurrence.
17. Easel - A frame to support a painter's canvas while he works -
or to hold a picture or an object of art.
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A knowledge of values
ranging from black through
grey to white enables all
students to have a finer
appreciation of the use of
colors in all the arts -
fine arts, commercial arts,
and arts and crafts.
light
low light
Middle
High dark
Dark
Low dark
Black
White
high light
black
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An All-purpose Color Wheel
Outer circle - the tints of the shades - made by mixing a little
white to the shades.
Second circle - Shades made by mixing complementary colors together
Third circle - pure colors.
Fourth circle - the tints of the pure colors made by adding white to
the pure color
Center - white
Shades are made by blending the complementary color to get the
desired intensity.
In painting (landscape, still-life, or portraits) the complemen¬
tary color is blended with the color used in the high-light to
create the shadows.
Make your color wheel as large as you can on a 9x12 sheat of iaper.
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Oil Colors - Suggested for Landscape
and Portrait Painting
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Zinc White
Pale cadmium )
Yellow ochre ) Yellows
Raw sienna )
Cadmium - Medium
Cadmium - Deep
Cadmium red ~ light red
or
Harrison red
Alazarine crimson
Rose madder
(Earth reds) - they may be sold
under other names
Venetian red
Indian red
Burnt Sienna
)
Reds
Raw Umber
Light permanent green )
Medium permanent green ) Green
Viridian )
Ultramarine - L. & M. (best blue) )
Prissian (a cold blue) )
Cobalt (doesn't hold its color at night) ) Blue
French Blue )
Ivory black (if you want it)
Preparing the Canvas
1. Prepare masonite board.
Use the rough side. Make a
glue, whiting, and pure castile
and apply to board with brush -
preparation of LePage's powdered
soap - equal parts - cook together
let dry thoroughly.
2. Take a light weight canvas or heavy unbleached muslin. Stretch
tightly on stretchers or on curtain stretchers. Brush over this
one, two, or three coats of French gelatin. When dry paint over
this a thin coat of zinc white.
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THE UNIT OF ART ACTIVITY IN
STILL LIFE.
Zina Monson
I. Possible culmination: Pictorial representation
II. Activities
A. Selection of model
B. Sketching and blocking in the model
C. Study the works of good artists
D. Exhibit the work done in the class room and let students
evaluate and criticize their own work.
III. Related Activities
A. Visit museums and art exhibits
B. Outdoor sketching
C. Make a portfolio to take care of their own work.
D. Do some designing; thereby learning in a more concrete
manner some of the principle elements of art construction.
E. Figure drawing and portrait
F. Make color wheel and learn its basic principles
G. Design cos times
H. Bring in related art crafts
T. Do sculpturing
J1. Study art appreciation and the lives of some of the
great artists
K. Do quick sketches
IV. Aims
A. To develop skill
B. To cultivate observation
C. To develop art appreciation
D. To develop in the student the ability to discriminate
between the beautiful, the commonplace and ugly in his
own personal surroundings, thereby becoming able to make
the best selection to suit his needs in dress and house
furnishings.
E. Aesthetic development
V. Procedures
A. Orientation or realization of problems
B. Organization
C. Research
D. Skill lessons
The course should be suggestive, not exhaustive.
1. Selection of model. Models need not be expensive but are often
found around the house. Some old pieces of pottery, a mug or
a dish sometimes make very interesting models. Remnants of
cloth make good drapes and are very inexpensive. If teaching
is done at night a couple of good reflector lamps are very
convenient to get proper light effects. Flowers, fruits, and
vegetables often add color and interest to a model.
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Students should be led to suggest models and to help to do same
of the arranging.
They should be allowed to experiment and select their own
medium. The teacher should make suggestions only when needed.
Students should select their position in order to get view of
the model from the angle which they wish to draw. Here they
may learn something of the principles of composition. Have
them study the model from different angles for light and
shadow effects.
The finder, Fig. 1, is very helpful to begin with.
Later he may not need it. The finder is like a —
window. It shuts out what one does not want to
see and includes the things that make a satisfact¬
ory composition.
2. Value of the border and how much space should be left around
objects in picture.
The student should learn to visualize the model as finished
picture. This will take a great deal of practice for some.
3. Proportion and Blocking in.
Mark a position on paper with line at the top and the bottom
of object in model.
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Then have him mark the sides
measuring with eye how wide the
object is compared with its
height.
With this as a measuring guide
have him place the other
objects in the same manner.
Measure how far each over¬
laps the first object, and
then find the relationship
of the bottom line of both
objects.
Fig.
| |
F»0.
—
Z
1 1
3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Then determine the width at
the top of the objects as
compared with the bottom.
Direction of lines. Final
blocking in of shape.
This seems to be an easy
way for students to get
placement, proportion, and
shape. Foreshortening and
depth of models.
Fia. It
Flo. 5
Fis. 6
Fio. 7
Fig. 8
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Fig, 7 When objects are below the eye level,
part of the inside of empty objects
will be seen or the top of solid
objects» These are from a perspective
angle and the top and bottom lines
of the jar become curved.
Fig, 8 If the eye is on the level of the
object the top cannot be seen and
the top and bottom lines of jar will
appear straight.
Fig. 9 Supplementary notes which might prove
interesting while teaching composition
and proportion.
The optical center. Slightly above
center and a little to the left.
Fig. 10 Value of contrasts and the laws of
development.
a. Dot and mass - Size
b. Straight and curved lines -
Direction - Direction of line.
Fig, 11 If a small object is placed against
a large object, or a small space
against large space the large
space appears larger.
Fig. 12 A line or lines can influence the
direction of other lines
A Straight line beautifies the curve of
circular lines. Fig. 15
Fig. 5
1
Fig.
10
« n
8.
Fig. ii
Fig. 13
The value of variety in line, action, shape, tone and oolor.
The arrangement, shape, and color of mass are very important.
It is necessary to develop variety in space and in size as well
as in shape. Variety stimulates interest, and lack of variety
produces monotony. Fig. 14
SOME DONT'S IN COMPOSITION.
Don't cut off a oorner of composition as in Fig. 15a. The
portion of the composition may be brought back into the picture
by changing the direction of lines as in Fig. 15b.
Fig. 15
/
Fig.
V
A-B
No two lines should meet at edge of composition. Fig, 16.
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Objects should not just touch the edge of composition or
other objects. (Fig. 17a) but should be well within the lines
oreverlapplriBrt?tfoer opjects, tFTgr l|7b)
All lines should not meet at one point (Fig. 18) unless you
wish to make that point of special interest.
7. Objects for models in still life should be chosen on a basis
of variety in size, shape, line, color and texture.
When drawing from a model avoid having objects placed in such
a manner that they cut the picture in two or that objects are
spread in such a manner that they do not contribute to the
whole in the picture.
Drapes play an important role for they can be made to hold the
picture together and the lines of the folds can make a very
good composition.
The sum of two or three contiguous part3 must not equal the
sum of the other contiguous parts. Spaces and masses should
be unequal. Fig. 19.
8. Quick sketches are very beneficial in
gaining skill.
9. Problems of light and shade masses.
Scale of values from white to black.
Block in high lights and low shadows.
Have students make a scale of values.
10. Color
Have each student make his own color wheel including tints,
hues, and shades.
Have them make charts showing complementary, analogous and
monochromatic colors.
Students can bring examples of cloth or paper for these various
combinations .
Build models to illustrate these principles.
Students may work out color schemes for their homes and
clothing as a supplement to this work, and also study things
in nature,
VI. Evaluation
What will student actually gain to meet his needs?
Ha3 he made the progress the teacher intended him to make?
Will this knowledge carry over into his daily needs?
What enjoyment did he gain? Where can we improve?
What can we do to get better results?
Make careful diagnosis.
Build on practices that have proved constructive.
Correct wrong impressions,
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HELPING THE LEARNER PAINT A LANDSCAPE
General Outline
Units
J. C. Miller
1. The preparation of the canvas
2. Color (methods of combining, and arrangement on the palette)
3. Sketching the landscape
4. Blocking in highlights and shadows.
3. Application of color
6. Color complements in highlights and shadows
. Composition
. Perspective
9. Construction of objects in a landscape
Development of Unit
Construction of objects in a landscape.
A. Culminative activities
Painting a landscape
B. Activities
1. Select the subject
2. Arrange objects in order to have good composition
3. Sketch on canvas with pencil or charcoal
4. Paint - sky, middle ground and foreground - Study light,
shadow, space, mass, etc.
5. Record from nature or life bits of information for
future reference,
C. Related Activities
1. Drawing to acquire ability to use.
a.
Line
b.
Form
c.
Planes
d.
Contour
e.
Proportion
f.
Balance
g.
Rhythm
h.
Light and shade
D. Aims
1. To develop technique
2. To develop fine draftsmanship
3. To prepare for professional work in:
a. Landscape
b. Illustration
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E. Procedures or Methods
1« Orientation or realization
2. Organization
J>. Research
4. Skill lessons
F. Evaluation
1. Study to train the eye for accuracy
2. Acquire speed
3. Establish relationship of light to dark
4. Develop sense of composition
5. Acquire the skill of translating emotion and thought
into a visible message through the chosen medium
(oil paints, water color, or tempera, etc.)
Of the many adults who have come to me for instruction in
landscape painting, it is very rarely that one ha3 stated a desire
to become an artist; rather to the contrary, they usually say,
"I have no desire to become an artist, I just want to paint some
pictures I can call my own."
So the reader must bear in mind, if devices or methods are
used that tend to destroy creative work on the part of the learner,
it is because of the "demand" or desires of the learner, and not
because the writer approves of them all.
The average adult wants to begin painting immediately, without
any preliminary training and in order to make this possible the
teacher breaks down the landscape into its various parts and
teaches them separately.
Trees
The teacher shows the similarity of the trunk to a round stick
and how to reproduce this affect with highlights and shadows.
Also the likeness of the body of foliage to a ball or box and
how this can be obtained with highlights and shadows.
Mountains
Here, practically the same method is used; the teacher some¬
times uses the roof of a house to help develop the idea, and rough
pieces of rock are also useful in teaching the form of mountains.
Rocks (same procedure used here)
Here is one place the principle of opposition is very useful;
opposing lines create transparency if they cross each other.
Roadways and Paths
Buildings
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This subject ties up with the unit perspective.
It is unnecessary to go further into this, for this is sufficient
to show how to teaoh landscape painting to adults.
Since the students are in all stages of development, it is
difficult to follow a set plan, however, one always keeps in view
the objective.
"To develop in the learner a skill enabling him to paint
pictures that will give him some satisfaction."
Supplementary Material on Landscape
(See also special workbook on this subject)
In speaking of landscape one thinks of everything out-of-doors,
even the sea though this may seem far-fetched. As an artist records
a landscape the picture contains within its boundaries the fore¬
ground. middle distance, distance and sky. It may contain trees,
mountains, deserts; lakes, rivers or the sea. Cathedrals, palaces,
business buildings, bridges, wigwam or shacks., man, beast, or bird
and many other items—all may become parts of a finished picture.
When objects stand in a natural setting, the light from the sky
has a way of mantling them with beauty. The landscape artist must
see his picture as a whole and this requires careful thought, real
intelligence and hard work. There is as much difference in the
the contents of landscapes as there is in the difference of the
finger exercise played on a piano and the music of a great symphony
orchestra.
Every picture, whether it be recorded in pencil, pen and
ink, crayon, water colors, oil paints or in a plastic medium in
low relief, requires a plan or a pictorial design, a main theme,
and a center of interest. The artist must have something to say.
The learner requires practice with the medium which he has
choosen before he is equipped to tell his message with skill.
There must not be too little in the picture to create and hold the
interest of the observer, nor must there be too much that will
cause confusion in the mind of the spectator. The artist must
acquire the ability to make the subordinate things in the picture
take their peace in the right relationship to each other and also
to the important objects in order to establish a center of interest
In a good composition.
The more freehand or creative sketches a learner makes indoors
or away from nature the greater his ability to compose his sketch
out-of-doors. Nature has a way of being very much complicated
Many artists make many thumb-nail sketches (sketches three or four
inches in dimension) because it is easier to get the desired effect
when the landscape is simplified to a small space. In this way
the eye becomes trained to detect good pictorial subjects. Any
medium may be used in making such sketches, but the simplier the
WPA-E-579-U
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medium is the more apt the learner is to consider them as a part of
a learning process rather than art. May we remember that great
artists did very much practice work before they became recognized
masters•
In the study of picture composition let us realize that no two
people see or record things exactly alike. If an artist repeats
his composition over and over, he is not seeing and recording nature
but rather setting down a formula that is in his mind. There is
no fixed place to draw the horizon on the canvas. There is no
certain number of horizontal lines or spaces, nor perpendicular
lines or spaces, nor curves nor spots nor color. There are no
absolute laws in art. For instance Gainsborough painted "The Blue
Boy" to disprove the accepted color formulas used by many masters
of that age.
There are many suggestions to learners that will enable them
to feel an assurance in painting a landscape. Stich as "Keep the
less circular curves in the higher portion of the picture. Avoid
using lines that carry the eye out of the pictorial space for this
is distracting because it divides the center of interest. It may
be wise not to compose the picture so that the vision is attracted
and held at the exact center of the space within a boundary".
Landscape artists generally concede that there should be a center
of interest obtained through a pleasing arrangement of objects.
We call this Composition.
Composition is thus created by organizing masses of dark and
light--such as the grouping of trees, buildings, mountains, human
figures, or animals, or the boats, or ships or the rolling waves—
in their relationship to the sky and land or the sea. In other
words there should be In a landscape a pleasing design or pattern.
Thus composition is established through the qualities of balance,
rhythm, repetition, transition, etc. There must be a center of
interest with the objects of minor importance taking their place
in right relationship to the focal objects.
A knowledge of drawing is essential and a knowledge of the
technique of painting and in addition the deeper feeling that gives
the real expression of art. Art is not a trick, nor the acquiring
of a clever technique. All art expression is very personal.
"Whatever fault one may find in a work of art, the blame cannot
lie with Nature." The fault may be the result of the attitude
which the painter has toward nature, or to a lack of knowledge.
An artist should strive for Independence and a high standard of
craftsmanship. There is no royal road to Art. An art student must
learn to observe, and to select, to draw, to oonstruct, to paint
or to model according to his ideals and purposes.
"Nature has so much to offer that her very generosity may
provide a snare, since there is danger of wasting time on non-
essentials--it may be wise to know the experience of great artists."
The little things in nature are very interesting but a land¬
scape artist should not be concerned with the veins of a leaf until
he has mastered the sky, the mountains, the trees and the earth
things.
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"Shakespear does not tell you what kind of buttons were on the
coat of Hamlet but he does reveal to you the secret of Hamlet's
character."
Advice of Great Painters to Students.
"Do not grovel before nature" — Sir Alfred East.
Stand to your work and draw and paint from the shoulder in
manly fashion. Look long at her, consider carefully, and then when
you have made up your mind, express it confidently.
There is no fatigue in nature--There is simplicity, directness,
ease, and spontaneity. Paint as if all nature is in 3'our use and
at your disposal.
Build up your picture from the broad masses, "Work on them
all at the same time, keeping them in tone like an orchestra".
Keep them in hand like a musical conductor. Have no false notes,
no discordant line or color.
Paint on your picture at the same hour of the day in which
the picture was started. If you are modeling in low relief from
nature the same principles should be held to.
Know the lights and the shadows, the difference of the form
and color in relation to the distance from you—you may note the
interesting difference of the color of the landscape at the differ¬
ent hours of the day.
In landscape there is a perfect interdependency. Perhaps
light is the most important factor, for it creates the shadows,
modifies the form and contour, and controls the color.
If you are going to be a landscape artist careful observation
is your best teacher. A knowledge of drawing, or the acquiring of
the ability to record in black and white what you see, is one of
the best preparations for painting one can have.
After you have looked long, studied carefully, and decided
definitely what you have choosen to put into your landscape build
up the study in broad masses, with simple directness and without
fear. Work on all the parts at the same time so that each part of
the picture takes its proper relationship to every other part and
the entire picture is finished in the same spirit of sincerity and
enthusiasm.
Unless one's memory is remarkable one should not paint on a
canvas that was started on a grey cloudy morning on a bright sunny
morning. There will be other cloudy mornings.
Foregrounds:
Objects in the foreground are larger and are worked out in more
intense colors and with greater contrasts, much more detail is
recorded and the space relationship between objects is more definite¬
ly organized.
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The Middle ground:
The most subtle part of the composition is often found in the
middle ground. It has a subordinate quality that brings out the
important part of the picture and complements the center of interest.
The Far Distance:
The far distant must be as carefully drawn and finely oomposed
as the foreground. The objects recorded are smaller in scale and
show perspective and lighter in color to show variation in distance.
In discussing color in landscape painting we shall speak of it
as water-color or oil color—the pigment with which pictures are
painted. s
Most of the people in the world are aware of color, the un¬
trained eye can distinguish about a thousand variations of color.
The trained eye can distinguish many, many more than that. Color
speaks a language that is powerful and one that may be understood
by the serious student of art, for nature goes more than two-thirds
of the way to help the artist. One must learn to see accurately
and then keep that color sense very keen by recording what one sees.
For example, one learns to know all the varieties of greens
that can be made by combining yellows with blues,—and all the
variations of violet to purple, the warm and oold colors, the tints
and the shades and their use in creating of form or structure,
nearness, or distance, dry or moist atmosphere, the quality of
water, rocks, clouds, foliage, drapery, glass, metal, etc. To get
the results one desires through the use of color is, perhaps, the
most difficult thing in painting. It is fortunate to be born with
a color sense; but if one has to acquire it, it pays a big dividend
because it gives the joy of accomplishment.
The greatest paintings are the result of the fine relationship
of color to form or to the splendid interpretation of form through
color. "Form should be enhanced and glorified by color, and color
in turn should be ennobled in being enshrined in its appropriate
form."
In a landscape artist, color comes second only to drawing; one
may use color to draw with or he may use char coal--Drawing and
modeling is essential no matter what the medium. Color alone can
say very little accurately or effectively without the art of the
draftsman.
To be able to use colors wisely and a ccurately requires
practice. Color is different in different lights and at different
distances and under different atmospheric effects.
The relationship of color intensity is different at various
distances, the middle distance, the far distance, and the sky. The
color value in each must be consistent with its place in the scheme
The values in the middle distance are not those of the far distance
nor those of the foreground.
579
-17-
The sky is never absolutely flat and the subtle quality of
motion of the air or the clouds creates a charm. Often the mount¬
ains and trees merge into the sky, and often the composition created
by the trees and mountains requires that the sky be modified to
complement the rest of the composition.
Generally speaking the foreground is darkest in value, the
middle ground a little lighter, the far distance lighter and the
sky lightest. Observation will prove that this rule is not absolute.
There can be no hard rules set down in art.
It is the advice of great landscape painters to paint the sky
all at one time because of the difficulty in matching colors--Blues
change values as they dry and to match the wet paint to them is
difficult.
A learner will find it advisable to close his eyes partially
so that he sees things in mass relationship in the light and dark
values rather than the detail of any object in the mass. Beginners
are apt to become lost in a mass of details. The complexity of
details often confuses the learner and causes him to become dis¬
couraged. While if he partially closed his eyes and saw the simple
masses of dark and light in the proper shapes and learned to record
them first, the detail (and often it is important) will be mastered
easily. It is best to take each thing in its stride.
Painters use different methods in applying color. Some use a
very light ground work and start from the sky or top of the picture
space and each space is painted in its relationship in the proper
color intensity. Often the immediate foreground is of a substance
(water, snow, or drifting sand) that acts as a reflector to the
sky and in such cases the middle distance would be darkest in tone.
In the middle distance one would find solidity created by structural
lines and darker values in colors.
A certain amount of movement in a picture can be obtained by
curved lines. Motion introduced into a picture prevents monotony
and stimulates interest in the observer.
One does not attempt to be a landscape artist without knowing
from observation the characteristics of skies, clouds, mountains,
and trees. There is included in this workbook some suggestions for
the learner on some of the things one meets in nature.
Clouds often are the most glorious things in the landscape.
One knows them better after they have tried to paint them. Clouds
in the sky have as much design as a persian rug.
The darkest cloud is usually considerably lighter than the
various objects seen in the landscape. But a wheat field in the
foreground may be much lighter than a distant cloud. In painting
it is wise to keep dark clouds fairly flat in tone. Avoid over-
modeling when painting clouds. Often a very great of motion oan
be recorded in storm clouds that create a feeling of great unrest.
On the other hand the horizontal clouds give a feeling of tran¬
quility.
579
-18-
Mountains are of such great importance in our landscape.
Trees
"The student is quite as important as the tree."
The reason a student is timid in making trees is the fact that
they are overly aware of the mass of leaves, the intricate pattern
of the branches, and the subtle quality of the trunk. The character
or shape of the tree is best seen in silhouette against the sky or
a lighter background. Think of the shape of the fir tree, the
weeping willow tree, the elm, the oak, the maple. The general mass
shape is different in each tree. The shape shows the family to
which it belongs.
The student must see the mass of the tree rather than the
leaves. There are certain colors belonging to certain tree families.
There is a dignity and a restraint in color even when you see the
tree with the flood of sunlight upon it. Each has a buoyancy and
cheer on the darkest, most somber days . When the wind is violent
and the limbs of the tree seem' to be torn apart, the character of
the tree may be most finely interpreted. The artist should study
the silhouette of the tree against the sky at dawn or at dusk.
Later in the study of trees the students might make detailed
studies of leaves and branches. We might consider with great care
579
-19-
the anatomy of the tree because it enables us to understand the
dignity, the whimsical charm and the subtle strength of each tree,
or each group of trees.
In painting landscapes there Is a perfect interdependence.
Perhaps light is the most important factor, for it creates the
shadows and modifies form and color.
Names of Water Colors
1. Light yellow ochre
2. Yellow ochre
3. Lemon yellow
4. Vermilion
5. Permanent crimson
6. Rose mader
7. Permanent blue
8. Ultramarine blue
9. Cobalt blue
10. Hooker's green (middle tint)
11. Hooker's green (deep)
12. Varidian
13. Burnt umber
14. Burnt sienna
15. Raw sienna
Equipment for Landscape Artists
Comfort and usefulness in art tools are essential — your whole
attention should be on your work.
1. Camp-stools as high as an ordinary chair.
2. Easels — Out door easels should be light in weight but
very stable.
The rack of the easel should permit the picture to stand
perfectly upright because the reflection of the sky on the wet paint
always creates difficulty.
3. Canvas -- Each painter, by use may form a preference for
a coarse fabric, a medium, or a fine fabric. All art stores carry
each kind. It may be best to choose a white canvas.
4. Paint box — Made of seasoned wood about 15" x 12" x 3",
It is best if it is equipped with rings and a leather strap so it
can be carried over the shoulder. It should contain palette, colors
mixing medium, turpentine, and it is advisable to have a place for '
the brushes. There should always be pencils, charcoal and thumb
tacks.
579
-20-
The container for the medium and turpentine should have screw
tops and fit snugly into their compartments.
The box is generally made to hold several wooden panels which
slip into the grooves in the lid. These are used to record im¬
pression for the picture being painted or for small paintings. It
is wise to have the sketching panels always ready because nature
does not respect your wishes when you start out to get a certain
effect,
A choice of brushes depends upon the likes and dislikes of the
painter and his habit of handling the colors and the mixing mediums.
At the end of the day always wash the brushes either with warm water
and soap or turpentine.
Let your equipment be the best you can afford, for such equip¬
ment is the cheapest in the end.
The less you know how to use a tool the better that tool should
be.
579
-21-
PORTRA.IT painting
I, Objective: To paint a portrait.
II, Activities:
A. Secure a model.
B. Decide whether the picture is to be a decorative subject
or a representative object.
C. Decide upon a pose.
D. Study the effect of light on the sitter, the costume, and
the background.
Related Activities: -The previous training in drawing will all
be brought into this activity.
III. Aim: To make a satisfactory picture.
IV. Procedure:
A. Have all the preparatory work finished before the sitter
arrives, so that there can be directness and pleasantness
in the relationship of sitter to artist.
B. Each learner must approach his problem according to his own
feelings and skills. The best a teacher can do is to direot
the learner's observation to more accurate observation and
recording. Everyone records differently.
Suggestions to the Learner
The portrait painter's palette has fewer paints on than a land¬
scape palette. The following list has proved satisfactory to some
of the world's greatest artists. They are named in the order in
which they are put on the paletta — Ultramarine, madder, rose madder,
zinc white, light cadmium, dark cadmium, yellow ochre, and burnt
sienna. Some artists add to this list ivory black, Veronese green,
lac garance, and orange cadmium. Zinc white is used because it is
more brilliant and is not supposed to darken with age nor change
chemically when combined with other colors. It is claimed to be
best when mixed with poppy oil.
Most portrait painters have many brushes because keeping one's
colors clean is more important in portraiture than in landscape or
marine painting.
To please the sitter is so very important that one must think
of it carefully. It is most important that the sitter be in a very
natural pose—it is best that he choose this himself. He must be
happy, comfortable and never bored. After the pose has been decided
upon, it is v/ise to choose an object that the eye can be focused
upon. It enables the sitter to relax; then to regain the pose
quickly and easily. There is a certain strain in posing expecially
for a portrait.
579
-22-
Some painters sketch with penoil or charcoal, others sketch
with the paint and brush. It is very important to place the figure
in the space accurately and to establish the whole with its decora¬
tive element quickly while the artist and the sitter are still
fresh.
Begin with the head and establish the construction of the skull
and define accurately the larger planes through the relationship
of the light and dark. The exact relationship between the head and
the body and then the relationship with the surroundings must be
established very early.
Drawing constantly establishing the relationship of light and
shadow develops the likeness and the character of the sitter. The
large planes are developed first and as the painter proceeds the
smaller planes and the nice details are established.
A portrait painter must have such a thorough understanding of
drawing that the medium he chooses must serve him instinctively.
A portrait painter is chiefly concerned with the head; but he
never loses the relationship of that to the body and to the back¬
ground. While he is vo rking one part, he is constantly thinking
of the relationship of the head to every other part.
It is often said that a portrait painter paints his canvas
while he is away from it. The thing that actually happens is this.
The sitter is placed as near the canvas, in the proper light, as it
is possible to get her. In order to get the right relationship of
every thing, the painter steps away from the canvas, studies each
and then returns to the canvas to record his observations. He
rarely looks at the sitter when he is close enough to touch the
canvas. Distance enables him to appreciate properly the likenesses
and the differences of shapes, colors, and the character of the
sitter.
Painting a portrait is a great deal more than recording a like¬
ness, there must be as muoh attention given to the sitters mental
and emotional characteristics as to his physical appearance. The
painter must be a careful student of human nature and he must take
every opportunity to see the sitter in his many daily activities, in
his home, in his work, and in his play. It is necessary to know his•
likes and dislikes, his hobbies, his philosophy, his bodily gestures,
especially those of the hands and feet if the latter are to be in¬
cluded in the portrait, There is often as much character in a hand
as in a face.
It is important to know when to stop. It is necessary to keep
a portrait fresh and spontaneous. If the painter has worked on the
entire composition consistently, he will find that, when the head
is finished satisfactorily, all other parts will be well done.
579 ~23~
Sketching or Free-Hand Drawing
Helen B. Sohow
A. Culminative Activities: Free-hand drawing.
B. Activities.
1. Selecting subject
2« Sketching
a. Recording, from nature or life, bits of information
for future reference.
C. Related activities.
1. Drawing to acquire ability to use:
a.
Line.
b.
Form.
c.
Planes.
d.
Contour.
e.
Proportion.
f.
Balance.
g.
Rhythm.
h.
Light and shade.
i.
Unity.
D. Aims
a. To develop technique.
b. Develop fine draftsmanship.
c. Preparation for appreciation of, or professional
training in;
1.
Portraiture.
2.
Landscape
3.
Sculpture
4.
Architectural drawings
5.
Illus tration
b.
Etching
7-
Lithographs
8.
Desi gn
9.
Block printing
10.
Commercial art.
E. Procedures or Methods
a. Orientation or realization of problem
b. Organization
c. Research
d. Skill lesson
e. Working individual unit out.
f. Developing technique with medium for self-expression.
579
-24-
F. Evaluation, and reasons.
a. Study to train the eye for accuracy
b. Acquire speed
o. Establish relation of light to dark
d. Develop sense of composition
e. Work for satisfaction through putting into a visible
form a desire or need.
G, Materials needed
Paper -
Newsprint, wrapping paper, drawing paper, or hard surface
paper for pen and ink.
Pencils -
6 B pencil (soft-for dark shades)
5 B, 4 B and 3 B pencils for varying lighter tones receding
in the picture. One may want a HB pencil (hard lead) to
reoord the lighter tones in the distance such as distant
mountains, clouds, or the far distance.
Pencil Sketching or Charcoal Sketching
Careful pencil drawings are part of an art student's training
if he hopes to aohieve good landscape or portrait painting or fine
proportions in modeling in the round or in relief.
It would be wise to practice sketching every day for the
painter or sculptor as finger exercises just as musicians consider
the practicing of scales essential in the training for musicianship.
Practice every day.
In sketching one may record a tree with the shape of the branches
as they grow in relationship to the trunk and foliage. This sketch
is far more valuable than any photograph could be because it gives
the observer the main facts without the bewildering detail.
A good suggestion in sketching is to hold the pencil or char¬
coal in a very easy manner. In writing one grips the pencil firmly
between the thumb, the forefinger, and the second finger. This
gives a perfect control for drawing. In sketching the pencil
should be so held that the wrist and entire arm are free. In this
way one may secure the lightest tint and the darkest shade with
equal freedom. VJith the pencil held naturally one may get fluent
line work of curves or straight lines.
There is recorded in a pencil sketch only those things which
are important and essential in the character of the object which
you are sketching.
If one uses his hands and draws every day the hands soon become
sensitive and obedient to the mind. Skill is acquired to record
the mass, contour and design, also the necessary detail for accurate
information for future reference.
579
-25-
Drawing in pencil enables the learner to acquire a finer sense
of oolor values as well as to prepare him to say the most with the
least effort. This skill has come as the result of recording lights,
shadows, and contours of objects in their relationship to the sky
and the foreground.
579
-26-
DECORATIVE DESIGN
Irving T. Pratt.
A. Culminative Activities
1. Decorative designs for interiors and object of ornamentation
B. Activities
1. Selecting objectives fbr decoration
2. Selecting designs to apply
3. Painting stenoil
C. Related Activities
1. Class room equipment for learning deooration of
a. Walls
b. Ceiling
c. Freize dado
d. Doors and French-windows as dado
2. Equipment necessary
a. Bucket
b. Large brushes
c. Stepladder
d. Chalk line ibr striking lines
e. Dry co lors
f. Gelatine and starch
g. Stencils for cutting patterns
h. Brushes (4-inch brush
(1-inch brush
(Dutch brush
( fitches for drawing lines
(for casting in panels
i. Pencils (HB - free hand drawings
(B - for shade
(BB - for shadow
D. Aims
1. To be able to draw in perspective
2. To be able to record light and shade
3. To be able to draw different kinds of foliage
4. To be able to paint the different kinds of fbliage in a
landscape as part of the efficiency to do classic art as
it is demanded by all studios.
3. Sketching - primarily for studies to be incorporated
later in large pictures. Often the sketch tes been
allowed to remain as a complete unit in black and white
as a part of decoration. '
579
-27-
6. Skill in drawing perspective
. Skill in recording light and shade
. Coloring painted landscape as near the reality as
observer can make it»
Students generally do not handle correctly drawing pencils, or
their brushss. These should be held between the two first fingers
and thumb, so as to enable them to vork efficiently; also, they
work from the wrist, and not from the arm.
They should keep their easels at arm's length, that they may
observe the drawing more correctly.
They should study minutely eveiy movement when it comes to
coloring.
Usually they should paint their sky first; then work from the
distance to the foreground, putting in colors from the delicacies
in the distance and work up to the foreground with detail; then
work in the foliage minutely, also the trunks of trees and any
figures.
Philosophy of Art Education
My philosophy of Art education for today's school is that one
must have a thorough education in drawing, perspective, and light
and shade; also a practical knowledge in drawing of seven kinds of
different foliage; one should be able to paint each of the different
kinds of foliage so that the landscape will indicate all the foliage
that may be in that particular landscape, which is oib part of the
efficiency of classic art, and is demanded by all studios.
Sketches are primarily intended as studies to be incorporated
later in large pictures. It has often happened that the sketches
have displayed a simplicity and directness of statement so satis¬
factory that it would appear unwise to proceed further as a sketch
and so it has been allowed to remain as a complete sketch in black
and white. Such cases were more often than not merely suggested
instead of being painted in solidly. In some cases, it was not
indicated at all with the result that there was nothing to direct
the attention from the landscape itself. In coloring, the landscape
must be colored as near like the reality in observation.
Irving T. Pratt.
579
-28-
PHOTOGRAPHY
Merlin C. Brown
A. Culminative Activities: Taking a picture.
B. Activities
1. Selecting Subject
2. Taking picture
C. Related activities
1* Acquiring ability to use camera
a. Line
b. Form
c. Balance
d. Rhythm
e. Light and shadow
D. Aims
1. To develop technique
2. To develop fine pictures
a. Portraiture
b. Landscape
c« Dimensional qualities
d. Composing of objects within lens.
E. Procedures or Methods
a. Organization
b. Research
c. Skill lessons
F. Evaluation and Reasons
a. Study to train the eye for accuracy
b. Acquire speed
c. Establish relation of light to dark
d. Develop sense of composition
579
-29-
Interior Deooration - Small Houses and Apartments
Caroline K. Parry
I. Objectives
The decoration of small houses and apartments to give people
more happiness, comfort, and home-pride.
II * Activities:
Selecting of location for house or choosing an apartment.
III. Accumulated Activities
a. To know building materials
b. To know how to read blue prints
c. The relation of the exterior of house to the interior,
walls, roof, etc.
1. Back and front yards - gardens, walks, driveway, etc.
d. The neighborhood
e. Interior of the house
1.
Floor space
2.
Wall elevations
3.
Ceilings
4.
Windows
5.
Doors
6.
Lighting
7-
Plumbing
8.
Heating
f. Kinds of furniture
1. Material used in furniture
2. Types of furniture to meet needs of individuals
3» Rugs - Kinds, quality, and cost
4. Furniture - inappropriate and appropriate
g. Beauty and fitness of furniture
1. For living room, dining room, bed room, kitchen, and
baths
2. Floor coverings - wall coverings, and drapes
3. Use of pictures , ceramics, lamps, and other moveable
objeots
h. A knowledge of design and color as they apply to interior
decoration.
IV. Sources of information and inspiration
a. Visits to Model Homes
1. When the foundation is beinglaid
2. When the walls and floors are in the process of buildiig
3. When the plumbing, lighting, and heating fixtures are
being installed.
4. When putting in doors, windows and built-in furniture.
5. When the roof is being constructed.
6. When the building is ready for final inspection and
occupancy..
579
-30-
b. Visit to Furniture Stores to see
1. Styles of furniture and material used
2. Rugs and Linoleums
1. Quality and cost
2. Color and patterns
3. Window ourtains and drapes
4. Accessories for decoration
5. Samples of fabrics, wall paper, rugs, linoleum.
6. Catalogues.
c. Visit drapery and yardage departments in dry good stores -
compare quality and prices.
d. Visit furniture factories, paint shops, electric light
stores,, lumber yards and any other place where material
and fixtures that go into homes are made or sold.
e. Look in magazines. Every kind that gives information and
pictures of floor plans, interiors, and exteriors of homes.
V. Allied Arts.
a. Know the history of architecture - the building of homes.
b. Know the household or applied arts. These add personality
and comfort to the home. (See Section on Crafts.)
c. Have a knowledge of design and oolor, because people who
live in houses are surrounded by them constantly.
Improper use of either or both can cause much disturbance;
d. Get an appreciation of pictures and their use in the home,
also mirrors, tapestries and other forms of decorates.
VI. People and Things
The most important thing to know about houses is that it
is the home and, therefore, the finest expression of the
people living in it. It Is the setting, the background,
for many kinds of personalities.
VII. Teacher*3 Aim
a. To guide the learner to see and understand the things that
have gone in house building and home making in the past,
so that the accumulated information may serve as a founda¬
tion upon which he may build a finer place in which to
live by making it meet the needs and express the owner's
personality.
b. To guide the learner so he may acquire an artistic
sensibility for proportion, design and fitness in things
that surround him.
VIII. Student's Aims
a. To know the principles of interior decoration.
b. To make surroundings more comfortable and beautiful
C.. brnrn 4,he satisfaction of self expression.
579
-31-
IX. Procedure or Methods
a. Orientation or realization of the interdependency of art
of home making on industry, on the economic and the social
life of the community.
b. Organizing of information in order to apply it to practice.
1. Floor plans.
2. Wall elevations including window and door spaces.
3. Color charts and choosing color schemes.
4. Scrap books of reference material and samples and
pictures of furniture and drapery appropriate for
each room.
c. Research
1. Charts in library.
2, Interior decoration books and magazines.
X. Evaluation
a. Homes that express thoughtfulness.
1. In buying for the home.
2. In making things for the home.
3. In caring for the individual tastes and self expression.
b. Happier individuals: The care and thoughtfulness that is
required to make a house a home makes people more contented.
c. A more beautiful city: Everything that adds comfort and
happiness to a person adds beauty and security to the
city. A city is no finer than the most humble citizen -
and when that citizen has pride in his home, he is a
finer citizen.
XI. Assignments:
a. Always keep your group anticipating the next meeting by
suggesting the theme, and askii^ for observations that
may be developed during the lesson period.
b. The lesson plan may offer the logical approach and the
assignment made accordingly; or it may not serve as a
guide but rather as a challenge to develop your own.
Many people feel that interior decoration offers great
possibility for self expression.
XII. Methods
a. Formal and informal discussions.
b. Field trips - study trips to library,
c. Demonstration, illustration and experiment.
d. The classroom of necessity is a work shop or a laboratory.
579
-52-
List of tools needed for laboratory work
1. Rulers, pencils, erasers, soft cloths.
2. Wax crayons, or water colors or tempra or show-card
colors - brushes.
5. Bottle or cup to hold water, plate or slab of glass to
mix paint on.
4. Box or bag to carry material in.
5. Material for scrap book or portfolio, paste, mounting
paper and pictures of house plans, gardens, houses, inter¬
iors, furniture, drapes, rugs, etc.
6. Drawing paper to make sketches on.
579
GLOSSARY FOR MODELING MP SCULPTURE
-33-
Caroline K. Parry-
Armature - A structure made of wood, iron compo-piping, lead wire,
or galvanized wire, upon which to build up a work in olay, plaster,
plasteline, or wax.
Bronzing - A word generally used to describe the process of coloring
a plaster cast to imitate bronze.
Butterfly - Two pieces of wood Joined together by wire in the shape
of a Latin cross, used for the purpose of attaching to the armature
to carry a weight of clay.
Chipping out - The act of taking away with chisel and hammer the
waste mould from the plaster cast.
Joint lines - Ridges in the cast formed by a division where two
parts of a mould have come together.
Keyholds - Notches cut or holes drilled into one side of a mould
before making the mould piece which is to come next to it.
Keys - The pieces formed by the plaster running into the keyholds
on the plaster pieces previously made.
Killed plaster - A term applied to plaster when a certain amount of
the strength of the lime contained in it has been destroyed by its
remaining for a short time underwater before mixing.
Modeling stand - A table with a revolving top upon which to work,
made of various proportions accordirg to the size of the intended
work. The one used for blasts and works of no larger scale are
usually about 3 ft. 6 in. high with an 18 in. square revolving top.
It is advisable to have the one used for this purpose made to stand
on three legs only.
Pate-sur-pate - A method of modeling in very low relief by painting
one layer, or coat after another on to a background with a brush.
The clay is made to the consistency of a thin paste, and in this way
the desired relief is built up.
Piece mould - A mould made of a number of pieces over a work, so that
the original shall be preserved undamaged; from such a mould a number
of copies can be taken, whereas from the waste mould but one cast can
be taken, the mould being destroyed in the process, thus the term
"waste".
Waste moulding - A process of converting the wax or clay model into
plaster. By this method one cast only can be obtained, as in the
process the mould is broken up (chipped away) and this is wasted.
Shellac - A solution of shellac and methylated spirit. It is common¬
ly called French varnish. It is used to coat the inside of waste
moulds and other surfaces that will contact wet plaster paris. (Over
the shellacked surface is smeared evenly and smoothly a coat of
white vaseline or soap mixed with oil.) This prevents new Plaster
from adhering to it.
579
-34-
Undercutting - A term used to describe the curving of a projection
Just behind and beyond where it is visible to the spectator, in
order to give "snap" and sharpness of effeot.
Caliper - A rule like scale used to measure in order to get the
exact proportions of the model. Proportionate caliper is an
adjustable rule.
36" to S'l" High
579
-35-
MO DELING AND sculpture
Caroline K. Parry-
There is no more fascinating material to work with than
clay. It is found in all parts of Utah in great quantities and of
fine quality# I suggest it as one of the many native run materials
that can be" utilized in building up a splendid program in the arts
and crafts.
I have been asked by my fellow teachers to work this subject
out by giving some detailed infoimation.
It is necessary that we know how to care for the clay in
order that the best results be obtained in modeling; this is es¬
pecially true if we fire and glaze our studies.
The clay should be first washed to remove sand, pebbles or
other foreign material. This can be done in buckets or tubs. Some
clays require grinding - it should be as smooth and fine as flour#
It must be moistened to a pliable consistency; and it is much more
easily used if it is allowed to stand in a moderately warm place
and cured over a period of months.
Some clays need to be wedged before they are used - working
the air out by cutting and pounding. This is essential if the
finished product is going to be fired. Air spaces within the clay
will cause the object to crack or chip under the heat of firing.
The method of modeling is building up rather than cutting
away from the bulk. Both cutting and building are used with clay.
Sculptors have, since Michael Angelo's time modeled their studies
in clay before cutting into the marble. By building up or modeling
we learn to understand the shapes, and the wrk will be kept fresher
in touch through all the stages to the complete form.
It is important to keep the work in a good condition and
even consistency. The tools should be cleaned at the end of every
working period. The study should be kept moist by wrapping in a
soft wet cloth (not dripping wet - that destroys the modeling) and
over this carefully wrap an oil cloth so that there will not be
hardening in spots. As the work nears completion the surf act must
be carefully protected to prevent the blotting out of fine drawing.
This is done by inserting at prominent points, bits of wood that
will hold the moistened cloth from the surface, but will keep the
clay moist and even in consistency. If the work is very important
it is best to use a wooden frame, lined with waterproof material
and closed in with a frame work door covered with the same material.
It is only by keeping the material in good condition that we make
consistent progress.
In starting upon a piece of work it is better to use clay
of a fairly stiff consistency. It binds better around the armature.
It must be remembered that the clay we supply ourselves with each of
the following work periods should be slightly softer than that of
579
-36-
the body. When the new clay is applied it should not become em¬
bedded, but be laid or spread upon the surface to build up the parts
consistently into a completed contour. The thoughtful person with
littel experience will benefit by these suggestions, because they
prevent discouragement and final despair.
Many sculptors recommend copying a piece of work in the
beginning, to acquaint the learner with the medium and the tools.
The model chosen should be simple in shape with well-marked planes,
such as the eyes, nose, and mouth of "David" by Michael Angelo.
Such models can be obtained very inexpensively. I feel that the
approach to the subject must depend entirely upon what one desires
to accomplish through working with this medium. In many cases it
is best to work entirely from the imagination or directly from life.
It is necessary that we study the parts of the whole but in
modeling the whole should be drawn from every conceivable view -
for modeling is drawing in clay. The better it is done from the veiy
beginning; the better will be the results.
From my experience I believe that one should begin drawing
from nature and life rather than copying the masters. It takes
years of experience - living and thinking - to appreciate the charm
and power of a masterpiece.
Michael Angelo built in plasteline to get proportion, action,
etc., before he cut into his marble. Some of his figures are still
in existence. Most modern sculptors model in clay or plasteline
first; then cast their work in plaster of paris and from this the
marble is cut by using a pointing machine and chisel and mallet.
Also the bronze models, casts, chors, etc., are made from the plaster
cast.
It is very important that all the fear be eliminated in the
approach to modeling and sculpture. We must make up our minds to
battle for a great deal of physical as well as mental energy is
needed in this work.
One must be prepared for disappointment all along the road;
but there is no greater challenge given to a creative artist than
that of sculpture in its functional relationships with architecture,
monuments, and even garden pieces.
Figures measuring less than a foot high are called statu¬
ettes. Pieces many times life size are called statues, monuments,
or sculptured figures. Where low relief, or high relief is used
in connection with architecture it is called architectural decora¬
tion.
Sculpture Tools
Ettl. Studios
13th Ave. 24 - to 23th St.
New York City
Catalogue 250 - Get it as a
part of your equipment -
A text book.
All kinds of sculpture
equipment.
579
-37-
Modeling and Sculpture Tools
1, Tool for Monumental work.
2. Wooden tool for eyes, ears, etc.
3, Wooden tool for drawing.
4. Small tool for finishing.
5 and 6, are good tools for average size work.
579
-38-
Pembro ke' s
Salt Lake City.
The Salt Lake Blue Print
Judge Building
3rd South on Main Street.
Plaster of Paris
"Empire" quick setting plaster paris
Sugar House Lumber Company.
Plaster of Paris tools sold only in shops specializing
in sculpture equipment.
Make your own tools, use bronze, wire and lemon or cedar
wood* Make wood mallet from a piece of very hard wood.
Wire and zinc pipe can be bought at Z.C.M.I. Hardware
Department, the Salt Lake Hardware, or any good hardware store.
White vaseline, dark shellac, blueing, wire and pieces
of wood, rope fiber is often used to mix with plaster of paris for
strength, carpenter tools and plumbing tools if you are really go¬
ing to do sculpture.
Modeling a Portrait Bust
A modeled portrait bust is a goal to be desired and worked
for - that of being able to catch the portrait or actual likeness
of the sitter. It is necessary to study the type and character of
one's sitter, in order to write indelibly in clay or stone, the
man's history as it is recorded in feature.
Material needed:
1. A modeling stand - if possible one with a revolving
top.
2. A bust armature - with a "butterfly" Galvanized gas
piping 1/2 inch* One piece 9 to 14 inches long - two
pieces, 3 to 3 inches long.
The floorfleng is screwed on to a flat board or platform
about 16 by 2 inches. The platform is less apt to warp if it is
made of inch lumber laid cross ways and nailed or screwed together.
The washer is screwed a little rear off center. The longest piece
screwing into the floorfleng, on top of this the tee in which are
screwed the two short pieces for shoulder supports. Into the center
is fastened, very firmly, lead wire (one half inch diameter) is
attached. (Illustration found on accompanying page). Within the
arches of the wire are fastened small crossed stitches called
"butterflys" to hold the weight of the clay. The advantage of the
lead wire is that it gives or moves quite easily if it be thought
579
-39-
desirable to turn or change the action after the bust is well on
toward completion. The pliable lead piping retains the ease in
the poise of the head on the shoulders. The ©rose pieoes of pipe
are supports to build the shoulders on, with the armature built,
the clay ready, the model or sitter ready he must from the first
to the finish be seated at such a height that his head and the one
being built up in clay are as nearly as possible on the same level.
The model should take a natural easy pose. The model and the arma¬
ture must be studied.
It is all-important in the earlier stages and throughout
the process that the pit of the neck be taken, as the projections
of the features of the face are judged and governed by this point.
Great care must be taken for proportions; and the tilt of the head
alters distances. It is wise to use a plumb line and calipers to
verify eye measurements. Measurements should be taken often and
from well defined parts which do not alter much in action, such as
from the center of the chin to the point of the top of the nose
between the brows, and from the chin to the jaw bone, from cheek
bone to cheek bone. Also take measurements from the tip of the nose
to other parts of the face* Check and double check constantly.
Proportions of one side of the face nay differ from that of the
other - watoh for differences as well as likenesses. I feel that
it is best to study bone structure, then muscles. Watch the planes
and curves in structure and proportion. Do not wrk too long from
any one view, turn and build all parts consistently. It is best
for a beginner not to carry on beyond the point of enthusiasm, to
tear down and build anew. Soon he will find that he has advanced
to a point where he feels things about his work and then will be
able to model details, keeping an awareness of the bony parts as
they effect the muscle structure and cause subtle curves, planes,
and proportions. A change of light often helps.
"Every bit of modeling, especially in the round, means the
drawing of an object with innumerable outlines, each of which re¬
quires to be correctly drawn; if it is not, the result is oertain
to be wrong.
"The difference between the character of the drawings and
modeling of the fleshy parts and that of the bony construction, where
the bone forms are seen on the surface, is considerable. It is
therefore a matter to be studied most carefully."
The structure and contour of the eye requires the most
careful study and fine drawing. At no tine should one gouge. The
lightness and darkness in hair and eye as recorded in modeling is
obtained by cutting in or hollowing out to resemble the depth of
color; deeper modeling records darker hair and eyes. With light
hair and eyes the modeling would be kept shallows. In dealing with
hair on the head or face, take care not to cut deep enough to
destroy oontour of skull or flesh part, but let the drawing and
construction of the head and face be felt. - The same suggestion
holds true where draperies cover the human body.
579
-40-
Moat people are recognized from the back of the head, which
shows that it should be carefully studied. The ears often are
neglected, but should be studied with great care. Again the depth
of the modeling should be studied. Casting requires that the ear
be modeled heavier than it isr but with the plaster tools fine
draws can aid greatly in perfecting.
Bust armature showing "butterfly" suspended from point
where the lead wire cross at top.
The lead wire 1-| inches in diameter is wrapped with copper
wire, not too light. Galvanized piping is used for the upright
(wood may be used instead of piping). "Butterflys" are pieces
of wood crossed and fastened with fine wire. They are placed where
the weight of clay is greatest.
579
41-
The Building of a Figure in the Round
The armture serves as a skeleton upon which to build the clay
(or flesy), In building up the armature great care must be taken
for securing correct measurements and for securely fastening the
parts together. The armature is made of galvanized piping lead or
iron wire and wooden reenforcements. Unless this is put up with
the greatest accuracy and care, there will be trouble all along
during the construction. In the construction of the narrowest part
of the armature such as the wrist, the ankle and the neck the moat
careful calculations must be made or the skeleton form will be out
of the center of the parts and will thus fail to serve its purpose.
Often in building up a figure the armature will be almost as thick
in these parts as the finished part so any miscalculation will, in
course of construction, cause the armature to be exposed. To a
beginner this may not seem important. Poorly constructed armatures
is the cause of much despair and sometimes of failures.
An aimature made from zinc piping and lead wire for a statuette.
The main wire support is bent in a direction to follow the line of
the body and pass through its center.
In large statues heavy iron wire and wooden frame work are
used to hold the clay.
579
-42-
"Build up a good skeleton of piping and lead or iron wire; and
you will have an excellent armature upon which to model a figure.
Bind the piping and wire in the general form and direction of the
bones, and tie in pieces of wood (butterflys and frame work) to
carry the larger groups of muscles or the heavy parts of the body,
where masses of clay will be required. The wood will keep the work
lighter and serve as a base for building up the clay."
The armature gives the aotion and proportion of the figure.
Around the parts of the armature, to which the wood has not been
bound, copper wire should be wrapped, not too tight, so as to help
hold the clay on and also carry some of the weight. It is always
advisable to build a very deep clay base, in case that adjustments
in height be needed.
Get away from the study and view it from a distance and from
every angle for sculpture in the round must hold up under the most
critical test in any light and from any view.
The proportions of the human body are mathmetically perfect.
It is measured in heads. The American measures seven and a half
heads. The arms stretched full length measure the height of the
full grown person. Another measurement that should be known is
that there are three measurements that are equal. 1st from the
instep to the top of the patella (knee cap) - equals the distance
from there and the iliac crest (the front point of the pelvis bone)
from there to the pit of the neck. The pit of the neck is the most
important point in drawing or modeling the human body. The poise
in action is established by that. For example - When a boy is
running the foot that is to receive the weight of the body will be
exactly under the pit of the neck when it touches the ground. The
action of a body may be very subtle but you can judge its extent
by getting the rhythm established from the pit of the neck.
There are other measurements that will help in observation.
The neck - from the pit to the top of "the Adams apple" is half a
head length. From the pit of the neck to the point of a shoulder
measures a head. The measurements of the head and face are very
regular. These observations aid in drawing for general purposes,
but it is the exception or little pecularities that makes interest
in portraits.
These measurements are not to be entirely relied upon; but
they aid in establishing proportions especially when students are
working without a model.
The measurements mark points of articulation or joints. I
would advise in building the figure with clay that you think of
these points as joints or places to which muscles are attached.
By all means do not pile on abundance of clay in spots. Build con¬
sistently all parts of the figure, and build slowly, observing the
structure of the body and thinking about it while you work. The
best sculptors of ancient and modern times have had a splendid
knowledge of anatomy - bone and muscle structure especially, A
sculptor must work with patience, knowledge, and care. It may take
years before he creates a piece of work that he cares to exhibit.
579
-43-
It is necessary that a sculptor have a thorough knowledge of the
anatomy of everything he undertakes. The muscle structure dictates
what the surface of the model is. The sculptor must know the sur¬
face from every angle, above, below and from the side. Sculpture
has three dimensions and each view must record perfection. It is
wise to measure frequently either with the caliper or with the eye.
Work every part uniformly. Do not complete the face and
leave the back of the head. Do not model the hands and leave the
arms underdeveloped.
The students objective should be to imitate what he sees
before him. He may find difficulty, but he will be training the eye
to see correctly and acquire knowledge that will enable him to
record character. This is one of the most important elements in
art.
Low Relief (Basso (or Bas) and Alto (or Haut)
Modeling in relief is conceded to be one of the most difficult
of the arts. Yet, there is more scope and freedom for the artist to
exhibit his sense or artistic feeling here than there is in a work
in the round.
Relief modeling is like drawing on a flat surface, yet there
is a subtle quality of perspective that one discovers as he advances
into his task.
It is most important that the modeling student should master
drawing on the flat.,
"All the charm and the exquisite modeling and drawing on the
surface would count for little were it not ft)r the purity of light
and shade in the drawing which outlines them." There is much, and
very important drawing in all parts of a relief,. Modeling is drawing
with the hand or with the modeling tool.
1st Method
When you have chosen the subject the size and the height of
the relief from the background must be decided upon. It is advisable
to measure very carefully the surface upon which the clay is to be
built. Around the edge of the chosen space, nail or screw strips
of board the same height as the highest part of the low-relief is
to be. Within this frame the clay is pressed tightly or pounded so
there will be no spaces between the particles. When the frame is
entirely filled, take a straight-edge piece of board and scrape off
the surface until the surface is perfectly smooth. With the sharp
edge of one of the modeling tools draw in the composition. Now,
with the metal end of your tool cut away the background so that the
contour of the study is well established.. In low relief the eleva¬
tion of the different plans must be established and maintained
throughout the study.
579
-44-
If you take for example a profile of an old nan - the tip
of his ear or the looks of his hair around his ear will be the
highest elevation, the next highest large elevation will be his
cheek, then his coat collar and then his neck and nose. There will
be several planes and many subtle curves that join these planes.
Every stroke of the tool is important and must be carefully studied
so as not to cut away too much to retain the proper relationship of
one plane to another and each in turn to the curves. There is a
subtle lovely rhythm that should be studied as an aid to establish
proportions.
This type of low relief may have an elevation of half an
inch or of six or eight inches or even more. If the relief is more
than two or three inches high, there should be some type of armature
or support under it,
In working on a low relief it should always stand at the
angle that it is to occupy when it is a finished product.
Second Type of Relief
Pound the clay firmly into the frame as in number one, - the
frame may be very much shallower. With the straight edge board
scrape off the surplus so that the surface is even and anooth. Upon
this surface draw the (same portrait study) you worked on in type
one. In this process of doing "basso relief" you build up by adding
on little by little beginning the lowest plain or elevation and
building to the highest being careful to build consistently all
parts of the study. Do not pile on clay, in any part that is not
consistent with the anatomical structure, with the thought of cut¬
ting it away. You may need to use the tool to do some accurage
drawing when you approach the finishing place, Be sure you have
a pleasing arrangement of light and shadow in the composition.
Avoid gouging and cutting deeper than the background. Fine draft¬
smanship and sixaplicity are to be worked for.
Bass relief is used in architectural decoration and as
decorative parts of monuments. It is much easier to hold a group
of figures in a unit or composition, in low relief than it is in
the round. Relief vork must be thought of as a design or a beauti¬
ful arrangement of objects on a background.
Many people will get great satisfaction in doing low relief.
It requires less equipment and is so much easier to handle in a
home or small studio. It can be used in decorations of homes and
gives great satisfaction. It is not difficult to cast.
Clay drys and cracks away from a board or any surface that
absorbs moisture - the plasticine or Italian wax is used for low
relief more often than clay because it is so much easier to take
care of.
579
-45-
CASTUJG IN PIASTER PARIS
Casting is a craft that requires great skill and a great
deal of knowledge. It is not always done by the artist, but it is
well to know the process and realize that it takes years of training
and experience to become an expert craftsman.
Before a person attempts to make a mould he should know how
plaster of paris is to be handled. Take the amount of water that
you feel would be required to cover a certain surface; into this
sift from between the fingers (so that no lumps drop into the water)
enough plaster until there is a little mound above the water. Wait
until this is absorbed. With the fingers spread, put the hand under
the plaster of paris, shake the hand so as to mix the plaster and
avoid making bubbles. If bubbles are created break them or pour
them off. Air bubbles cause much grief in casting. It may be best
to do a little experimenting before you try making a waste mould.
A study in clay should be moist at the time it is cast, but
the plasteline study must first be entirely coated with shellac.
Let this dry for half an hour or so and then cover the entire sur¬
face with a very thin but evenly spread coating of white vaseline.
Be sure that the vaseline is in every little crevioe, and does not
accumulate in gobs. It is wise to build up a wall around the base
of the study to prevent the plaster from running on to the floor.
When you are ready to work you have at hand the plaster of
paris, pans for water, a strong pointed knife, screw driver, and
plaster paris tools - they are of sharp steel with fine little
teeth at edge of blade. Casting is a dirty job and should be done
in a studio or a barn.
A piece mould is exactly what the name indicates. Divide the
study to eliminate any undercuts, 30 that you can take the pieces
apart with only a little pressure. You may insert around your
sections wedge shaped pieces of thin brass or thin strips of moist
clay, high enough to make sure the plaster cast will be sufficiently
strong. Often a portrait bust can be cast using only two pieces.
Divide the front from the back by building your wall up the neck
over the back edge of the ear and on over until you have completed
the base on the opposite side. See that the wall is smooth and
firmly attached.
Now you are ready to mix your plaster of paris. In this
water put a bit of coloring (blueing used for rinsing clothes) to
tell you when you are approaching the portrait when you ship the
waste mould off. Sift your plaster of paris into the water until
you feel that you have enough to make a good creamy consistency.
Break any bubbles. Now with the tips of your fingers flip the
creamy substance hard enough to get into every tiry crevice. When
the surface is covered with a very thin coating, allow it to set.
The surface should be rough. When this i3 set, brush over it a
bit of clay water - a little clay nixed in water. It makes the
plaster separate easier when it is being chipped off. The next
coats of plaster of paris may be mixed thicker. The second coat
must also be put on with enough force to get into all the crevices
the third may be thicker, but still must get into crevices. It is'
wise to attach bits of wood for reinforcements.
579
46-
One part of your study is now covered. Remove the clay wall
or bias inserts and paint the exposed surface of the mould with
shellac. When it is dry, coat it with white vaseline. Now you are
ready to flip your blued pasture mixture into your second piece
of the cast - with your pointed tool make "keys" - (refer to
glossary) also see that the inside of notches or round holes-keys
are coated with shellac and vaseline. Flip the first coat in again
and continue as before until the waste mould is completed and clean
off edges to expose joining. Pour a little cold water over lines
between the piece.
When the mould is complete let it set until cold and hard.
Make some small wooden wedges about three inches long and half an
inch wide. Drive these gently into crack between pieces. With the
wooden mallet drive these into the pieces so that with your hands
you can force the pieces apart without marring the edges of the mouB.
As they are removed from the study, the pieces may need
cleaning. Remove all clay and wash. Be careful not to destroy any
of the fine drawing on the surface. When the mould is slightly
dried paint the inside surface with dark shellac, allow to dry half
an hour or so and cover the surface with a thin smooth coating of
white vaseline. In casting low relief the same process is followed
except it is made in one piece if it is not too large to handle.
The cast is reenforced with heavy wire or thin pieces of wood.
Now all the surfaces of the waste mould of a study in the
round are shellaced and coated with vaseline. The pieces are bound
together. The joining lines are covered with a thin coating of
plaster of paris to prevent the plaster that is poured inside from
leaking through. The pieces are tied firmly together and it is
now ready for the pouring or the making of the finished cast.
The plaster of paris must be a fine quality quick setting
grade.
Then the plaster of paris is sifted through the fingers into
clean cold water until a rich creamy consistency is established.
Use the hand to stir it to the right condition; then pour into the
mould. Move the mcJld gently but quickly so that the creamy sub¬
stance is allowed to coat the entire inner surface as evenly as
you can make it. Repeat the process the second and third time until
you have a thickness of an inch or more. It is a stronger thing
if it is left hollow. Remember to pour out the excess plaster of
paris after each pouring so there will be no lumps set in spots.
The plaster of paris hardens or sets quickly and by experience one
learns what to do at each stage of the game. Do not have any fear
of it; but if you have an opportunity see a casting done before you
try it. See also directions for casting given in the Art Craft
section.
See Albert Tofts' "Modeling and Sculpture" for full descrip¬
tion - this is a valrable book for any library.
Warning: Never pour plaster of paris into the sink or any
other place where plumbing is.
579
PT.AST7.R OF PAKIS TOOLS
-47-
To these add wire nippers, screw driver, hammer,
saw, wrenches, wooden mallet, howls to mix plaster in.
579
BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR PINE ARTS
Hendrik V. vanloon, THE ARTS, N. Y., Simon Schuster.
Sheldon W. Cheney, WORLD HISTORY OP ART. N. Y., Viking. $5.00.
Sheldon W. Cheney, A PRIMER OP MODERN ART. N. Y., Liveright. $5.00.
John Dewey, ART AS EXPERIENCE, N. Y., Menton, Balch and Co. $4.00.
Helen Gardner, ART THROUGH THE AGES (Revised Edition). N. Y., Harcourt.
Helen Gardner, UNDERSTANDING THE ARTS, N. Y., Harcourt.
Charles H. Caffin, THE STORY OP AMERICAN PAINTING. N. Y., Doubleday Doran.
Charles H. Caffin, ART POR LIFE'S SAKE. N. Y., Prang.
Clive Bell, SINCE CEZANNE.
Anita Brenner, IDOLS BEHIND ALTARS. N. Y., Harcourt. $3.00.
Rockwell Kent, ROCKWELLKENTIANA. N. Y., Harcourt. $3.75-
Helen Euss Parkhurst, BEAUTY. N. Y., Harcourt. $4.50.
Ralph M. Pearson, EXPERIENCING PICTURES. N. Y.., Harcourt. $3.50.
Herbert Read, ART NOW. N. Y., Harcourt. $3-75.
Herbert Read, ART AND INDUSTRY. N. Y., Harcourt. $3»75*
Thomas Craven, MEN OP ART. N. Y., Simon Schuster. $5.00.
Thomas Craven, MODERN ART. N. Y., Simon Schuster. $5-00.
Robert Henri, ART SPIRIT.
Adeline Adams, THE SPIRIT OP AMERICAN SCULPTURE. N. Y., National Sculpture
Society.
Charles H. Caffin, CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN SCULPTURE. N. Y., Harcourt.
C. S. Jagger, MODELING AND SCULPTURE IN THE MAKING.
Lorado Taft, HOW TO UNDERSTAND SCULPTURE.
Janet Scudder, MODERN ART, SCULPTURE AND POTTERY,
Malvina Hoffman, HEADS AND TALES.
579
Technical Books on Art
Hillair Hailer, THE TECHNIQUE OP PAINTING. N. Y., Oxford Press. $3.75.
Max Doerner, THE MATERIALS OP THE ARTIST AND THEIR USE IN PAINTING, N.
Harcourt. $3»75»
Malvina Hoffman, SCULPTURE - INSIDE OUT. N. Y., Norton. $3.75.
Albert Taft, MODELING AND SCULPTURE, Philadelphi s, Lippincott. $6.00,.
Victor Perard, ANATOMY AND DRAWING. Kingsport, Tenn., Kingsport Press.
$3.50.
George J. Cox, ART POR AMATEURS AND STUDENTS. Garden City, Doubleday.
$5.00.
Comprehensive History
Blie Paure, HISTORY OP ART. 5 vols. Garden City, Doubleday. $1.98 each
ANCIENT ART
MEDIEVAL ART
RENAISSANCE ART
MODERN ART
THE SPIRIT OP THE PORMS.