Great portraits out of the blue

This multi-media project began as a whim to gel my students "out of the box" (my classroom), and into an environment that might not be considered "arty." So ... it was off to the school's cafetorium (cafeteria/auditorium).

I had a wonderful bunch of advanced art students made up of juniors and seniors. Besides being artistically talented. they were also--and more importantly--artistically inquisitive. They were all eager to attempt any artistic challenge I threw at them. I must admit with a slight chuckle, on many occasions, they were concerned with the artistic avenues down which I took them. They were well-steeped in the many and various art mediums--but I enjoy(ed) mixing these mediums up at every opportunity.

I continue to make all levels of my art students rely on their prior artistic knowledge and I challenge them at every opportunity to be creative in their approach to every project presented to them.

With most projects I introduce to my students, I begin with a lesson of historical relevance and an introduction to the various artists whom might be significant to this lesson. With this particular project, however, I elected to do things backwards.

I grabbed a couple of boldly patterned fabric samples I always have lying around, my digital camera, and announced to my class we were about to go on a mini-artistic field trip. Although they were surprised and a little disappointed when we arrived at our destination within five minutes--the experience was very pleasant.

We had previously completed a very successful project identifying and emphasizing shadows found around campus, and I wanted to follow-up on the aspect of how shadows, light and dark, values, and contrast add drama to any situation--but in particular, portraiture.

At the rear of our cafeteria is our complete stage area where our drama department performs wonderful plays. With my students' help, we located a classic English-type wing chair used in a past production. Our fabric was draped over the chair and allowed to "drape" across the floor. I pointed out how "perfect" the natural lighting was being created by our skylights, and how the students should take full advantage of positioning themselves to capture the most dramatic effect of the sunlight. Each student posed first in a pose of his or her choosing, and then a pose suggested by me. I alerted them to make sure their face was both in shadow and highlighted by the light. The pose was to be natural, casual, reflective of their personality, and not silly or pretentious.

Each student look two or three digital pictures of each other. I took advantage of this situation by emphasizing to my photographers how their point-of-view might heighten the "drama" with either an extremely high or low point of view or an unusual angle. I also informed them to totally ignore the background. All they should be interested in was their subject/center of interest, the drapery, and the drama. I also told them not to "crop in the camera." Cropping was to be done later in the process.

For the past few years, my students have used Masonite panels for the execution of their projects. They are inexpensive, durable and present the student with a more professional approach to their projects. They are available in various art catalogs, but are even more inexpensive if you visit your local building/home improvement stores and have a 8' x 4' panel cut into ten 18" x 24" pieces. Tell them you are a teacher and they usually do not charge yon for the cutting!

Now the fun begins, again! The students downloaded their portraits into the computer. Once a selection was made, the students (1) reduced the colored photograph to black and white, and (2) adjusted the contrast slightly to emphasize the dark and light areas in the portrait. Do not "save" after 1 and 2, but "save as," thereby saving the original colored photograph for possible future use.

The selection was now printed on an overhead transparency. The size should not be larger than 6 inches in height or it will be too large when projected onto the Masonite panel. The panel was prepared with a white latex primer and I made sure the student applied the primer to emphasize blush strokes. A nice smooth coat of primer is boring, but a too heavily applied coat might prove excessive.

The students were now ready for the academic side of this project. We began by studying the famous portrait artists of the past: Da Vinci (particularly his sketches), Michelangelo, Tintoretto, Caravaggio. Rembrandt, Courbet and, my favorite, Sargent. We discussed the importance and use of shadows and highlights to add drama to the pose. We discussed what the portrait might look like if the deep shadows were missing and how the artist was, indeed, very conscious of the highlights and shadows to attain the desired effect.

Next came the discussion on both the pose and the composition--how they relate to the artist's purpose and if the artist succeeded in what the student might perceive as the artist's intent.