Fundamentals of Visual Art Course

Objective

To expose the participants to a variety of processes, dry & wet color mediums, materials, techniques, tools, and technologies, which covers various subjects, which will help the participant develop –

1. 1. the creative abilities i.e. drawing from imagination and memory without using any reference picture.
   2. the artistic skills i.e. replication skills using reference pictures.

Along with the course, the interested participants can also create their visual art portfolio.

Audience

Children age 7+, hobbyists, adults, and professionals who want to pursue their career in design and visual art such as NID, NIFT and Architect etc., or want to draw like a pro.

Perquisites

Check students’ portfolios, teaching methodology, and FAQs on Art Education web page.

Scope

• Introduction: Objective, learning methodology (tell, ask, shared discovery), the mind of an artist (perceptual observation, meta perspective, creative interpretation), left vs right brain, innate vs attained artistic abilities, creative process (inception, incubation, illumination, implementation, improve), artistic process (design, plan, drawing, value/color, protect), mediums, subjects, benefits, holding a pencil (wrist/shoulder, traditional, drumstick/lollipop, paintbrush, overhand, inverted)
• Elements: Line, shape (square, triangle, circle, organic)
• Form, value & texture: Form (cube, cylinder, sphere, complex shapes), edge (sharp, form, soft, lost), value (spectrum i.e. 1-10 from White/light/middle/dark / Black, source of light, local values, the intensity of light, type of surface), value (pressure, layering, lifting graphite (eraser, putty, and blade), shielding or masking, lead softness i.e. HB / 2B / 4B / 6B / 8B, paper texture), texture (hatching, cross-hatching, stippling, scumbling i.e. small random sharp shapes to create spiky texture), scribbling i.e. small random circular movement, contour, random lines, zigzag, smudge)
• Space: space (size, details, overlap, placement, contrast, color, horizon, perspective), perspective (1 / 2 / 3 point, horizon line, vanishing point, converging lines, cast shadow, foreshortening)
• Color theory: Color (light spectrum, eyes cones/rods, color mixing, basics, hue, value, chroma / saturation, color scheme i.e. monochromatic, complementary, analogues, triad / triangle, tetrad / rectangle, square, split complementary / Y, cool / passive / back, warm / aggressive / front, pastel, color psychology)
• Light & shadow: Source of light (proximity, axis, brightness, light zone, and shadow zone), light zone (center light, reflection of source of light which depends upon viewer), half-light, light halftone, halftone, and dark halftone, terminator (the line between light and shadow), shadow zone (core shadow, body shadow, reflected light, shadow interior), cast shadow zone (sharpness, distance of source of light, size of source of light, crack / occlusion/cervix light/accent, umbra, penumbra, ant-umbra)
• Mediums: Basics and beginner techniques, methods, and usage of various mediums such as graphite, charcoal, soft pastels, pencil color, acrylic, oil, watercolor, glass painting, mixed media
• Design principal: Direction, repetition, harmony, unity, variety, balance, proportion, dominance, contrast, and composition (Plato’s rule, rule of thirds, golden triangle, golden rectangle)
• Objects sketching and drawing: Practice of organic and in-organic objects, compositions, landscapes, and drawing from still life.

Duration

Approximately 50 to 60 hours of classroom time, spread across 12 months, which further depends upon the time spent by the participant on the home assignments.

Classroom

50 sessions, where each session is for 2 hours. Depending upon your schedule, a participant may consume more sessions, in less number of days say 4 sessions in a week, or 4 sessions in a fortnight, etc. Home assignments and self-practice will tentatively consume double or triple the classroom time, which is mandatory for the success of the course.

Home Assignments & Doubt Clearing Sessions

The home assignments and the related reference pictures will be shared after each classroom session. Home assignments and self-practice are critical for the success of the course and will tentatively consume triple the classroom time. Prior to the next class, the participant will have regular interaction, along with quick doubt-clearing sessions. The participant will submit the practice sheets, and the faculty will evaluate the submitted sheets, and suggest the area of improvement to the participant to act upon.