Academy Atelier hosted by the American Academy of Art

3 PD hours offered by IAEA

Registration Required: www.aaart.edu/academy-atelier/

The Academy Atelier is both an educational and fun event for high school art teachers. The Academy will host four workshops that stress the fundamental skills of drawing, painting, illustration, and photography. These sessions will also provide curriculum ideas for teachers to take back to their classroom. In addition to the workshops, we will also have a keynote speaker during lunch who is an alum of the Academy currently working as a graphic designer. And lastly, we will host an Etch-a-Sketch workshop with alum Jane Labowitch also know as “Princess Etch.”

Photography (Hands-on Workshop)
The workshop in photography will consist of a lecture on the topic of the continuing relevance of traditional darkroom technologies in visual education. Comparisons of silver gelatin prints and digital inkjet prints will point out the merits of each medium. A demonstration of traditional darkroom printing technique will feature the use of multiple contrast filters and variable contrast paper to achieve extended tonal scale black and white prints. Participants will be encouraged to employ this technique to print from their own negatives (35 mm, medium format, or 4×5) or to use workshop sample negatives. Each participant will have the opportunity to take away examples of their workshop prints.

Illustration (Hands-on Workshop)
This workshop will focus on an introductory illustration assignment. Teachers will be begin the process of creating a book cover design.
It will have 2 parts…
1. An interior illustration opposites the title and beginning of story
2. Hand drawn stylized title
Sketches and concepts, as well as color studies and final pencil, will be part of the assignment and a media technique will be discussed all with deadlines. The facilitator will show a Powerpoint with examples.

Perspective (Hands-on Workshop)
Perspective is everywhere you look. However, drawing in perspective can prove difficult without considering how we see. It is the purpose of this workshop to present a few simple laws and exercises to make perspective easy.
Concepts, Introduction, Horizon, eye level, and vanishing point, Picture plane, ground line and the eye, The perspective apparatus, Exercises
Warm up 50 ellipses
Draw a road with a fence
Draw a grid
Group breakouts
Discuss ways to implement perspective exercises in their own classrooms
Participants work in groups or independently, instructor available for questions/help

Still Life/Mixed Media (Hands-on Workshop)
Teachers will have an opportunity to create still life’s in watercolor and also implement mixed media collage techniques by layering miscellaneous pieces such as clippings from newspapers and magazines, photos, etc.

Etch-A-Sketch Workshop with Jane Labowitch (This workshop is not part of PD hours)
This workshop will give teachers the opportunity to explore this toy in fun and new ways. All participants will receive a small Etch-A-Sketch to take home as well as an informational folder with templates for further exploration.