Unusual Mediums for Usual Subjects

Portrait drawing...ugh.
Most students have this reaction when they learn of our unit on portraits because they feel incapable when it comes to drawing a human face realistically. So...we practice...and practice some more. We draw together, we draw with YouTube videos and we use step-by-step drawing portraits tutorials. Never mind the fact that most students have practiced portraits one way or another since 3rd grade. Still, it's not a favorite subject of most kids. Even when I mix up the mediums we use, students are still timid and unsure of their work.

This quarter, I was reintroduced to the work of Cheeming Boey. Although his cup drawings have been around for a while, I felt like his work was being pinned liked crazy lately and the more I dug into researching him, the more I wanted to connect his style and medium choices to our portrait unit. Videos showcasing his work distinctly encompass the 8 Studio Habits of Mind, and I had to share with his process with 8th grade art students.

Great videos of Boey here and here.

We began these works with sketching entire portraits using the typical method (head shape first, draw lines to mark the middle of the face, add eyes, etc). However, once we felt OK with drawing portraits in the typical way, we moved on to starting with just one eye. Boey mentions in his interviews that he doesn't necessary start with the large shapes first. We decided to do that same. We began with a detailed eye on the cup and then rest of the portrait (what we could fit anyway) fell into place.
A bordered band completed the top of the cup. We found some great inspiration here. 
So much fun...

The stands were created with a dowel and a small wooden circle to act as the base.  We basically punched holes in the cups and strung them on. Tissue paper adds a pop of color.

Come back soon to check out our next installment of "unusual materials for usual subjects"- Picasso Pop Can Portraits!