The Art Master program at Top of the World offers sequential study in visual arts designed to complement history, social studies, and language arts frameworks. Each year, six artists and/or artistic styles are selected for study in units that include:
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- Student practice pages to combine the study of an art element related to the master artist’s style or technique with the practice of skills necessary for success in the art activity
- A lecture and presentation assembly, delivered by an artist, where students are introduced to each art master or culture through a combination of stories, visual aids, and slides at grade-level settings
- A classroom art activity, led by an accredited art instructor, planned to relate to the master artist or style by technique, style, and medium.
Artists and/or cultures studied during the course of this year’s program are listed below. The Art Master program is presented to TOW students courtesy of its PTA, thanks to the generous support of parents, the Laguna Beach community, and the ongoing contributions of its many in-class and program volunteers.
Assembly Schedule*:
Monday, September 18, 2017 – Charles Sheeler
Monday, October 16, 2017 – Joan Miro
Monday, January 8, 2018 – Edgar Degas
Monday, February 5, 2018 – Georges Seurat
Monday, March 5, 2018 – Andrew Wyeth
Monday, April 9, 2018   – Piet Mondrian
*Parents are invited to attend the assemblies.
For more information regarding TOW’s Art Master Program and ways you can get involved, please contact Kortney Riley or Jackie McKaye.
Artists/Styles for 2017/2018
| Introducing the Masters: Artist/Style |
Example of the Master’s Work | Learning from the Masters: Skills and techniques |
Working with the Masters: In-class studio art project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Sheeler Although Sheeler’s style is realistic, his paintings and photographs provide a questioning look at the industrial revolution in America. |
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Shape and value – Precision drawing techniques and perspective review – Cityscape elements – Geometric (as opposed to free- form) shapes |
Repetition and perspective Primary: Plastic crayon rendering of cityscape. Mid/Upper: Sketch and wash pencil and plastic crayon rendering of industrial cityscape in perspective. |
| Joan Miro Miro’s surrealistic style affords the opportunity for students to ponder the meaning of art while viewing his fantastic abstract compositions. |
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Abstract shapes & drawings All levels simplify details to create shape abstractions. Imagination is emphasized. |
Abstract surrealist shapes All levels create abstract compositions with found lines and shapes. Marker (and some pastels, in Upper level) is combined with paper collage. |
| Edgar Degas Degas’ post-impressionistic style serves as an example of the use of pastel highlights and rendering techniques. |
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Drawing techniques Students explore Degas’ drawing techniques: Showing depth using overlapping, location, and line. |
Degas’ Drawing Secrets Students use a right-brain drawing technique to create their own versions of Degas’ drawings. Mid/Upper levels use a grid method for enlarging. |
| Georges Seurat Shimmering pointillist colors enhance slides of Seurat’s work, which provide a unique view of Impressionism and color theory. |
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Color Primary: Light and dark, warm and cool colors. Mid/Upper: Preparatory boat and landscape sketching. |
Pointillist landscapes Sandpaper and crayon technique reinforces Seurat’s color technique in landscapes of various subjects. |
| Andrew Wyeth Students explore Andrew Wyeth’s super-realistic style and become absorbed in the fascinating stories that his paintings tell. |
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Wyeth’s Moods Realistic drawing and sketching is emphasized. Upper level students explore perspective. |
Wyeth’s Moods A color-layering technique is used to set a mood in a realistic land- scape. Colored pencils are used at Mid/Upper levels. |
| Piet Mondrian Mondrian’s non-objective style affords students the opportunity to become art critics as they encounter his abstract compositions. |
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Balance Primary students balance shape and value. Mid/Upper level students balance art elements in a nonrepresentational design. |
Mondrian’s Balance: Paper Collage Students gain an understanding of balance while creating compositions using Mondrian’s favorite colors and shapes. |