Animal Textile Mixed Media Compositions

Animal Textile Mixed Media Composition - I really need to find a more succinct name for this awesome project. Students study Islamic art and design principles, connect their learning to a habitat, and then put it all together with an array of materials. Students love all of the choice in this project and the results are stunning.

 

Accessed at www.patterninislamicart.com

As a starting point, students learn the different motifs that make up traditional Islamic design. These are easy to distinguish but it's important vocabulary for students to develop so they are accurately able to describe what they see. We also discuss some of the religious implications that set Islamic designs apart from other artistic traditions - namely, that humans and animals are very rare except in stylized forms. 

Depending on the amount of time we have for this unit, I like to discuss how ideas migrate to influence artists and their products. This is a great time to make a connection between art and world history by examining the Silk Road. Here is a video from Crash Course World History, hosted by the John Green of Paper Towns fame, that gives students a brief intro to this complex system of trade and the spread of ideas.

Then students "migrate" a piece of A4 paper around their table after first folding it into quarters and creating a design of their choosing in the first box. The second student who gets the paper will take design ideas they like from the first design but reimagine it a bit in the next box on the paper. This continues until all of the boxes have a design in them. If students finish their designs before it's time to pass then they can add color and more detail. 

But let's get back to the main project of this unit - the mixed media compositions. These are the steps students go through to create their final artwork:

1. Choose a traditional Islamic design for your background. Which motif does it show? Calligraphy, geometric, or arabesque?
2. Sketch your design on an A3 background paper in pencil. Your design may be simplified to allow better color application later.
3. Add color to your background with acrylic paint. Are all of your pencil lines covered up?
4. Research and select an animal from the desert habitat to feature as your subject.
5. Practice and then sketch your animal using either charcoal, ink, or colored pencils.* Did you add details that give the animal form and texture?
6. Cut out and attach your animal to the background. Take care if you used charcoal that your sketch didn't smudge.

Here are two student examples.

Are your students struggling with realism in their drawing? Students usually work from reference photos and I show them the video "Austin's Butterfly" as a reminder to use careful observation when developing realism. Students also benefit from the act of critique during this project to practice looking carefully at others' work and reflecting on their own drawings.