Imaginary Forest Painting

: Imaginary Forest Painting

Approach: Independant task

Time: 45 minutes (each student)

Level: Year 4 and year 8

Resources:

3 paint brushes (round no.16; flat no. 8; flat no. 6); stick of white chalk;
6 colours of acrylic paint in 6 hole palette (white, yellow, yellow ochre, Bordeaux red, cobalt blue, deep purple); mixing tray; water; brush drying sponge; sheet of A2 manilla brown paper, rough side up.

1Mb

Description:

Before painting, the student watched a 3 minute stimulus video recording which contained a spoken script and forest sounds (birds, running water, etc.) supported by photographic images of forest trees, the forest carpet and a variety of colourful forest plants and fungi. The script and visual images combined to give a strong sense of mood, atmosphere and a certain mystery. The video recording was supported by instructions from the teacher administrator:

Instructions:

In this activity, you will be painting your own imaginary forest.

We are going to watch a video of a journey through a forest. The video is to give you ideas for your own forest.

Look carefully at the video so that you get good ideas of colours, shapes and textures that will be useful to you when you come to paint your forest.

Your imaginary forest should have all sorts of plants and creatures not even seen on the video.

Listen carefully to the story. It is to help you to go into your own imaginary forest.

Video recording played.
In front of you, you will find some chalk for planning your painting, and a palette with six colours of paint.

These are the only colours we have available, but you can mix your own colours using these paints.

Ask for more paint if you need it.

You may use fingers, sponge or any of the brushes to paint with. The sponge is also for cleaning your brush when you change the colour of paint you are using.

Students were not penalised for incomplete paintings

56% of year 4 students works were given low ratings of 1 or 2 compared to 23% of year 8 students.
Very few paintings achieved high ratings.

View Imaginary Forest drawing exemplars

View additional notes on interesting work

Key attributes (1 low - 4 high)

Qualities

mean score

expressiveness

relevant image; development of mood; diversity of object and symbols expressiveness (preserving coherence); sense of movement where appropriate (eg running water) originality, avoidance of cliche.

1.9

2.4

composition

arrangement of objects in space, balance and depth; positive/negative balance; coherence.

1.8

2.3

detail

finer features included; appropriate use of texture, pattern, tonal effect.

1.7

2.1

use of media

appropriate use of tools; choice and mixing of colours; control of paint, confidence.

1.8

2.4

Global Rating (1 low - 6 High)

2.4

3.2

[ Art Report 1995 | top of the page ]