Knop Law Charcoal Drawing Workshops
I was approached by the Head of a primary school with a view to teaching some charcoal drawing workshops with two classes at Level Three. The brief was intriguing - to develop skills in observational drawing which the children could utilise on field trips. Although I had made participative work with this age group before, bespoke workshops would need to be designed which could be entirely flexible. The focus would not be on a physical outcome but would be on the children's learning and development.
From the outset the intention would be for the children to have fun and also to be able to see their progress made in developing artwork. It would be important to remove the fear of working with the medium and instead embrace it’s qualities; an insight into what the medium could help to describe would also help form independent and personalised images which were not predetermined or stereotypical.
The workshops were formed into three specific stages:
Mark Making
An essential part of any drawing is to maximise the potential in the medium, which can easily be overlooked. For this first stage of the workshop the children focused on experimental mark making only, without looking to make anything representational.
Tone to Describe Form
Here the children took a simple outline and used tone to visualise something giving the appearance of a form which was three dimensional. At this stage the benefits of mark making were becoming apparent – children were using the flat edge of the charcoal and began making directional strokes, following the contours of the shape.
Observational Drawing
This third and final stage of the workshop saw the children’s development work coming together; the awareness of tone and form, together with the knowledge of the capabilities of the medium, saw a natural synthesis of their learning in making genuine creative work - without preconceptions.
Allowing the children the freedom of expression in using charcoal led to some quite outstanding marks being made – without fear, or expectation. Using the medium in this way helped to gain knowledge which they could then develop – meaning that when making observational work, the focus would be on creativity and not struggling with the medium.
Such was the quality of the work being made this inspired further development - something which would bring together the drawings in a true collaboration as a group and working with the artist.
Laser Etched Artwork – A Collaboration
In empathy with the leaves, pieces of wood were used to engrave the children’s drawings upon. This also forms a synthesis of traditional drawing practice with modern technology available to the artist today. The matt black background used helped to bring everything back round together once again, referencing the charcoal used from the very first marks which were made.