Visiting Artist Report by Linda Green-Metzler

My February school visit to Melanie Robinson’s art class at Cedar Springs Elementary in House Springs went as planned, with great participation and feedback from the kids and teacher. Lots of new ideas and experiences were shared.

I conducted a total of 3 presentations and class projects, Grade 3, 4, & 5 for a total of 75 Children, 25 in each class  The students participated in a smart board, my slide presentation of Plein Air Painting from the Augusta Plein Air Event, and we did hands on mixed media, watercolor and ink projects from nature sourced photos with their teacher assisting on the classroom logistics of the project. Individual attention was given so each child could succeed and get a satisfying result on the project.

I’ve found with the elementary students that mixed media, watercolor and ink work especially well. The ink lets them get clarity for their subject idea, and the watercolor on decent paper gives them a great experience with color. The time usually fills up fast with my sharing tricks of the trade and working with them individually to get it done.

Concepts introduced to the students:

• Introducing them to the concept of the Thumb Nail Sketch: planning
• Using the whole paper, lines touching all four sides of the sheet at least once: composition
• Picking the most important part of the story: focal point
• One color in more than a single place: distribution of color that unifies a picture
• And so on.

Juried Best of Missouri Hands Artist Linda Green-Metzler

To inquire about the Best of Missouri Hands Visiting Artists Program, please contact Sherry Haney at visitingartist@bestofmissourihands.org