OC Art Studios Gallery

Griffin Drawings

2012-02-07T19:05:00.001-08:00

These griffin drawings were created by the talented students at Villa Park Elementary.

Wizard Drawings from Villa Park Elementary

2012-01-26T22:00:00.001-08:00

Instructor Cuyler Smith

“I showed the students how to draw a simple wizard and they let their imaginations take over.”

Flip Book Animation Class

2012-01-11T23:03:00.001-08:00

We finally did it! We made a youtube channel! Check out some of our student flip books from our flip book animation class. These kids had a lot of fun with little note pads of paper.

OC Art Studios youtube channel

3D City Scapes

2012-01-11T22:59:00.001-08:00

Artwork done by the students of Serrano Elementary under the guidance of Miss Jasmine Gill and Miss Vanessa Page.

Paul Klee Inspired Art work

2012-01-11T22:57:00.001-08:00

These beautiful pieces were done at Serrano Elementary with Miss Jasmine Gill and Miss Vanessa Page.

Warm and Cool Sea Creatures

2012-01-11T22:40:00.001-08:00

Here is a fun lesson given by Mr. Cuyler Smith. The students started with drawing the water line and then drew a creature that was half in the water and half out. The water line was a barrier for warm and cool colors. Everything above the water was warm and everything below was cool. It was a nice challenge for them to keep the values close while changing color temperature on there creatures. Some are works in progress.

Sergey Smirnov Inspired Artwork

2012-01-03T07:18:00.001-08:00

The winners of the Reflections Art Contest at Linda Vista were the recipients of a special art lesson with OC Art Studios owner, Larissa Marantz, and artist, Jose DeVera. The lesson involved a self portrait done in the style of contemporary artist Sergey Smirnov, a Russian artist whose luminous oil paintings were inspired by master artists such as Klimt, Modigliani and Chagall.
Below is the instructor demo followed by the student’s artwork.

Colorful Jaguars

2011-11-06T22:23:00.001-08:00

Talking Animals

2011-11-06T21:56:00.001-08:00

These fun oil pastel drawings were done with instructor Cuyler Smith. The mouths of the animals were cut into slits and when the paper is bent, the mouths open and close.

Jim Dine inspired Watercolor Paintings

2011-11-05T23:04:00.001-07:00

These paintings were done with the students at Oso Grande Elementary school with instructor Kate Urschel.

Artsy Birthday Parties

2011-11-05T10:19:00.001-07:00

We had a great time at our latest Artsy Parties event! This fashion themed birthday party was put together for a group of girls who love to paint, draw, and talk about fashion. Tear outs from magazines were posted around the room for the girls to gather their inspiration. They were given templates to sketch their own “Gala Event Ball Gowns” and then transferred their images to canvas. They used paint and glitter to bring their designs to life. Each girl got to take home their beautiful creations.

Paul Klee Inspired Student Artwork from Serrano Elementary

2011-10-18T18:28:00.001-07:00

In this assignment, Ms. Jasmine Gill’s students were instructed to fill in a gridded 9x12 sheet of paper with the spelling of their name using crayon first for the letters and markers second for the space around the letters. This allowed students to see the benefit of using an order of operations for materials used in a given art assignment. The advantage in this particular assignment was that the crayon works as a resist to the marker ink since the crayon has wax. Also, students were given the freedom to be creative with their color choices but could only choose up to 8 crayon colors and 8 marker colors. The variety of color themes produced by the class as a whole was a very satisfactory result. Students also had instruction on how to manipulate a shape such as a letter (in this case) by stretching out the letters of their name in order to fill each square from edge to edge or corner to corner. This could serve as a useful concept for students who may take interest in graphic design in the future. Students were able to see how an element such as letters in a name can be used to create an interesting and aesthetically pleasing design. Lastly, students learned how it is useful to draw inspiration from past artists such as Paul Klee. Students were introduced to his artwork and learned more about a genre of art that they may take interest in for their own future art projects.

Apple Still Life

2011-09-24T22:55:00.001-07:00

The objective of this assignment was for students to create a realistic rendering in colored pencils using a photo reference of an apple. I was really impressed with the turnout. – Jasmine Gill, Art Instructor at Serrano Elementary School, Orange Unified School District

Kandinsky, Miro and Klee Inspired Artwork

2011-09-10T22:28:00.001-07:00

In this assignment, the students of Serrano Elementary were instructed to create artwork that was inspired by the works of abstract artists: Wassily Kandinsky, Joan Miro, and Paul Klee. Instructor Jasmine Gill’s only rules of the assignment were to work with no more than 3 colors in additions to using a black sharpie for outlining and coloring in some of the shapes while leaving their background white to give contrast to the colors chosen by each student. The goal was for students to create a wide variety of unique designs as a class. The students were encouraged to work independently in order to promote creativity and originality. Students were also encouraged to practice precision when outlining shapes as well as to color in shapes fully until the shapes were completely saturated with color.

Mandala Drawing Lesson

2011-08-15T22:32:00.000-07:00

For this mixed media lesson, my students used colored pencils, markers and oil pastels to color their mandalas. We discussed repetition of pattern, radiating design and complex versus simple designs.
Here is an example of what I created to share with the students.

Here are the student mandalas. The age range of the students is 7 – 11 years.

Vivian Chin

Gillian Johnson

Leland Wiant

Jason Gutierrez

Gigi Copeland

Cody Jones

Brooke Rawski

Maddy Jones

Garrett Lee

Realistic Fruit Painting Children’s Class

2011-07-21T23:21:00.001-07:00

In today’s Acrylic Painting class, the students learned how to create a tonal value painting of a fruit. Then they used glazing techniques to add color. Next week we’ll be working with watercolor.

Drawing Mythical Creatures

2011-07-21T22:49:00.001-07:00

This 2 hour lesson was done in Trabuco Hills with a great bunch of students. They learned how to draw a Pegasus, a Unicorn and a Griffin. The kids chose which animal they wanted to draw, then outlined the drawings in marker, and finally finished it off with some colored pastels.

We’ll be offering classes for a few weeks in August. Hopefully we can continue through the school year. The kids seem to be having a great time. I know I’m having a blast with them, too.

Children's Private Art Lessons, Orange County

2011-07-05T20:59:00.001-07:00

This is the work of one of my many favorite students, Gillian. In this lesson, she learned about manipulating her mark making techniques, controlling the tonal values in the composition, and improving her observation skills.

Private Art Lessons

2011-06-01T14:07:00.000-07:00

Here is some artwork from students who are taking private lessons with OC Art Studios.

Pastel drawing by Gillian Johnson, Age 9

Marker and Prismacolor Stix, Ellie Brem, Age 7

Marker and Prismacolor Stix, Lena Brem, Age 5

Oil Pastel by Antonette Giner, Age 7

Ms. Jasmine Gill’s student work

2011-03-02T10:18:00.000-08:00

In this lesson, titled Bubble Letter Froggy Names, students were instructed to draw their names using a frog theme. Students first studied the distinctive characteristics of frogs such as their colors, patterns, textures, and anatomical features, then incorporated it into their artwork.

Dinosaur Art from Tustin Memorial Academy

2011-03-01T22:03:00.001-08:00

Here are some fine Apatosaurus and Allosaurus drawings from the 1st through 3rd grade class at Tustin Memorial Academy. Some students decided to create their own dinosaurs based on the lesson.

“Color It Orange” Exhibition Submissions

2011-02-24T23:16:00.001-08:00

Color It Orange is a county wide annual juried youth art exhibition that’s held at the college campus of Laguna College of Art + Design. Also known as LCAD, it is a fabulous art school nestled in the canyon of Laguna Beach where I am honored to be a faculty member in the Animation Department.

Artwork that is submitted to the juried exhibition will be displayed at the campus of Laguna College of Art + Design from March 13 – March 20. For this years exhibition, OC Art Studios is proud to be submitting the work of the following students.

Ella W., Marblehead Elementary, 2nd Grade

Jack L., Vista Del Mar Elementary, 5th Grade

Kylie P., Vista Del Mar Elementary, 4th Grade

Grayson W., Vista Del Mar Elementary, 5th Grade

Oscar E., Nohl Canyon Elementary, 2nd Grade

Joshua L., Tustin Memorial Academy, 1st Grade

Ishan P., Tustin Memorial Academy, 1st Grade

Hunderwatsser Inspired Landscapes

2011-02-24T20:18:00.001-08:00

These bold and striking works of art were inspired by the great Austrian artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. They were produced by the talented elementary students at Vista Del Mar under the direction of Mr. Cuyler Smith.

Kandinsky Landscapes with Mr. Cuyler Smith

2011-02-16T23:41:00.001-08:00

Vista Del Mar Elementary Student Artwork.

Vista Del Mar Pattern and Color Abstract Art

2011-02-16T23:39:00.001-08:00

Mr. Cuyler’s Picasso Lessons at Vista Del Mar

2011-02-16T23:35:00.001-08:00

Cartoon Drawing with Mr. Cuyler Smith

2011-02-16T23:23:00.001-08:00

Georgia O’Keefe Watercolor Flowers

2011-02-16T23:16:00.001-08:00

These paintings were done by the 1st through 3rd grade class of students at Linda Vista Elementary taught by Ms. Heather Soodak.

Nohl Canyon Chinese Dragon Drawings

2011-02-16T23:08:00.001-08:00

Kindergarten through 3rd graders draw Chinese Dragons.

Chinese New Year: Chinese Dragon Drawing

2011-02-16T22:59:00.001-08:00

At the beginning of February is Chinese New Year. I thought it would be perfect to introduce drawing dragons along with discussing Chinese New Year with the students. The students were shown references of photos, drawings, sculptures and designs of Chinese dragons. They were encouraged to choose colors in their dragons that were different from the background design. They learned a bit about what colors work together and what colors work opposite each other to create contrast. The ages in this class are 1st – 3rd graders.
Below are the works from students at Tustin Memorial Academy.

Marblehead Elementary

2011-02-16T20:17:00.001-08:00

Pointillism is always a fun lesson for the students because they learn about combining colors to create new and varied hues using small dots of individual colors, and they learn about art history, and the famous pointillist painter, Georges Seurat.

St. Paul’s Fine Art Class with Ms. Heather

2011-02-16T17:47:00.001-08:00

Here are some photos from the art class at St. Paul’s Elementary school in Orange. Two lessons were completed that day. The first was the whimsical landscape drawings based on the work of Illustrator Jim Flora. The second lesson was a watercolor lesson in the style of the Impressionists. The students range in age from 5 years old

Drawing Sea Turtles

2011-02-09T21:38:00.000-08:00

The artwork below is another example of work done from a sixth grade student named Colin. The student was given a brief lesson on how to draw sea turtles. He drew three of varying sizes and then returned the next week for feedback and further instruction.

My instruction for him when he returned to class the following week was to render the turtles paying attention to these elements: Line, Texture and Form.

In our previous lessons, we focused on building 3 dimensional shapes, creating a feeling of volume and form using tonal values and creating visual interest by varying the line quality to create texture.

The turtle on the top right is what he created on his own. The turtle on the top left and bottom of the page are what he created after my instruction.

Pretty impressive, don’t you think?

Art by Colin Morrell, Age: 12

Private Art Lessons

2011-01-17T15:51:00.001-08:00

This drawing was done by Collin, a 6th grade student who has been receiving private art lessons with me for the past few months. This drawing was done prior to the lesson.

This drawing was done after instruction was given.
This student is building a portfolio for entry into Orange County High School of the Arts. Part of the requirement in the audition is to draw a hand. With this lesson, I not only taught him how to draw his hand, but how to render the shadows and the highlights. The first drawing is a nice linear observational drawing. The second drawing is a more accurate depiction of the observed hand, with a deeper understanding of tonal values, edges and form.
Below is an example of a typical contour drawing exercise that improves a student’s observational skills. This drawing was done by the same student.
The lessons we’ve been working on have greatly improved his abilities in a short time. We work for one hour a week and I offer him challenging, yet fun weekly homework assignments so that he can improve at an even faster rate.

If you are interested in private art lessons for your child or for a group of children, we can set up an initial consultation to assess the level of ability that your child has. We then create a minimum 8 week curriculum geared towards your child’s interests.
All of our instructors have a Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis in either Drawing & Painting, Illustration, Graphic Design or Animation. We are available to offer private lessons in South Orange County and Central Orange County.

Contact us at OCArtStudios.com

George Seurat’s Pointillism Inspired art lessons from the students of Cuyler Smith

2010-12-15T10:06:00.001-08:00

Picasso Inspired Artwork from the Students of Mr. Cuyler Smith

2010-12-15T10:01:00.001-08:00

Warm & Cool Oil Pastel paintings

2010-12-02T09:27:00.001-08:00

Teaching the students about color theory is always fun. In this lesson, instructor Cuyler Smith had the students create abstract paintings by placing shapes in an interesting composition on the page. Crossing over all of the shapes, they then made an overlapping design of concentric circle or repeating lines. By using cool colors against warm colors, these paintings are really vibrant and energetic.

Nohl Canyon Illuminated Manuscript Lesson

2010-12-01T23:25:00.001-08:00

Now I didn’t have any gold leaf to give to the kids for their illuminated manuscript lesson, but I did have watercolor pencils and markers. Using a favorite image that had special meaning to them, the students drew a patterned border around the edges and combined colors using watercolor pencils and markers. I required the students to create new colors by layering one color on top of another. I love the richness and bold hues of this project, don’t you?

Henri Morriseau Fantasy Lion Paintings

2010-11-15T22:29:00.000-08:00

This was, by far, one of my favorite lessons. We looked at Henri Morriseau’s painting “The Sleeping Gypsy” and other fantasy works by Henri Morriseau. Morriseau had never visited a jungle, but did many paintings of them by recreating what he imagined a jungle would like based on photographs. He used houseplants as the reference for many of the jungle fauna in his paintings. The students then created their own fantasy jungle painting with a lion. They studied photographs of lions and looked for the shapes in the lions face that were identifiable. The students drew a lions head in a step by step process that allows them to recreate a lions head on their own. We used watercolor, crayon resist and watercolor pencil with many many layers to achieve the rich and varied textured hues of the paintings. They all turned out so vibrant, beautiful, and unique to each students color palette of choice.
The following artwork is by students at Marblehead Elementary in Capistrano Unified School District.

Silhouette landscape design

2010-11-08T21:26:00.001-08:00

A friend of mine collects vintage children’s books and was showing me some of the books in her collection. Among the treasures was a book illustrated by the artist Jim Flora. I was struck by his style and thought the students in the class would enjoy seeing his work, too.

For the lesson, I used an image from his book “The Day The Cow Sneezed.” We discussed positive and negative shapes, composition and silhouettes. The students were given other visual examples of silhouettes to look at. We also looked at other artworks by Jim Flora and studied the way he used a variety of simple shapes to create complex structures and interesting forms. Then the students used linear patterns to create the ground planes of their drawings.

Halloween Lesson

2010-11-08T21:23:00.000-08:00

It’s always fun to do an art lesson that goes along with the upcoming holiday. For this lesson, the students focused on creating a mood using color. We studied some images from Halloween and discussed lighting and color. We set up a basic composition to follow and discussed view point, perspective and size relationships. The kids got excited knowing that they would be able to display their creations on their walls at home.

Illuminated Manuscripts

2010-11-08T16:05:00.001-08:00

After studying some illuminated manuscripts, students created their own personal manuscripts. First they drew an object that they liked inside a border. They decorated the borders using repeating patterns and colors. We studied the ornate manner which letters of the alphabet were depicted and they did their best to emulate the styles that they saw.

Example of Illuminated Manuscript

Student Artwork:

Andy Warhol Pop Art Lesson

2010-08-29T21:57:00.001-07:00

This lesson was a lot of fun because the students were allowed to get crazy and bold with their color choices. We studied Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Monroe paintings and then gave the students the chance to make their own celebrity paintings.

Expressionism

2010-07-15T23:35:00.001-07:00

After learning about the expressive brush strokes and colors of Vincent Van Gogh, students created their own expressive artwork.

This meant that their color choices and size relationships could be whatever they wanted it to be- they didn’t have to draw or color the subject exactly how they saw it, but rather how they perceived it.

A lesson in Botanical Illustration

2010-07-15T23:29:00.001-07:00

The students learned about Carl Linnaeus and his botanical illustrations. I brought in some flowers and the students studied them carefully, drew them in pencil, inked their drawings, then used water color pencils to paint. These young students did a fantastic job.

Nohl Canyon Elementary Mural #2

2010-06-07T21:33:00.001-07:00

Here is the Nohl Canyon mural that I designed. It took over 70 hours to complete. That includes adding the handprints from the students and faculty. We charged $10 per handprint and we have, at last count, a little over 300 handprints. It turned out to be a nice fundraiser for our school.

I love the way it turned out. Yippee!

Featured Speaker at Orange Public Library

2010-05-13T23:57:00.001-07:00

Once in a while I do a speaking engagement at a library. I usually teach a class of children how to draw cartoon characters. These programs are very well received and I end up getting the parents to draw along with the kids.

Here’s a photo of me at the Orange Public Library. It was the largest crowd I had all summer. I hope I built some interest in the arts that day.

Greek Pottery

2010-05-13T22:50:00.001-07:00

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For this lesson, the kids studied images of Greek pottery from my dusty old Art History books sitting on the shelf. The students created linear patterns with contrasting images, balancing out the complex designs with more simplistic designs. This was a great project because some of the students focused on pure design, whereas other students chose to utilize the vase to tell stories as in some of the images that they saw.

Art Exhibit for Imagination Celebration

2010-05-13T22:43:00.001-07:00

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OC Art Studios had their first ever art exhibit on May 3, 2010 at the Villa Park Community room in Villa Park. The students work was chosen from the afternoon classes held at Serrano Elementary, Villa Park Elementary, Nohl Canyon Elementary, Oakridge Private School and the weekly classes held at the Villa Park Community room.

Jackie, the Villa Park librarian worked very hard to put the display boards up so that I could work just as hard hanging all the student artwork. Our “pop-up” gallery lasted for only 2 hours, during which we had over 100 visitors! Students came with their proud family members to show off the work that they had done.

Some of the student art will continue to be exhibited in the Villa Park Library through the end of May.

Artwork to be exhibited at Villa Park Community Room

2010-03-10T22:21:00.001-08:00

The work below was created during the 1 hour after school sessions at OC Art Studios various locations in Orange County. These were submitted to the Color It Orange Juried Exhibition. Over 4500 entries are typically received for this exhibition which takes place at Laguna College of Art + Design. The jury only selects about 600 to display during the March 14th reception. Three of twenty-four were selected from our group.

These are the pieces that will be exhibited during a special reception at the Villa Park Community Room in Villa Park on May 3rd from 4 pm – 6 pm. After the reception, the library next door will exhibit the student artwork on the walls for a few weeks.

Caldecott Award Winning Book Inspires Animal Art Lesson

2010-03-10T21:50:00.001-08:00

These drawings were created after the students studied the illustrations from the Caldecott Award winning book “Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears” written by Verna Aardema, illustrations by Leo and Diane Dillon.

The pictures in the book are so unique. They follow the basic premise of shape drawing that we focus on so strongly at OC Art Studios.

First, I gave a few examples of animal drawings for the students. They created interesting compositions on the paper by using differing lines to break up the spaces of the page. They created background elements by drawing smaller animals in the distance, or trees farther away.

Take a look and enjoy!

Fauvist Self Portraits

2010-01-24T00:01:00.001-08:00

This lesson, taught by Heather Soodak, focused on teaching the students how to draw a self portrait in an expressive manner. Heather showed the students instruction on how to draw the proportions of the head while the students recreated their likeness while looking into a mirror. They studied Matisse’s paintings and used bright and bold oil pastels to bring their self portraits to life.

Black and White Abstract Art

2010-01-13T12:54:00.000-08:00

Here is some artwork from the students at Oakridge Private school. The students learned different ways to create a line using straight, angled and curvy lines. Each of these types of lines can be made thick or thin and can be combined to create new lines and different shapes. They first used a curvy continuous line and “skated the page” to create their initial composition of shapes. Each of the enclosed shapes were then filled in with some type of black and white pattern. We talked about how some shapes can be filled with mostly white ( more negative space than positive space ) and how some shapes could be filled with mostly Black ( more positive space than negative ) . Creating a balance of black and white patterns within a shape would bring harmony. Filling in the shapes with patterns that utilized a variety of different lines would create visual interest.
They had fun with the project and were surprised at how many of their abstract art actually looked like something. See if you can find animals or creatures within their drawings.

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Cuyler Smith, Our newest OC Art Studios Instructor

2009-11-24T19:50:00.000-08:00

Cuyler Smith is our newest instructor to join OC Art Studios. Cuyler graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BFA from Laguna College of Art and Design and received his MFA in Illustration from California State University, Fullerton. He has been a part of the faculty at Cal State Fullerton teaching Beginning Drawing and Figure Drawing for the last 2 years. Cuyler gained experience in the animation industry with a much coveted internship at Nickelodeon Animation. He teaches private art lessons to a number of students in South County and continues to refine his already strong abilities in art by painting in oils and digital media. He will be representing OC Art Studios as we look to expand to South County.
We are happy to have Cuyler Smith as another passionate art teacher at OC Art Studios. Below are some examples of his students work.
Artwork By Joseph, Age 7 (He has already filled three sketchbooks with characters like these!)

Artwork By Jack, Age 7
Artwork By Danielle, Age 9 ( this digital painting was done in only 2 hours )
To learn more about our newest instructor, visit Cuyler Smith's Website.

Warm and Cool and Black and White, Too

2009-11-17T23:08:00.001-08:00

To teach students of Nohl Canyon Elementary the concept of how warm colors contrast with cool colors, I had them trace their hands in the center of their drawing paper. Then they learned how different types of lines can be used to create interest and variety by breaking up a large shape into smaller shapes. They did this to the shape of their hands and used a variety of warm colors ( reds, oranges, yellows ) to fill in the shapes. The negative space around their hand was treated the same way, but filled in with cool colors ( blues, greens, purples ). The second part of the assignment was to create a balance of black and white contrasting shapes or designs around the border of the entire drawing. What a fun lesson this was.

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Monochromatic Abstract Design at Nohl Canyon

2009-11-17T23:08:00.000-08:00

First write your name. Write it really big. Use your big hand writing or write in all capital letters. Then draw lines all over the page. Use straight lines, curvy lines, zig-zag lines. Let the shape of the letters influence the type of lines you draw and where you draw them. Create a variety of big and small shapes all over the page. Now you can color them. Here’s the rule- only use one HUE. You may, however use different shades or values of that hue. Leave some spaces white. And there we have a monochromatic abstract design. Can you find any names that began the process of the artwork?

Or, if you choose to be wild, you can fill in the shapes with whatever color your heart desires, like these students did.

Mc Pherson 6th - 8th Graders ROBOT Drawings

2009-11-17T23:07:00.000-08:00

Robots are fun and easy to draw. Use geometric shapes for the head and body, next add shapes for the arms and legs, give it a few technical and futuristic looking details, and, VOILA- you have a robot drawing. Well, it’s not as easy as that. You have to use your creativity, too. THEN it’s that easy.
Said one student, “This is the best robot I have every drawn!”

Nohl Canyon Elementary 4th-6th graders

2009-11-16T22:59:00.000-08:00

The following work was done by 4th thru 6th graders in Dan Weeks Class at Nohl Canyon Elementary. Here he is below demonstrating how to draw a dragon. Each week in his class, the students learned how to draw different components that would make up a final composition. The lessons involved learning how to draw dynamic poses, how to draw hands, feet as well as the occasional robotic arm and of course, fantastical beasts.

Art By Wesley
Art By Terry
Art By Eleni
Art by Jace
Art by Alek
Art by Nilay
Art by Josh

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McPherson Magnet K thru 3rd Grade House Artwork

2009-10-19T22:45:00.000-07:00

At McPherson Magnet school, the students learned the basics of drawing a house. Since it's coming close to my favorite festivity, Halloween, some of the kids created Haunted Houses. In our lessons, we always start with basic shapes, then add smaller shapes for details, then add even more details to create what the students truly envision. Here's some examples of what the students came up with. The class range is from Kindergarten to 3rd graders.

NexGen LACMA

2009-10-15T17:14:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful day it is. I've just discovered that my favorite museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art has a new program that encourages children to be involved in the arts. NexGen LACMA allows children under 17 free admission to the museum, along with one accompanying adult. You can visit the museums's permanent collection galleries, and some special exhibitions for FREE. They also have art programs for all ages. Please take advantage of this amazing program and bring your child to see some amazing works of art at least ONCE this year. See NexGenKids Lacma Free Admission membership to visit the website and print out the enrollment form.

Mc Pherson Magnet 4th & 5th Grade Art

2009-10-14T22:41:00.000-07:00

Here are some seascape drawings from the students of our newest talented OC Art Studios Instructor, Heather Soodak. As a graduate from Laguna College of Art & Design and a credentialed art teacher, she has been teaching art for several years. Her students at McPherson Magnet School are learning techniques in color theory, the use of line and how to add variety and interest to a piece of artwork. Stunning work.

Nohl Canyon Elementary 1st - 3rd Grade Dream House Drawings

2009-10-12T21:50:00.000-07:00

All kids love to draw houses. How easy is it to do? Just start with a square, stick a triangle on the top for a roof. Add a rectangle for the door, a square divided into four parts for a window.... maybe even stick a rectangle on top of the roof for a chimney.

These students took the art of building a house to a new level. After learning about the types of shapes used to construct a house, and how most were variances of the same shape, they designed a place they could call their own, using squares, rectangles and triangles in a wide variety of sizes and relationships, and VOILA! Here is what a house would look like, were it designed by a young elementary student at Nohl Canyon Elementary school.

Art By Melody, Age 6

Art By Megan, Age 7

Art By Abigail, Age 8

Art By Riley, age 8

Art By Caitlin, Age 8

Art by Elizabeth, Age 7

Art By Eden, Age 6

Art By Garrett, Age 8

Art By Paige M, Age 6

Oakridge Private School

2009-10-06T22:48:00.000-07:00

Students at Oakridge Private School draw their dream houses after learning about the artistic building blocks used to draw a house of their own design. During the lesson, one student said "This is the best house I have ever built."

Another lesson involved drawing a seascape. The students were taught to first identify the characteristics of a fish and to draw those characteristics on a shape to design their own fish. Through the use of line, they learn how to create the feeling of motion in the water and with their knowledge of color theory, they learn how to choose the colors that will best display the bright vibrant fish in the ocean scene.

Summer Art Classes in the Studio

2009-10-01T10:05:00.000-07:00

During the summer months, the classes move to the private studio of Larissa Marantz. Here, we get messy and use everything that Larissa has available: watercolors and acrylic paints, oil pastels and chalk pastels, mixed media and collage.

Painting Butterflies using warm and cool colors

Outrageous Hairstyles using Line and Monochramatic Color

Amy, Age 8

Watercolor techniques with Lilypads and Flowers

Madie, age 7

Mixed Media Self Portrait Collage
Kyle, age 10

Jazz Music Mixed Media Painting

Evan, age 10

Ink and Watercolor Fish
Autumn

Brooke, Age 10

Alek, age 10

Cartoon Drawing Classes

2009-10-01T09:46:00.000-07:00

In the Cartoon Drawing Class, we focus on creating different characters by using simplified ways to draw people. The students create action poses of their characters and then learn about storyboarding and staging their scene. Lastly, the put together all the skills they've learned and create their own 4 panel comic strip.

Manga and Manga Creatures

2009-10-01T09:38:00.000-07:00

These drawings came out of a Manga class that I taught a few summers ago.

Nohl Canyon Elementary School After School Enrichment Program

2009-10-01T09:25:00.000-07:00

These owls were drawn by a 1st and 2nd grader at Nohl Canyon Elementary School. The lesson was done in a step by step process after we talked about the identifying features of the animal we were going to be drawing. The students are encouraged to take their time while tracing their drawings with fine tip black markers and to use the colored markers and crayons to carefully color in all the shapes that they created within their designs.

Villa Park Elementary After School Enrichment Program

2009-09-30T23:06:00.000-07:00

These lessons revolved around drawing a different animal each week. The basic idea was to show the students how to draw each animal using basic shapes, starting with the largest shape and them moving onto smaller shapes. All students were encouraged to draw their animal using the shapes instructed, but to vary the size relationships in order to create a unique drawing. The drawings are always done using pencil first, and then a fine tip black marker is used to enhance the drawing. Students are given markers to color the art and are instructed to fill the page. In the classes, we talk about color choices and ways to make a work of art have more impact.

Welcome to the Student Gallery at OC Art Studios

2009-09-29T23:25:00.000-07:00

This site will be devoted to exhibiting the student artwork from OC Art Studios.
Check back soon.