See the slideshow for example of the layout of comic book covers.

This is the style in which you'll be working: vector-based drawings:

Steps:

1. Brainstorm ideas. Come up with an idea that is moody, dramatic, emotional, active, etc.
2. Draw a series of thumbnail sketches to develop your ideas.
3. Figure out necessary poses and find/enlist your models (You will be one of them.)
4. Take a series of good, sharp, well-lit photos of action shots of your peers posing. The more active, the better. Consider your point of view (Try photographing from below looking up, or downwards from up high.)
5. Using Illustrator, trace from one or more of the photos. Be sure to use layers and sublayers, and label paths, to keep your file organized and to help work more efficiently.
6. Arrange your traced drawings to maximize visual and emotional impact and to tell your story clearly.
7. Add layers, colors, textures, details, and effects as necessary. Experiment.

** Leave room for the comic book title, brand logo, captions and word balloons.**

Grading Criteria:

     CONCEPT
        Clear Communication of Story
        Inventiveness
        Expressiveness via Color, Shapes, Style, Arrangement
     DESIGN
        Image has Visual Impact
        Effective Use of Positive and Negative Relationships
        Clear Understanding of Principles of Art
     CRAFTSMANSHIP
        Proper formatting: Layers, Sublayers, Labelled Paths
        Skillful use of pen and other tools of Illustrator
        Inventive experimentation with technique
     WORK HABITS / PERSONAL INVESTMENT

Rubric: Studio Habits of Mind

​
Parameters:

• All parts must be entirely original -- You MUST take photos of you and your peers (using your iPad, camera, or digital camera) specifically for this project
• Do not add text in the beginning (That will happen later.), but leave room for it.

Tips:

• Have ideas before you leave to take photographs.
• Faces and figures in perfect profile will best convey as much information as possible. 
• Take photos in front of simple backdrops with no detail. It will be easier to trace them.
• The more active and emotional the pose, the better. Be dramatic. Use body language.
• Take action photos outside on a sunny day or under bright light. Action photos will be crisper and more in focus.
• Take many, many photos.
• Leave room for the comic book title, brand logo, captions and word balloons.

Must have:

• Title
• Subtitle and/or Story/Issue Title and/or Tagline
• Original Brand / Company Logo (Ex. Marvel, DC)
• Issue #
• Publication Month Year
• Price
• Room for Bar Code

May have

• Other graphic elements: bars, boxes
• Caption boxes and/or dialogue balloons

We've walked through a tutorial of complex drawing in Illustrator, using a variety of tools and techniques in Illustrators (You've now got more "tools in your toolbox," as they say) including: using layers and sublayers, labelling paths, using the pen tool, moving anchor points, modifying shapes, and using gradients and transparencies skillfully. Now, independently complete the face drawing that we began as a class by doing the following:

• Keep the paths organized by layers and sublayers
• Name paths
• Complete the head: Add hair, eyebrows, and other details
• Complete the body: neck, shoulders and clothing
• Foreground that helps to frame the figure and is decorative/ornamental
• Background that is either
•           representational (such as an environment that this person is in); or
•           decorative/ornamental and adds richness to the overall design
• Color scheme that unifies the design

Objectives:

• Develop skills with the pen tool for more skillful drawing.
• Organize digital illustration using layers and sublayers.
• Experiment and Explore

Grading Criteria:
This is an open-ended assignment that asks you to think creatively and add to the level of richness and detail. You will be graded on the Studio Habits of Mind, specifically:
     - your personal investment
     - productive use of your time
     - your willingness to experiment and explore with the tools and techniques
     - the overall quality of the design due to your additions, and
     - the level of detail you create.


Once Completed:

Turn in three files to the graphicdesign server folder:

• face yourlastname.eps (Illustrator EPS file, CMYK or RGB color mode)
• face yourlastname.tif (300 ppi at actual size, RGB color mode)
• face yourlastname.jpg (72 ppi, 12 in high, RGB color mode)

Checklist for Completion
​

• ALL paths are organized into layers (At minimum: Foreground, Head, Neck and Shoulders, Background, Guidelines; others as needed)

​

• All layers for the face have been placed in a layer called HEAD.

​

• I have named many paths (in addition to those we did together as a class)

​

• I have added hair, eyebrows, and other details

​

• I have completed the body by making neck, shoulders and clothing

​

• There is a FOREGROUND layer that
  • helps to frame the figure AND
  • is decorative/ornamental

​

• There is a BACKGROUND layer that is either
  • representational (such as an environment that this person is in); AND/OR
  • decorative/ornamental (with detail) and adds richness to the overall design

​

• I have worked with a color palette that unifies the design

​

• I have printed the design to the following specifications:
  • Scale to Fit
  • Size: Letter (8.5 x 11”)
  • Orientation: Portrait
  • Ultra Premium Presentation Paper Matte​

• I have saved the file as an Illustrator EPS titled “face mylastname.eps”

• I have opened that file in Photoshop and saved it as a TIF:

          When dialogue box opens, select:
          Open at 300 pixels/inch (ppi) resolution                         
          Color Mode: RGB
          Go to: Layer: Flatten image                   
          Save as: “face mylastname.tif”

• I have saved that image as a JPG:

                    Go to: Image: Image Size
                          Resolution: 72 ppi
                          Height (second box): 12 inches
                    Save as: “face mylastname.jpg”

• I have turned in the 3 files (EPS, TIF, and JPG) into the graphicdesign server folder.

 

• I have prepared the work for display:
  • Mount on black paper
  • Label flush against bottom right corner
  • Velcro on back (corners and middle)

Symmetrical Design with Pattern

Due Date:
Three days

Project:
Using the shape tools of Adobe Illustrator, create a square, symmetrical design with repeated elements. The design should be unified in its color scheme, having at least 10 colors and 2-3 dominant colors.

Parameters:
     Square: 8" x 8"
     Color Mode: CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and BlacK)
     File format: Illustrator EPS
     Save As: "symmetry yourlastname.eps"
     At least 10 colors
     2 - 3 dominant colors
​     Flat colors (No gradients)

Objectives:

• Develop skills with tools and techniques of Illustrator
• Work over a grid
• Create a variety of shapes
• Align shapes and other elements
• Group paths into objects
• Divide shapes using the Pathfinder tool
• Use layer sets 
• Create strong visual impact
• Create an orderly and professional-looking design

Materials:
Adobe Illustrator

Grading Criteria:

• Design (Visual Impact)
• Technical Quality
• Personal Investment
• Studio Habits of Mind (rubric)

To Start:
1. Create a New Document
        File -- New Document
        Size: 8 in x 8 in
2. Create guidelines halfway across and halfway up your document
        Go to View -- Show Rulers
        Drag guidelines from rulers to your central axes of the document
3. Create a rectangular grid to act as a guide or template on which to organize your shapes (You can find the rectangular grid tool under the same toolbox button as the line segment tool.).


---------------------------------------------------------

​
Proyecto: 
Utilizando las herramientas de Forma de Adobe Illustrator, cree un diseño cuadrado y simétrico con elementos repetidos. El diseño debe estar unificado en su combinación de colores, teniendo al menos 10 colores y 2-3 colores dominantes. 

Parámetros: 

• Cuadrado: 8" x 8" 
• Modo de color: CMYK (cian, magenta, amarillo y negro) 
• Formato de archivo: Illustrator EPS 
• Guardar como: "symmetry tuapellido.eps" 
• Al menos 10 colores 
• 2 - 3 colores dominantes 
• Colores planos (sin degradados) 

Objetivos: 

• Desarrollar habilidades con herramientas y técnicas de Illustrator. 
• Trabajar sobre una cuadrícula 
• Crea una variedad de formas. 
• Alinear formas y otros elementos. 
• Agrupar rutas en objetos 
• Dividir formas usando la herramienta Buscatrazos (Pathfinder) 
• Utilice "conjuntos" de capas 
• Bloquear formas 
• Crea un fuerte impacto visual 
• Crea un diseño ordenado y de aspecto profesional. 

Materiales: 
Ilustrador Adobe 


Criterio de evaluación: 

• Diseño (Impacto Visual) 
• Calidad Técnica 
• Inversión personal 
• Studio Habits of Mind (rúbrica de calificaciones)

Para comenzar: 

 1. Crea un nuevo documento 

• Archivo - Nuevo documento
• Tamaño: 8 x 8 pulgadas 

 2. Cree pautas a mitad y mitad de su documento. Ir a Ver - Mostrar reglas Arrastre las pautas de las reglas a los ejes centrales del documento. 

3. Cree una cuadrícula rectangular que actúe como guía o plantilla sobre la cual organizar sus formas (puede encontrar la herramienta de cuadrícula rectangular en el mismo botón de la caja de herramientas que la herramienta de segmento de línea).
  

Assignment:
Create a strong design that uses both your full name and a quote, phrase, or slogan that tells us something about you. Apply all your knowledge about good design to make the artwork as dynamic and visually interesting as possible. Do your best to make this a thoughtful and careful finished artwork.

Focus on the following:

• Interesting Lettering
• Break up the entire picture plane (Design fills the page.)
• Decorative/Ornamental/Visually exciting (Pattern?)
• High Contrast - Approx. equal amounts dark and light
• Consider the best approach/process

Tip: Draw multiple thumbnail sketches to test out different designs.

Project Length: Four days
Size: 8 ½ x 11”
Media: Black ink (Sharpies and felt tip pens)

Process:

1. Decide on slogan or quote.
2. Make at least 4 thumbnail sketches
3. Then develop one of those sketches into an actual-sized rough draft before transferring and refining an inked showpiece on tagboard.

Grading Criteria

• Creativity
• Design (Visual Impact, Effective Use of Elements and Principles of Art)
• Technical Quality (“Finished”)
• Studio Work Habits

This is a pre-assessment to find out what you already know, and I will be observing and taking notes on your work habits and your process, your final work, and your participation in the final critique of student work. By jotting down brief notes on how each of you approaches the project, I will gain a better sense of your strengths and of how you could grow throughout the year.

As the measuring tool, I will be using this rubric:
​
Rubric: Art Studio Habits of Mind

---------------------------

​Proyecto: 
Crea un diseño sólido que utilice tanto tu nombre completo como una cita, frase o eslogan que exprese algo sobre ti. Aplica todos tus conocimientos sobre buen diseño para que la obra de arte sea lo más dinámica y visualmente interesante posible. Haga todo lo posible para que esta sea una obra de arte con un acabado cuidadoso y reflexivo. 

Debe: 

• Debes incluir tu nombre completo.
• Debes incluir una frase que exprese quién eres.
• Debes llenar el plano de la imagen.
• Debes diseñar letras interesantes y artísticas.
• Debes usar patrón -  decorativo/ornamental
• Alto contraste - cantidades iguales de blanco y negro (½ y ½)

Vencimiento: 4 - 5 días
Tamaño: 8 ½ x 11”
Medios: tinta negra (marcadores negros) 


Proceso: 
1. Decide el eslogan o la cita. 
2. Dibuja al menos 3 bocetos en miniatura para probar diferentes diseños. 
3. Desarrolla tu mejor boceto hasta convertirlo en un borrador de tamaño completo. 
4. Transfiera el borrador a la carpeta. 
5. Entinte limpia y cuidadosamente el diseño de su carpeta para que sea 1/2 negro y 1/2 blanco. 


Criterio de evaluación 

• Creatividad 
• Diseño (Impacto Visual) 
• Calidad Técnica (¿Se ve “terminado”)? 
• Hábitos de trabajo en el estudio 

Rúbrica de calificación: hábitos mentales de estudio


Objetivo: 
Esta es una evaluación previa para descubrir lo que ya sabe y es capaz de hacer. Estaré observando tus hábitos de trabajo y tu proceso, tu trabajo final y tu participación en la crítica final del trabajo estudiantil. Obtendré una idea de tus puntos fuertes y de cómo podrías crecer a lo largo del año.

(Desplácese hacia abajo para ver el texto en español.)
(Scroll down to see text in Spanish is at the bottom of this post.)


Chiaroscuro 
(from Italian: chiaro, “light,” and scuro, “dark”)
A technique employed to represent light and shadow as they define three-dimensional objects.


Essential Question: How do I use chiaroscuro to create form, the illusion of three dimensions on a two dimensional surface?

Content Question: What makes a hero?

Due Date:
Two weeks

Project:
Use the pen tool of Adobe Illustrator to re-create a photographic portrait of a real hero or villain from the 20th or 21st century. Your drawing must include dramatic light and shadow.

Objectives:

• Refine your technical skills with the DRAWING TOOLS of Adobe Illustrator
•      Use LAYERS and SUBLAYERS to organize the parts of your work.
•      Make CLOSED shapes.
• Make LIGHT, MIDDLE, and DARK tonal values for every part.
• Use CROPPING to improve visual impact.
• Express emotional power through color choices.

First Steps:

1. Think about someone you think is a HERO.

2. Google IMAGE SEARCH that hero.

3. Collect 8 - 10 close-up photos of that person. The photos must have light and shadows on faces.

• All Close-ups
• All Straight-on view of face/head
• All must have light and shadow on face
• Collect the largest files you can find -- high resolution

4. Decide which photo is the best to create a poster of your hero.

5. Create new document in Adobe Illustrator:

• Size: (18 inches high x 12 inches wide)
• Orientation: Portrait (vertical)
• Title: Hero yourlastname

Grading Criteria:

• Expressiveness
• Design (Visual Impact)
• Technical Quality
• Personal Investment

Tips:

• Be precise
  • Create curving paths using the pen tool

 

• Draw biggest shapes first,
  • then medium,
  • then smallest

 

• Draw to group the large light areas,
  • then large middle areas,
  • then large dark areas

 

• Must have layers in this order:

               Frame - a border of rectangle blocking the area outside the art board
                    (Lock this layer)
               (Other layers as necessary)
               Details
               Dark tones
               Middle tones
               Light tones
               (Background color)
               Photo (Lock this layer)

-------------

Chiaroscuro
(del italiano: chiaro, "luz" y scuro, "oscuro")
Técnica empleada para representar luces y sombras mientras definen objetos tridimensionales.

Pregunta esencial: ¿Cómo uso el chiaroscuro para crear forma, la ilusión de tres dimensiones en una superficie bidimensional?

Pregunta de contenido: ¿Qué hace a un héroe?

PROYECTO:
Utilice la herramienta de lápiz de Adobe Illustrator para recrear un retrato fotográfico de un héroe o villano real del siglo XX o XXI. Tu dibujo debe incluir luces y sombras dramáticas.


Objetivos:

• Refina tus habilidades técnicas con las HERRAMIENTAS DE DIBUJO de Adobe Illustrator
  • Utilice CAPAS y SUBCAPAS (Layers y Sublayers) para organizar las partes de su trabajo.
  • Haz formas CERRADAS.
• Crea valores tonales CLAROS, MEDIOS y OSCUROS para cada parte.
• Expresa poder emocional a través de opciones de color.

Primeros pasos:

1. Piensa en alguien que crees que es un HÉROE.

2. BÚSQUEDA DE IMÁGENES en Google de ese héroe.

3. Reúna de 8 a 10 fotografías de primeros planos de esa persona. Las fotografías deben tener luces y sombras en los rostros.

• Todos los primeros planos
• Todo Vista directa de la cara/cabeza
• Todos deben tener luces y sombras en la cara.
• Recopile los archivos más grandes que pueda encontrar: alta resolución

4. Decide qué foto es la mejor para crear un póster de tu héroe.

5. Cree un nuevo documento en Adobe Illustrator:

• Tamaño: (18 pulgadas de alto x 12 pulgadas de ancho)
• Orientación: vertical (vertical)
• Título: Héroe tu apellido

Criterio de evaluación:

• Expresividad
• Diseño (Impacto Visual)
• Calidad Técnica
• Inversión personal

Consejos:

Se preciso
Crea trazados curvos con la herramienta Pluma
 
Primero dibuja las formas más grandes,
luego medio,
luego el más pequeño
 
Dibuja para agrupar las grandes áreas claras,
luego grandes zonas medias,
luego grandes áreas oscuras
 
Debe tener capas en este orden:
               Marco: un borde de rectángulo que bloquea el área fuera del tablero de arte.
                    (Bloquea esta capa)
               (Otras capas según sea necesario)
               Detalles
               Tonos oscuros
               tonos medios
               Tonos claros
               (Color de fondo)
               Foto (Bloquear esta capa)

-------------


Checklist for Completion
​

• In Illustrator, draw from a photograph of your hero, grouping light, middle, and dark tones.
  Save as: Hero Yourlastname.EPS

​

• Transform the color scheme to create contrast, expressiveness, and visual impact:
  Lights: light, analogous warm colors and
  Shadows: cool, analogous dark colors that are complements of the light colors
  (Modify the color schemes as you see fit to improve design.)
  Save as: Hero Yourlastname COLOR.EPS

​

• Word design: Three treatments (versions) of the type-based design extending from the bottom of the poster.
  Include:
       - One- or two-word attribute of the person

                    Examples: Courage; focus; fierce; pride; compassion; honor;
                                  humor; strength; intelligence; insight; commitment
                                  Hostility; rage; hatred; divisiveness; fear; mistrust
          Using the word(s) and simple design elements (lines, borders, simple shapes),
          create a text based design that: 
                    - Uses a bold, sans serif font
                    - Seems connected through color and style to your drawing
​                    - Conveys the appropriate mood/meaning

          Save as: Hero Yourlastname TYPE.EPS

• Use the best word design (of the three versions) on the bottom of your artwork

 

• ​Add Textures and Layer Styles in Photoshop

         
               Open "Hero Yourlastname type.EPS" in Photoshop
                    - 300 ppi, RGB Color Mode
                    - 18 inches high

               Open JPGs of photographic textures in Photoshop

               Select All, Copy, and Paste Into shape selections of your Hero artwork.

               Use Layer Styles on the word design and other 

               Save as: Hero Yourlastname TEXTURE. PSD

• Convert final image to TIF and JPG formats:
       - Hero Yourlastname TEXTURE. TIF (300 ppi, RGB, 18 in high)
       - Hero Yourlastname TEXTURE. JPG (72 ppi, RGB, 12 in high)

 

• In a Google Doc, write a two- or three-sentence biography that gets to what makes this person a hero or villain. The full name of the person must be in the statement. Save as: Hero Yourlastname BIO
  
  
• Create a folder in the Google Team Drive: “Hero YourLastName”. Turn in each of the files above into that folder.

 

• ​Print the PSD file to the Epson Photo printer:

               Print to Fit Page: 18 inches high
               Paper: Ultra Premium Photo Paper Matte

----------------
​
GRADED ON
General Art Rubric

• Completion - Show all work
  • All parts have been completed and turned in on time
  • Includes at least 3 variations of design of word
  • Printed and prepared for display
  • Written statement - biography
• Personal Investment (25%)
  • Effective use of time - Productivity
  • Stays on task consistently throughout every period
  • Curiosity
  • Experimenting; Trying new things with artwork
• Concept/Communication (25%)
  • Text and color scheme are appropriately expressive of whether this is a hero or villain.
  • Clarity of Well-written biography statement.
• Design/ Artistic Concepts (25%)
  • Understanding of chiaroscuro - effectively separated into light, middle, and dark.
  • Use of warm and cool colors to create contrast
  • Use of analogous and complementary color relationships
  • Overall visual impact
• Technical Quality (25%)

          Skillful use the following:

• Pen tool
  • Finely drawn
  • Skillful differentiation of lights, middles, and darks
• Layers and Color Modes of those layers
• Textures
  • Add richness to image
  • Don’t interfere with the quality of lights, middle, and dark shapes - Not distracting
• Layer Effects on Type
  • Drop shadows, bevels, emboss, glows, etc.

Project Description:
In pencil, on the Road Signs worksheet (handout), work out ideas for road signs that clearly, immediately communicate the subject indicated under each diamond. Use about an equal amount of black and white. Since a viewer would be seeing and "reading" these signs at a distance and at 40 mph, you will have to design them to be bold, grab the viewer's attention, and make sense immediately (Thin lines and little details won't work.). Ink this with black ink. Craftsmanship/presentation counts.

Here's the worksheet/template:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1THcfbI6OhHAUzvN5xA5o4slB3z3JVkzS/view?usp=sharing

​Subjects that you will graphically depict for immediate understanding:

• Sky Falling
• Chess Area
• Kite Flying Area
• Ant Farm
• Fortune Teller
• Nuclear Power Plant
• Baseball Field
• Alien Crossing
• Earthquake / Fault Line
• Target Range
• Botanical Gardens
• Paratrooper Landing

Objectives:

• Apply an understanding of negative and positive spaces.
• Get to the point, visually, with "economy of means."
• Refine your craftsmanship through control and precision with tools & materials.

Materials:

• Worksheet
• Pencil
• Eraser
• Black Sharpie markers (fine, ultrafine)

Grading Criteria:

• Clarity of Each Concept
• Design - Visual Impact
• Craftsmanship

To Start:
Draft your ideas on scrap paper first

Helpful Resources:
This lesson is taken from Visual Literacy: A Conceptual Approach to Graphic Problem Solving, by Judith Wilde and Richard Wilde. It is available for viewing in Room 409. You can find more examples of solutions in the book.

Student Exemplars
Click the link below for examples from Burlington High School students: 
Road Signs Gallery

Self Critique Questions
Ask yourself these questions for each of your final executions:

• Is the subject clear?
• It is visually unique and interesting? Does it have visual impact?
• Is the design technically well-executed? Is it professional-looking? 
• Does the design contain heavy blacks?
• Are the important elements emphasized and easy-to-see and understand?

Project: 
Create the promotional graphics for a theater production: The Wizard of Oz (RSC Version)

Objectives:

• Think creatively
  
• Work through the design-thinking process from thumbnail sketches to final work.
  
• Apply the principles of contrast, repetition, alignment and proximity
• Communicate an idea through selection of appropriately expressive type.
• Create a visual personality through the title art and other elements
• Work to fulfill a client's wishes, while maintaining your own artistic integrity

Materials:
Adobe Illustrator

Parameters:

• Created in: Adobe Illustrator
• The Music Dept needs a poster/sign and playbill cover.
• The playbill:
  
  • 5.5 inches wide x 8.5 inches high
    
  • The design needs to bleed off the page.
    
  • File name: “wizardofoz 2026 yourlastname playbill.eps”
  • File format: EPS, PDF, TIF, and JPG
• Poster:
  
  • 2 x 4 feet (24" wide x 48" high)
    
  • Final name: “wizardofoz 2026 yourlastname poster .eps” ​
  • File format: EPS, PDF, TIF, and JPG
• Work in silhouette or other vector graphics
• Cannot use the original intellectual property (i.e. No images from the movie or other productions can be used.)
  
• NO photographs, clip art, or "borrowing" from famous images of the movie or musical
• Shoot your own photographs from student models, and use those as a drawing reference.

Text ("Copy") must include ALL the following:

Burlington High School Presents  (20% font size compared to title at 100%)
The Wizard of Oz
(RSC Version)
A Performing Arts Department Production
May 1- 10, 2026 (20% as big as the title)

THE WIZARD OF OZ is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Tams-Witmark LLC.
www.concordtheatricals.com
(must not be less than 10 pt font)

It must also include the following text:
THE WIZARD OF OZ
By L. Frank Baum (50% of title size)
With Music and Lyrics by Harold Arlen and E. Y. Harburg (50%)
Background Music by Herbert Stothart (50%)
Dance and Vocal Arrangements by Peter Howard (33% of title size)
Orchestration by Larry Wilcox (33%)
Adapted by John Kane for the Royal Shakespeare Company (33%)
Based upon the Classic Motion Picture owned by Turner Entertainment Co. and distributed in all media by Warner Bros. (33%)

BurlingtonTheatre.com (80% as big as the title)
         781-A-FUN-TIC (60% as big as the title)
        $10 for students and seniors
        $15 for adults

At the bottom, it must also include the school district's accessibility statement.:

BPS Accessibility Statement
If you need assistance accessing our facilities, please contact Burlington Public Schools at burlingtonpublicschools@bpsk12.org and we will work with you to provide the information you need. For those who are deaf or hard of hearing, or who do not use voice channels to communicate, please contact us via email or via 711 or other relay services.

---------

Grading Criteria:
(See Studio Habits of Mind Rubric.)

• Personal Investment (Work Habits, Ambition)
• Design / Visual Impact
• Inventiveness / Creativity
• Expressiveness / Communication
• Technical Quality / Craftsmanship

Resources:
In preparation for your own theatrical poster designs, here's a link to 50 great movie poster designs.
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/10/12/50-beautiful-movie-posters/
and theatrical poster designs.

To Start:

1. View and discuss effective promotional graphics for movies and plays. What makes them work so well?
2. Collect information and visual references that relate to the subject(s) of the play.
3. Come up with original, creative ideas that will get people interested.
   
4. Draw thumbnails and rough drafts.
5. Take photos of student models to use as visual reference for your drawings. The silhouettes should be clear, informative and expressive. Exaggerate the poses.

​Chiaroscuro
(from Italian: chiaro, “light,” and scuro, “dark”)
A technique employed to represent light and shadow as they define three-dimensional objects.

Essential Question:
How do I use to create , the illusion of three dimensions on a two dimensional surface?

PROJECT:
Using digital photography and the pen tool of Adobe Illustrator, re-imagine a famous propaganda poster to promote the BHS Art & Design program. 

To do this, you will first combine: 

• The composition from a famous historical propaganda poster
• A photograph of yourself or a friend /peer in the same pose as from the historical propaganda poster.
• A photographic close-up (from the same angle as in the original propaganda poster) of a real hero or celebrity from the 20th or 21st century (Someone EVERYONE will recognize in a positive light.). 

The photograph you take, and your final drawing must include dramatic light and shadow to create a sense of three-dimensional form (chiaroscuro)


Media:

• Digital Photography (to take photos of yourself/friends)
• Photoshop (for combining photos and photo-editing)
• Adobe Illustrator (for drawing)
• Photoshop again (for textures and effects)

Objectives:

• Use Photoshop to cleanly and convincingly COMBINE PHOTOGRAPHS.
• Refine your technical skills with the DRAWING TOOLS of Adobe Illustrator.
• Use LAYERS and SUBLAYERS to organize the parts of your work.
• Make CLOSED shapes.
• Make LIGHT, MIDDLE, and DARK tonal values for every part to create three-dimensionality.

Specifications:

• Proportions will be the same as the original propaganda poster you are spoofing, but the maximum dimensions should not exceed 12 x 18"
• File name: propaganda yourlastname
• Begin in Photoshop to collage your images, then trace in Illustrator, then add textures and effects in Photoshop.

Grading Criteria:
CONCEPT:

• Inventiveness
• Clear Communication of Message

DESIGN:

• Image has Visual Impact
• Effective Color Combinations

CRAFTSMANSHIP / TECHNICAL QUALITY

• Skillful use of pen and other tools of Illustrator
• Three-dimensionality using Chiaroscuro
• Shadows are consistent
• Proper formatting: Layers, Sublayers, Labeled Paths
• Inventive Experimentation with Technique
• Refinement using Photoshop and Illustrator

WORK HABITS / PERSONAL INVESTMENT

• Studio Habits of Mind

Tips:

Be precise.
               Create curving paths using the pen tool.

Draw the biggest shapes first,
               then medium,
               then smallest 

Draw to group the large light areas,,
               then large middle areas,
               then large dark areas 

Should have layers in this order: 

• Details
• Dark tones
• Middle tones
• Light tones
• (Background color)
• Photo (Lock this layer)

​
Steps:

1. View/study the propaganda posters from the links below.

• https://www.canva.com/learn/examples-of-propaganda/
• https://stacker.com/history/famous-propaganda-posters-last-100-years

2. Brainstorm fun and interesting ideas for a "spoof" of one of the posters.

3. Enlist your model(s) (You may be your own model.) to pose.

4. Take a series of good, sharp, well-lit photos of action shots of your model posing. Consider your point of view and your lighting; these should be similar to the original poster.

5. Find a photo of a hero or celebrity seen from an angle (and with similar lighting) to the original poster and your own photograph.

6. Using Photoshop, combine your photo and the photo of the celebrity.

7. Save your photo-collaged image as a TIF and open it in Illustrator.

8. Resize your image as big as you can to fit within a 12 x 18" document. Lock in place.

9. Create a series of layers, in this order:

• Details
• Dark tones
• Middle tones
• Light tones
• (Background color)
• Photo (Lock this layer)

10. Using the pen tool of Illustrator to create curved paths, trace your image using the pen tool.

11. Be sure to use the layers and sublayers, and label paths, to keep your file organized and to help work more efficiently.

12. Add text similar in size and style to the original poster.

13. When your drawing is complete and full-color, save as EPS.
​
14. Open in Photoshop. Use "paste into" to add textures. Use layer styles and effects.


​Below is a student artwork created in Illustrator that shows the STYLE in which this will be done:

The student work below shows chiaroscuro AND the additions of textures and effects to portraiture.