Art Classes: Level IV

Level IV-Art Lesson 5: The Bangladesh Monster

Learn to draw and texture a smoke-breathing monster with pen and ink

The lesson is suitable for students in grade 6 through adult.

Art Lesson Description:

Some objects have such interesting texture that you feel compelled to touch them. Beautifully finished furniture does that. So does this little clay incense burner from Bangladesh. All the tiny details—the bumps and the lines—insist that we touch it. The monster is an invitation to put color aside for a moment and to concentrate on texture alone, and texture is what this lesson is about.

The lesson lets the student apply an array of textures. At the same time it provides an introduction to hatching and cross-hatching as a way to provide shading. We begin the lesson with the usual warm-up and guided drawing, but this time, instead of using a fine tipped black magic marker, we will do all of the drawing with a .05mm black pen. The finer lines of this pen allow one to put in much more detail, yielding a rich, jaw-dropping finished picture.

This lesson includes both POWERPOINT and VIDEO versions of the lesson plus 2 downloadable printouts: a warmup and a drawing of the monster.

List of Supplies for Each Student:

1 printout of the incense burner warm-up (this is included with the lesson)
11" x 14" drawing paper (#ad)
1 ultra fine (0.5 mm) black marking pen (#ad)

Suggestions for Cross-Curricular Connections:

Social Studies:

Get a quick introduction to the country of Bangladesh.
Learn about the economy of Bangladesh, and what kind of occupations its people have.
Learn about jute, the crop that is most important for the economy of Bangladesh.
Get the grand tour of Bangladesh.
Learn about the religions of Bangladesh.
Study the history of Bangladesh.

Cooking: Find recipes and cook food from Bangladesh.

Art: Compare your work to the texture and detail in a picture by Albrecht Durer. Get a close look at one of his etchings as you make your comparison. Learn more about Durer and see pictures of many of his works here.

Literature:

Read Bangladesh (Cultures of the World) (#ad) to get an insight into the country's culture, history, and customs.
Read Rickshaw Girl (#ad) A young Bangladeshi girl challenges the traditional role of women in her village so she can help her struggling family.
Read A Basket of Bangles (#ad) the story of five poor, uneducated women who get a bank loan to start a business in Bangladesh.

Science:

The Bengal tiger is a native of India and Bangladesh. Learn about the tiger and watch a video about tiger poaching.
Learn about Bangladesh's environmental difficulties.
Learn how to change the color of smoke from a campfire.