Oil Paintings of Trees

This week the 8th graders had their first experience with using oil paints.  The subject matter was determined by the photos they took last week of bare trees. Each student used a view finder to isolate an interesting area of their tree photo and then sketched it on their canvas. For many of them this will be their only exposure to using this really fun and sophisticated medium. Oil paints dry very slowly and so they allow for more experimentation with blending, layering and using visible brush strokes. It is very forgiving in that you can keep working it for several weeks to achieve the desired affect of showing light and shadow. I think they are enjoying themselves so far.