Art Lesson - Owl Collage

Today I got back in to the swing of things with a private lesson. I hadn't done a private lesson since June. Busy summer, busy fall! This lesson was with a second grader. I've been doing lessons with this little one for almost 2 years now. This little girl has more focus than most kids, so a lot of complicated lessons can be done with her.

This lesson is a collage of an owl with decorative papers. I saw a beautiful, detailed owl done in a 3-D collage effect on the internet. So I was inspired to make an art lesson like it - like a lot of art I see. I'm always trying to think of new art lessons. I tried to have her see the darks and lights in an owl, then use the colorful, patterned papers in the same way. We cut the paper into "feather-like" shapes. This was where I had to help her the most - because we had to be done in an hour. She glued them on to her owl that she had first drawn. I had her start at the bottom and overlap to the top. I also folded the feathers a little to add a little 3D effect. Then the round eyes, beak, and branch were added. There could've been a little more contrast below the beak to make it show up better. But that's pretty minor. I think it turned out pretty cute and whimsical! Easy for a one-on-one class, but may be too complicated, and expensive for a large class. Any bird could be made the same way. And I think an imaginative, fantasy bird would be really fun.