7th Grade Portraits

I have not done Chuck Close Portraiture with middle school before, and I decided to tackle it with my 7th grade students in the Art Exploration course.  We first explored Chuck Close's early works, discussed photo realism, the "mugshot" look, and larger than life size. 

PHOTO REALISM: Phillip Glass by Chuck Close

We then looked at his later work, created with a grid, and compared and contrasted the two.  We also zoomed in and looked at each individual square and discussed how they each could be a painting in itself. 

PIXILATED Self-Portrait by Chuck Close

Finally, I found a short video from CBS Sunday Morning on YouTube that has a very informative interview and shows how he is able to still paint today despite his paralysis. 

  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbcP8zNrqsk&feature=related

I also found this a perfect time to talk to the students on dealing with adversity.  Chuck Close was a very successful painter, and after his tragic accident that left him partially paralyzed, he was able to find another way to paint, and as he states in his interview, he now paints with more color, and he "celebrates" his ability to still paint today despite all that has happened to him physically.  I hoped to show the students that out of great tragedy, amazing things can happen!

Because our room does not have a sink, they are using watercolor resist with crayons. We should begin painting next week, but below are some of the works in progress.  They are coming along just beautifully!!