Fall Gourds in Charcoal

Sixth graders have finished their first big drawing from observation in the middle school and they look awesome. First, students did contour line drawings of the still lifes with gourds, thinking about proportion and composition. Then we turned the lights off and shined a light onto the still life to create interesting shadows and highlights, which the students rendered using charcoal pencils and sticks. The goal of the project was to draw realistically from life and add a range of value to shade the piece and give the drawing depth. Here is what the work table/light looked like as the students worked:

Here are the beautiful final pieces: