Designed for students aged 11–14 (UK Key Stage 3 / Years 7–9), but adaptable for other ages.
Learning objectives
Expand mark making repertoire.
Explore subtleties in the depiction of weather.
Learning outcomes
Produce four small weather studies.
Produce a sustained drawing of an observed landscape with altered weather.
You will need
Set of pencils
A small sketchbook or sheets of paper
One large sheet of paper
Alex Brown'Look at that one low cloud', Cardboard, chalk, ink and acrylic paint on paper
Esme McMillan-Scott'Warm may weather', Mixed media on paper
Introduction
Weather is used by many artists to convey emotion and set a scene. Small changes in weather can greatly alter the way a picture is seen. Once mastered it can be a powerful tool in your arsenal as an artist.
Exercise 1
Draw a lightening storm from your imagination. Only use hard, short and fast marks. Try to make the storm feel urgent and dangerous. Think about the tone of these lines.
Exercise 2
Draw the rain using short dabbing marks. These can be light and straight to convey the softness of rain. Try to convey a sense of movement within the rain and be delicate with your marks.
Exercise 3
Draw a summers day using soft, light and free marks. These marks may be very gentle tones to give a sense of ease and calm.
Exercise 4
Draw the snow falling. You can decide if it is a storm or a peaceful scene. You may want to use spots and dabs to create a snow like effect.
Reflect on all the different weathers you have created. If there one type of mark making you feel most drawn to?
Exercise 5
Finally you will draw a landscape from observation but change the weather to convey a tone your choosing. Bear in mind you can use more than one type of weather and combine them for dramatic effect. For example it may be a calm summers day with a storm brewing in the distance.
