Photography is a visual art that uses elements like line, depth, form, size, shape, and color to create a composition that expresses meaning. For this project, you will answer questions about emotions and moods in photographs using just one word. Narrowing your answer to just one word will help you identify a concept to create your own piece.
UVU art student Isaac Long is our highlighted artist this week. His photograph, Jim, is one in a series depicting different emotions. You can view it online as part of the Student Art Exhibition. We encourage you to look up Documentary photographers like Dorothea Lange and Alfred Eisenstaedt, to see how they capture mood and emotion.
Jim by Isaac Long. From the 2022 Student Art Exhibition
Start your story by answering the questions below. Use the answers to inspire your creation.
Questions:
Use one-word descriptions to explain this piece.
● What emotion is the subject of this photograph, Jim, expressing?
● What mood do you think the photographer, Isaac Long, is trying to evoke? (Think about how line, shape, color, and other elements of art help to create a mood.)
● Are the feelings of the subject and mood of the photographer the same or different?
Use one-word descriptions to explain this piece.
● What emotion is the subject of this photograph, Jim, expressing?
● What mood do you think the photographer, Isaac Long, is trying to evoke? (Think about how line, shape, color, and other elements of art help to create a mood.)
● Are the feelings of the subject and mood of the photographer the same or different?
Materials:
● Sketchbook
● Pencil and eraser
● Any medium of your choice (paint, crayons, ink, pencil, etc.)
● White paper or white cardstock
● Sketchbook
● Pencil and eraser
● Any medium of your choice (paint, crayons, ink, pencil, etc.)
● White paper or white cardstock
Directions:
● Think about the emotion and mood this photograph evokes for you.
● In the sketchbook, write down the questions above and your ONE-word answers to them.
● From your answers to each question, you will be creating a unique piece. (Example) Say your answers to the questions were that Jim appeared to be sad and the image felt cold. Do these feelings contrast or are they complementary?
● Use your answers to guide the shape, form, colors, size, and types of lines you will use in your own piece. Add notes in your sketchbook.
● Draw that shape, image, form in your sketchbook.
● When you have decided the sketch you like, create it on the white paper or white cardstock with the medium you chose.
● Think about the emotion and mood this photograph evokes for you.
● In the sketchbook, write down the questions above and your ONE-word answers to them.
● From your answers to each question, you will be creating a unique piece. (Example) Say your answers to the questions were that Jim appeared to be sad and the image felt cold. Do these feelings contrast or are they complementary?
● Use your answers to guide the shape, form, colors, size, and types of lines you will use in your own piece. Add notes in your sketchbook.
● Draw that shape, image, form in your sketchbook.
● When you have decided the sketch you like, create it on the white paper or white cardstock with the medium you chose.
Feel inspired, be creative, and have fun!