Events & Activities
Tools and Techniques
Grades: 1-9
Length of Tour: 1 hour
Tour Description
Students discover the materials and methods artists use in creating paintings, sculptures, and other art forms. At the primary level, it introduces and compares basic tools and media. At the middle school level, students see how an artist’s work is characterized by the materials, techniques and processes that he or she selects. In upper grades, students learn how the influence and impact of scientific developments have advanced artistic techniques and expression. Students will make meaningful connections between art and scientific concepts that have changed over time.
Goals
- To identify types of art and the tools used in their creation
- To explore the different media, techniques, and processes artists use
- To use appropriate art terminology to describe artworks and processes
- To use the knowledge of tools, techniques and scientific concepts to better understand the visual arts
Rationale
Artists choose their media based on both preference and availability. Each medium has distinctive characteristics, benefits and challenges; each artist must understand the chosen medium and make it work toward a desired effect. Through careful observation and understanding of science and history, students can evaluate how a medium affects the nature of an art object.
Topics
- Types of tools employed in painting and sculpting and other forms of art
- How artists use various tools and diverse materials
- The characteristics of different media such as oil, tempera, gouache, ink, clay, metal, etc.
- Comparing and contrasting media, techniques and processes
- Basic physical and scientific properties of visual arts media – glazes, paints, printing, photography, etc.
- Application and influence of scientific concepts in creating art including optics, chemistry, metallurgy, science of color and light, etc.
Arizona Education Standards
Visual Arts Standards
Strand 2: Relate
Concept #1 Artworlds (PO 001, PO 002, PO 103, PO 105)
Concept #2 Materials, Tools, Techniques (PO 001, PO 102, PO 203,
PO 304)
Concept #3 Elements & Principles (PO 001)
Concept #4 Meanings & Purposes (PO 001, PO 203)
Concept #5 Quality (PO 203)
Strand 3: Evaluate
Concept #1 Art Issues and Values (PO 002, PO 204)
Concept #2 Materials, Tools, Techniques (PO 001, PO 202, PO 302)
Concept #4 Meanings & Purposes (PO 001)
Concept #5 Quality (PO 001)