emma pyle

ed tech + innovation

Tag: freeinquiry (page 1 of 1)

December 1, 2023 / 0 Comments

Free Inquiry – 10

All done, and considering my little studio room is still out of operation, I went for simple this week. I watched a great video for my link-to-practice inquiry about embracing limitations, and how that can get people thinking creatively. I think limiting my drawing really benefits me on occasions, as I can relax a bit and focus on line making over quality of colour, for example. I drew the New Zealand Robin with a ball point pen, inspired by Neva Hosking’s artwork. I have been following her for 8 or so years now, and find her work very inspired by life and so detailed. She often works with ball point pen. The bird eats small bugs found among leaves, and usually is found in the forest. It is also known to distract prey from its young by performing and dancing around.

I think students should get some opportunities to work with permanent mediums, even if it is just a ball point pen. I don’t think you need anything fancy to get started, and while most of my art supplies are not inexpensive, pen is definitely accessible. I also love the idea of permanence, and I think having to move on and move around mistakes can be really beneficial. It can be a bit paralyzing sitting down to make artwork when you have too much as far as supplies go, like Phil says in the video. Sometimes it is best to start small and see where it takes you. Neva has made an entire career (a successful one) out of pencil and pen drawings on often times scrap paper. I think that should inspire students to just start!

I am giving this one to my new neighbour downstairs who happens to be my boyfriend’s brother.

December 1, 2023 / 0 Comments

Free Inquiry – 9

My favourite bird, the European Robin! I decided I couldn’t possibly paint it again, but wanted to represent it somehow. I always get my needle felting out around the holidays for little ornaments as it feels like a cozy thing to work on. I had all the colours I needed to work on it, and it always takes less time than I think I need. Both male and females have similar colouring, featuring the bold orangey throat and belly. While they look very sweet, they can be very aggressive and territorial. They live predominantly in gardens, eating mainly insects. They are also very skilled at hiding nests, especially when nesting around humans.

Needle Felting

Needle felting is super fun to do with kids, even if it is much more abstract than a bird. The only issues that arise are poking yourself and having the needle break if they aren’t using them correctly. I have a lovely stash of roving from Knotty by Nature, which is an amazing local textile store that is also keen to give helpful advice. One thing I notice kids struggle with is pulling the roving apart, usually choosing to try tearing it when it easily comes away by pulling lightly more vertically. One thing I’d love to try, is using squares of felt for mouse ears, or tiny sewn clothing, as well as beads for eyes instead of roving. As long as students are adequately poking, the end result is often really great, and I have made many totoros and mushrooms with the kids at work. I find felting a pretty low mess situation, and other than the roving the supplies are very affordable as all you really need is a needle and thick foam block .

I’m going to give this one as a little Christmas present, likely to my grandma as she likes little pieces like this (especially birds).

November 5, 2023 / 0 Comments

Free Inquiry – 7

European Pied Flycatcher

This guy is more my style, the last few weeks I have struggled a bit with the final outcome and they haven’t been what I consider to be my best work. I felt like I was back on track with this bird, a little puffy and round. The EPF calls deciduous woodland home, using moss, roots, and bark to create their nests. It can lay up to 11 eggs at once, which are pale blue in colour. They are also commonly found in old holes left my woodpeckers and other types of birds.

Copic Markers

Copic markers were extremely popular when I was in high school, and I often regret the hundreds of dollars I spent on them. Once in a while I bring them out, as I like how they blend and the brighter colours (not pictured here) can be pretty fun to add to the odd composition. I think markers are a good thing to know about, as they lend themselves to a lot of genres of art that are popular amongst kids (manga and comic books). They can be great for building knowledge around colour theory, and are quick to use over paint. I have seen similar brands at my link to practice, and it is clear they are well loved. I like that it is possible to buy replacement ink for them to minimize waste. Similarly to posca pens, it is crucial to ensure students use them respectfully as the tips can be broken pretty easily with extra pressure.

As for who gets this one, I want to send it to my teacher from high school who gave me all of her resources recently! So kind of her and I feel very thankful to have her in my corner.

October 9, 2023 / 0 Comments

Free Inquiry – 3

Week three features the Hermit Thrush. It is found all over North America, in Boreal forest and open woodland. What I didn’t know, was that it is a ground dweller, and constructs its nest on the ground. Both the male and female look similar, with dark olive-y brown and spotted underparts.

I decided this week I wanted to try working digitally, as I liked the idea of including a screen capture of how I paint. I can see I don’t stay and finish one spot at a time, but rather move around with similar colours which I believe creates unity in the piece. I find digital work both easier and more difficult, as you can use references more easily, but lose the pencil and paper feeling I love so much. I have a “paper” screen protector that I should likely replace at this point, as it has been well loved. Procreate is one of my favourite tools, as it is a one time purchase, unlike so many subscription based services (photoshop for example). I find it is much easier to use than adobe software in general, as I have a strong dislike of the pen tool in illustrator. There was a lot of talk in my fine arts program about the validity of digital art compared to traditional medias, and I don’t think it is any less valid, as long as it is shown in a professional way with considerations to tech or printing. Price of an ipad aside, I find this is becoming a more popular medium amongst teens and there have been more classes offered featuring digital arts in high schools. It can open a lot of doors for students, and if feasibly possible I find it is a fun tool to bring travelling instead of carrying paper/paints/pens around.

October 1, 2023 / 0 Comments

Free Inquiry – 2

Back again this week with a pencil crayon drawing of two Warbling White-eyes, on the standard mixed media card.

Considering the fact I use pencil crayons rather often, I chose to make the composition slightly more difficult and used a reference with two birds. The birds in question are Warbling White-eyes, also known as Japanese White-eyes. I’ve enjoyed both weeks now listening to the bird call, and my cat seems to enjoy it too. It is native to Asia and travels in vocal flocks through forests, urban areas, and farmland. They are fairly common birds, not endangered in the slightest, and were introduced to control bug populations in Hawaii in the 1920s. They are omnivorous and love fruit, are very social, and can live to be 5 years old.

Prismacolours! My preferred type of pencil crayon. My favourite colour is green, and I love being able to find references and animals/birds where I get to employ the best Prismacolor of all time, lime peel. They blend beautifully, although I didn’t find myself blending at all, but layering colours instead. They can be applied very softly and I find them much easier to use than something like a crayola. I was happy to see that they have full packs of them to use at the school I have been at for my link to practice, as it is nice to have access to higher-quality supplies at the high school level. While these pencils aren’t necessarily cheap, I like that you can buy one at a time, as I go through them at different rates and you don’t have to sink too much into it initially while trying them out. Overall, I find their texture satisfying, and I love the ease of bringing pencil crayons out into the world with me. They often come camping or travelling as it isn’t such a messy endeavour.

This card is for my family friend Hallie, who has just started University in Vancouver at Emily Carr. I’d like to send her something as this is her first time living away from home and I am thinking of her often as I’m excited for her. I enjoyed receiving mail when I first moved out from her and her younger sister, and I’m sure it can’t hurt to send her some in return give or take seven years later.

Photo by Kawasaki Toshihiro on Unsplash

Photo by Kawasaki Toshihiro on Unsplash

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