Pixel Art Animations
Grade/Content Area:
5th Grade- Digital Art
VA SOL’s:
5.9 The student will use contemporary media to create works of art.
Lesson/Unit Overview:
With the recent popularity of video games whose graphic mimic that of older games, Pixel Art has become an artistic aesthetic that student are becoming increasingly familiar with. In this project student will be exposed to Pixel Art as a form of digital animation, identifying how digital art is different from and similar to traditional methods of art making in terms of meaning making, time, effort and artistic process. The final proejct will be an animated GIF of an INANIMATE object that they will animate.
Objectives:
The Student will
Create an animated GIF of a pixelated everyday object
Translate their observational drawing skills to a digital format
Explore the history of Animation from Eadward Muybridge’s experiments to modern cinema
Create a “cheat sheet” for the basic tools of Piskeapp.com for their class’s use
Enduring Ideas:
Animating the Inanimate
Materials needed:
Graph Paper, Colored Pencils, Sketchbooks
Technology:
Chromebooks, Instructor Laptop, Projector
Lesson 1:
Demonstration/Direct Instruction:
Walk students through the lay out of Piskel App.
Guided/Independent Practice:
Students will make Class “cheat sheet” for all Buttons on left hand tool-bar, including Name of button, Description of tool and an image made using the tool. Instructor will have cards with button images on them for this purpose
If time allows students will have time to play with the program, gathering experience with the app and with their own troubleshooting
Assessment/Closure:
SMARTEST ARTIST Questions;
What is a Pixel?
What does the ____ Tool do?
Lesson 2:
Demonstration/Direct Instruction:
Introduction to Pixel Art
Where have you seen Pixel Art as a style before?
How is pixel art different than “traditional” art? Like Painting or Sculpture?
Show Pixel Mona Lisa and Painted Mona Lisa
Using pixels we must simplify shapes and lines to suggest an image. Making something look realistic isn’t realistic for this medium.
Guided/Independent Practice:
PIXEL ART worksheet
Create a picture of an everyday inanimate object by filling in the squares.
Start with shapes, Square, circle etc.
Once you are done you may begin transcribing your drawings into PISKEL
Assessment/Closure:
Exit Ticket (https://drive.google.com/open?id=10Aksdw6_h-Uw5EKIQ4YH1LdK82R0a97QLfxLrGWZib0)
Lesson 3:
Demonstration/Direct Instruction:
Animating the Inanimate
Students discuss what they know about animation. Instructor begins with the story of Eadweard Muybridge and his motion experiments.
Animation is creating the illusion of movement with a sequence of frames that rapidly appear in order
What does it mean to ANIMATE the Inanimate
Guided/Independent Practice:
Demonstration of creating FRAMES in Piskel
Students are asked to create a basic, looping animation of 5-10 frames making their inanimate object move
Assessment/Closure:
Smartest Artist Questions
What is a Pixel?
What does the ____ Tool do?
What is a frame?
What did Eadweard Muybridge do?
