Abstract Faces

For this project, you are going to create an abstract portrait in the style of Picasso.

You will need the following materials or substitutes:

pencil
paper
oil pastels
scrap mat board
plastic utensil

First here are some definitions that you need to know:

Abstract Art: Art in which the subject is color, line, and shape rather than recognizable forms or a picture you can identify.

Portrait: A work of art that represents a specific person, a group of people, or an animal.


Take a look at some Picasso portraits:
 

Notice how the faces look "scrambled" and how different paintings communicate different feelings.

 

Now begin a sketch in your sketchbook that uses just shapes to represent the face and facial features.  Turn your paper 90 degrees and continue adding facial details.  Turn your paper 90 degrees again and add some lines which show texture.  Turn your paper one last time and add some patterns for the background.  Remember to draw large, so that your composition fills the page. 

Make several sketches and then combine the best features and draw a final sketch on your mat board scrap with a pencil.  Then begin applying color using oil pastels.  You can blend and mix colors, and get different values by using your finger (or a piece of cloth over your finger to keep the pastel off of you).  After you build up some pastel on the surface, you can scrape it away to create lines that reveal the color underneath.  This is called a subtractive painting process.

Be creative and have fun!

Mr. Jordan