Michener Kids: Five Drawing Activities for Your Museum Visit
Looking at art in a museum can be a lot of fun. It’s even more fun when you get the chance to draw like some of your favorite Michener artists! Here are five drawing activities you and your families can do in the galleries to explore the artwork in a deeper way.
1. OBSERVATIONAL DRAWING
Draw an artwork or an object from an artwork carefully and accurately. Study the artwork and try to recreate its details in a pencil drawing. Use the frame worksheet to get you started!
Download: Museum Activity: Frame It! (.pdf)
Rationale: This drawing activity promotes focus, attention to detail, visual acuity and technical skills.
2. BEYOND THE FRAME
Imagine what is happening in the area beyond what is shown in the artwork. Artists make a careful decision to crop an image in a certain way choosing to show some parts and cut off others. What other people, animals, plants, buildings, shapes etc. might you find if you zoomed out to see more of the scene?
Download: Museum Activity: Beyond the Frame (.pdf)
Rationale: This drawing activity promotes creativity and critical thinking.
3. SHAPE DRAWING
Recreate an artwork using only simple lines and geometric shapes. Do you see any shapes or lines repeat throughout your drawing?
Download: Museum Activity: Shape Activity (.pdf)
Rationale: This drawing activity simplifies complicated objects by breaking them down into basic easy to draw shapes. It introduces students to some of the Elements of Design and promotes problem solving, critical thinking and the understanding of basic geometry.
4. BEFORE AND AFTER
Think about what is happening in the artwork. What events do you think led up to the action or event seen in the artwork? Draw what might happen before or after.
Download: Museum Activity: Snapchat Story (.pdf)
Download: Museum Activity: Before and After (.pdf)
Rationale: This drawing activity encourages creative storytelling and asks students to use clues from the artwork to interpret and elaborate. It promotes imaginative thinking, making connections, understanding cause, effect and sequence.
5. REINTERPRET
Look at a work of art. If you were the artist, what would you have done differently? Would you add or change something to the artwork? Draw your own interpretation of the artwork. Explain how your version and the original version are similar and different.
Download: Museum Activity: Make it Your Own (.pdf)
Rationale: This drawing activity encourages creative thinking and basic art criticism.
MORE ABOUT DRAWING IN THE GALLERIES:
- Remember only pencils are allowed in the galleries.
- Take your drawings home to add color with colored pencils or markers.
- Try using a Boogie Board or drawing app on an iPad for more drawing options.