Luscious Layered Landscapes

Create beautiful layered 3-D scenes in the striking style of famous Canadian artist, Ted Harrison. The unique technique? Glue! It dries clear!

• 1.

  Discover a contemporary artist! Ted Harrison paints majestic vistas, such as those in Canada’s Yukon, with bold lines and colors. Find some of his illustrations and discuss his painting techniques. Harrison uses wavy lines to break up space and create perspective. He chooses bright and unusual colors and simplified shapes. Tiny creatures accent his work.

• 2.

  Choose a scene. What landforms are found where you live? Rolling hills? Sand dunes on a beach? Mountains? Think about how you can use color and line to communicate the beauty of your area much like Harrison does when he paints Canadian scenes. How do the colors change at different times of the day?

• 3.

  Experiment. Sketch your ideas with Crayola® Erasable Colored Pencils on paper. Just erase if you change your mind! If you like, include tiny, whimsical figures. Experiment with different color combinations until you achieve a pleasing effect.

• 4.

  Make wavy glue lines. With your sketch as a guide, use Crayola School Glue to outline your picture on white or light-colored construction paper or white foam board. Air-dry the glue overnight.

• 5.

  Fill the spaces. Use thick layers of Crayola Twistables to color in the spaces between the white lines under the glue. Mix colors to get unusual hues. Lightly buff the color with a soft tissue.

Benefits

• Children learn about contemporary Canadian artist Ted Harrison’s dramatic artistic style.
• Children analyze Harrison’s style for painting landscapes and adapt it by drawing familiar terrain to show perspective.
• Students design and create a colorful landscape that is reminiscent of Harrison’s style.

Adaptations

• Use black construction paper or foam board to create dark lines with the glue. Fill the spaces with Construction Paper Crayons, which draw beautifully on black. Does it remind you of stained glass? What other color backgrounds might be interesting?
• Study the geography of a place that is much different than where you live. Create a new landscape based on your studies. How would you create a scene on the moon, in the middle of the ocean, or another planet?
• Experiment with placing different shades and hues next to each other. What different looks can you create when you place complimentary colors next to each other?