The Percivals 2014 – Activity Book

PERCIVALS THE ACTIVITY BOOK

This book belongs to:

Hi I’m Tarra, and this is my friend Paige, and we are here to guide you through this Activity Book!

I like to paint and draw my family to tell our stories, so I’ll be teaching you about the Glencore Percival

Portrait Painting Prize, a biennial exhibition that celebrates the art of portraiture!

I like to take photos of my friends, so I want to teach you about the DUO Magazine

Percival Photographic

Portrait Prize!

These three symbols show you what to do in each activity in this activity book:

Cover image: Michael Muir Sail Home (Portrait of Yhan Leal), 91 x 91cm, oil on canvas, 2014 Glencore Percival Portrait Painting Prize entry

Key Terms: When a word is followed by this symbol you can come back to this page to check what the word means!

APPROPRIATION

Borrowing someone’s idea, for example an artwork, and then changing it to make it your own. The original must still be recognisable.

BIENNIALE

An exhibition that happens once every two years.

CROSSHATCHING

When vertical and horizontal lines cross over each other creating dark and light spaces.

ENVIRONMENTAL PORTRAITS

Photographs or paintings of people in their own environments and with objects that describe them.

FACIAL EXPRESSIONS

Using our facial muscles and features to respond to emotion.

MANNERISMS

A distinctive gesture, habit, or way of doing something.

PAINTING

The action or skill of using paint either in a picture or decoration.

PHOTOGRAPH

A picture made using a camera.

PORTRAIT

A painting, drawing, photograph or engraving of a person. A portrait of a pet is called an animal portrait.

PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY

A photo of a person that displays the expression and mood of the subject.

POSTURE

The way a body is positioned when sitting, standing or lying.

SELF-PORTRAIT

Portrait of YOU made by YOU – commonly made using a mirror or photograph.

SITTER

A person who poses or models for a portrait.

Draw an eye for your portrait * .

1. Draw a pointed oval shape.

2. Choose the direction the eye is looking in, and draw these shapes!

3. Colour in the eye with pencil, just like you would shade a round ball!

4. Use an eraser to make a reflection in the eye!

Copy the steps above and draw an eye in the space below.

To add shading, notice how the example above uses crosshatching * .

Dot-to-dot

Complete the picture by joining the dots to reveal a secret portrait! *

Grid Method

Some artists use a grid method to create an accurate portrait from a photograph!

Image: Daniel Campbell Grant, 59.4 x 42 cm, Digital Print, 2014 DUO Magazine Percival Photographic Portrait Prize Entry

THE PERCIVALS ACTIVITY BOOK

Copy the line, shade, tone and shapes in each grid box to the left to appropriate * this photographic portrait * using a pencil. Make your own changes to give it a new meaning!

Fun Colours

Some artists create portraits that use unrealistic colours. Here are some examples:

Images:

1.

1. Henri Matisse Green Stripe (Madame Matisse) 1905; Oil and tempera on canvas, 40.5 x 32.5 cm, Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Copenhagen

2. Andy Warhol [no title] from Marilyn 1967, Screenprint on paper, 91 x 91cm, collection of Tate, image © The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc./ARS, NY and DACS, London 2009;

3. Joshua Miels The Perfectionist, 160 x 130 cm, Oil on Canvas, 2014 Glencore Percival Portrait Painting Prize entry

3.

2.

Now it’s your turn! Use the template on this page to create your very own appropriation * of Leonardo da Vinci’s famous portrait Mona Lisa!

Environmental Portraits

Sometimes portraits * include objects, furniture or animals that tell us about the sitter *. These are called environmental portraits * .

Look at Holbein’s The Ambassadors. The objects on the table hint at their profession. This is an example of an environmental portrait.

The photograph below is also an environmental portrait. Explain why:

Images:

1. Hans Holbein the Younger The Ambassadors 1533, oil on oak, 207 × 209.5 cm, collection of National Gallery, London

2. Ian Hitchcock Baby Whisperer [detail], 27.94 x 35.56 cm, Digital Print, 2014 DUO Magazine Percival Photographic Portrait Prize Entry

1.

2.

I use a camera to take photos of objects for Tarra to draw later! Try drawing from photographs, or make a collage!

Create your very own environmental portrait in the space below. Include objects that belong to the sitter or sitters.

Body language

Body language is a combination of posture *, mannerisms * and facial expressions * that can communicate a person’s feelings or personality.

Look at this photographic portrait * of Winston Churchill by Yousuf Karsh. His expression * is stern and his gaze is direct.

Look at the way he is standing. His posture * tells us that he is a strong and bold character. His hand on his hip gives us the impression that he is important.

Select a work from the exhibition and describe your impression of the person.

What does their body language say about the person’s character?

Image: Yousuf Karsh Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill 1941, gelatin silver print photograph, 34.3 x 26.8 cm, collection of National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, image © Estate of Yousuf Karsh

Choose your favourite portrait or animal portrait * from the exhibitions and answer the questions below. You might need to use the key terms* in the front of the booklet.

What kind of portrait is it?

Who is the sitter? (Or what kind of animal is depicted?)

How do you think the sitter feels?

What is the sitter doing? Is there a story?

WORD FIND - KEY TERMS

Find these words below, they are from the Key Terms * page.

Hint: Most of the words are vertical (going up-down) or horizontal (going side-to-side), but ONE word is diagonal, it is going both side to side and up and ONE word is backwards!

THE PERCIVALS ACTIVITY BOOK

PLANNING A VISIT

Free guided tours are available, and for further information, or to give feedback on education and public programs provided by the Gallery contact: Michael Pope | (07) 4727 9679 | michael.pope@townsville.qld.gov.au

GALLERY SERVICES

Through Gallery Services, Townsville City Council owns and operates two premier regional galleries, Perc Tucker Regional Gallery in the city’s CBD, and Pinnacles Gallery located within the Riverway Arts Centre in Thuringowa Central.

THE PERCIVALS 2014

The Glencore Percival Portrait Painting Prize, which was first held in 2007, attracts a significant number of entries from all corners of the nation and promotes the pursuit of excellence within the genre. The Glencore Percival Portrait Painting Prize 2014 offers a $40,000 major acquisitive prize, with the winning work entering the City of Townsville Art Collection to be appreciated by future generations in perpetuity.

The DUO Magazine Percival Photographic Prize 2014 at Pinnacles Gallery coincides with the Glencore Percival Portrait Prize 2014. This marks the inaugural year for the DUO Magazine Percival Photographic Prize 2014, which expands The Percivals to now include entries of all forms of still photography. The major acquisitive prize of $10,000 is awarded by Duo Magazine and Pinnacles Gallery, Gallery Services, Townsville City Council.

FUNNY FACES: KIDS PORTRAIT ART WORKSHOPS

Sundays throughout the exhibition at Perc Tucker Regional Gallery, from 10.30 - 11.15am. Enjoy a free workshop at the Gallery, where kids can make a collage portrait. Drop-in workshop with all materials supplied. No bookings required.