Where the Wild Things ART: Drawing Monsters

Lesson Length:
7-10 Day

Materials:

Copic Sketchbook Paper or X-Press It Blending Card

Copic 6-Piece Secondary Tones (Sketch Set)
Copic 6-Piece Earth Essentials (Sketch Set)
Copic Multiliner SP - Orange 0.5 mm Ink Pen (Optional for Preliminary Sketch)
Copic Multiliner SP - Sepia 0.5 mm Ink Pen (Optional for Preliminary Sketch)
Colored Pencils

National Visual Arts Standards Applicable:

2C (7-9) Select and use qualities of structures and functions of art to improve communication of their
ideas.
5A (7-9) Compare multiple purposes for creating works of art.
6B (7-9) Describe ways in which the principles and subject matter of other disciplines taught in the
school are interrelated with the visual arts.

Objectives/Essential Learning/Teacher Point:

A. Students will discover the illustrations of classic childrens literature from artist Maurice Sendak.
Students will view various styles of creature/character art and shown the importance of environments
in creature/character story telling.
B. Students will examine comics and childrens art wherein creatures, animals, and/or monsters are
depicted showing human characteristics or engaging in human activities (anthropomorphism).
C. Students will create a monster/creature drawing with the Copic 6-Piece Secondary Tones sketch
set. Students will create an environment in the background and experiment with mixed media.

Procedure:
Day 1:
Students are introduced to Where the Wild Things Are and other books or illustrations created by artist
Maurice Sendak. Students will also look at character/creature art in various comics, video game art, and
cartoon movies to learn about the environments in which the characters reside.
Introduction of relevant art terms and techniques
Texture, shape, and perspective
Environment, foreground/background
Creation of 3-5 thumbnail sketches based on monster/creature ideas: sketches should include an
environment/background.
Day 2/3:
Completed Copic visual example is shown and final design process begins.
Once thumbnail is approved, students are given the Copic 6-Piece Secondary Tones and the Copic 6Piece Earth Essentials sketch sets. Students are asked to sketch out their background first, and then
sketch their creatures/monsters in the foreground.
Preliminary sketch should be done with one of the lighter colors in the sketch sets. Students are advised
not to start coloring their contour drawings until coloring, blending, and layering techniques are shown to
the class.
Students are asked to leave a portion of the paper open for a piece of text that will help tell a story about
the creatures and the environment.

Day 4-7:
Given review of demonstration of Copic 6-Piece Secondary Tones and the Copic 6-Piece Earth
Essentials sketch sets blending techniques, and textural mark-making for the creature and background,
students will use their sketch sets to complete their drawings.
Filling in the background first is advised because then the creature will be the final component of the
drawing and look closest to the viewer.
Once the marker rendering is complete, students are asked to add textures/layers on top of the drawing
with colored pencil or other chosen media with permission. As long as the marker is dry, most media will
layer very well on top of the smooth Copic-covered image.

Formative Assessment
- Reception of environment and character design
- Evaluation of thumbnail sketches
- Evaluation of contour drawing and use of markers in coloring process
- Continuous student critiques of in-process marker techniques/studio work

Summative Assessment:
Final project evaluated based on completion of studio objectives:
- Creation of creature and environment (foreground and background)
- Use of minimum six colors from Copic 6-Piece Secondary Tones and the Copic 6-Piece Earth
Essentials sketch sets
- Use of mixed media to add texture/layering to artwork
- Finished drawing minimal negative space unless empty space is necessary for composition
- Use of text to tell a story about the character/creature design

Vocabulary:

Childrens Literature
Anthropomorphism
Creature art
Comic art
Character design
Maurice Sendak
Character environments
Foreground

Background
Texture
Shape
Perspective
Contour line
Mixed media

Project Directions

1.

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human behaviors to creatures, animals, or objects.

Animals, creatures, and monsters doing human activities are found throughout comic art and
childrens literature; these often humorous scenes make even the strangest creatures/characters
relatable to our own lives as humans. This tutorial illustrates Copic techniques with Copic 6Piece Secondary Tones and the Copic 6-Piece Earth Essentials sketch sets, as well as mixed
media exploration.
The artist used a Copic Multiliner SP Sepia 0.5 mm ink pen for the preliminary sketch. Comic
characters are often defined by bold lines a Copic Multiliner is the perfect tool to create solid
shapes and forms in the contour sketch.

2.

The interaction amongst characters is often the focal point of a comic frame/image. Filling in the
background first and keeping it simple is a good practice so that is doesnt detract from
characters/creatures in the foreground. Keep in mind that some white space should be left above
or below the background, where text will later be placed.
Use (E39 Leather) to outline bold background textures. Layer (E34 Orientale) to fill in
remaining space, soften the dark aread and blend the two earth tones together.

To create a rocky layered texture as seen inside of a cave, use the chisel end of the marker and
create streaks across the image, slightly overlapping each streak to create contrast.

3.

The four greens combined from Copic 6-Piece Secondary Tones and the Copic 6-Piece Earth
Essentials sketch sets blend together beautifully. Blend the two lighter greens (YG13
Chartreuse) and (G02 Spectrum Green) together for the first coat of fur on the monster.
Add the two darker greens (YG17 Grass Green) and (G09 Veronese Green) for the darker
shadows and textures on the monster. Blend back over with lighter greens to soften dark areas.

Use (B41 - Powder Blue) and (B45 - Smoky Blue) for the second monster. The two colors are
very close on the color scale, and thus, when layered, will blend together very smoothly.

4.

When mixing media with Copic markers it is important to be aware of how the product will react.
Once the image is nice and saturated with beautiful Copic color combinations, colored pencils can
be used on top of the markers to emphasize textures, outlines, shadows etc. The two mediums
have the potential to create stunning effects when used together correctly.
As desired, add colored pencil on top of the image. The colors from the ink in the markers are
much bolder, brighter, and more saturated than colored pencils; it may require extensive layering
and applied pressure while coloring with pencils to transition the medium smoothly into the vibrant
Copic colors.

Finished Project

5.

Once coloring is completed, text can be added to the illustration to tell a story about the scene
and the characters. Text is normally added to either the top or bottom of the image. While font
style is up to the artist, it is important to have even, well-balanced text this presents a cleaner,
professional quality design.
Text can be created several ways. One good technique is to write the text as neatly as possible
with graphite pencil, and then outline the text with a Copic Multiliner. After allowing the Multiliner
to dry for about a minute, the graphite can be erased.
The image can also be scanned or photographed and then edited digitally, as seen in this image.
Editing digitally is the most common practice in childrens literature, although some artists still
prefer classic, hand-drawn art.