The Art of Ronnie Vazquez
Classroom Resources
Looking for some new ways to keep your young artists challenged outside of the classroom?
Here are some tried-and-true exercises, templates, and notes to help them
think outside of the box-- from the comfort of your own home, at their own pace.
All you need is some paper, some pencils, and an open mind to get you going!
All examples shown are either my own or work from past students, shared with their permission. Exercises and prompts are adaptations of popular, pre-existing methods used by artists around the world and I claim no idea as exclusively my own unless otherwise noted. Any templates made available on this site are of my own design unless otherwise stated, and are free to download for personal use.
Intro To Comics
Resources and notes assembled to aid students of my in-person class with Woodstock Arts GA. Original class description below:
"Over the course of six-weeks, students will learn the basic fundamentals of comics and storytelling through guided drawing exercises and writing prompts suitable for beginners and established artists alike.
By the end of the course, students will have a completed mini-comic tying together all the skills they’ve learned, as well as a small body of work showcasing their growth and understanding of sequential storytelling."
Skills Prioritized: Storytelling and Character Design
Monster Mash
Students are given a sheet with a fill-in-the-blank box for Eyes, Mouths, Ears, Arms, and Legs.
We then roll various numbered dice to determine how many of each body part their monster design must-have.
The colors and patterns are left to them to decide on their own to create a unique monster design.
For an extra challenge, mix it up by using table-top roleplaying game dice that have more than 6 sides, like the popular 20-sided dice (but maybe hold off on the 100-sided ones).
Skills Prioritized: Improvisation and Individuality
Shape Designers
Students are given a sheet of pre-made shapes. They then must create new characters, objects, or scenes using those shapes as the main element in their illustrations.
Encourage them to turn the paper and shapes around, viewing them from all angles to see if their impressions change.
For an extra challenge, set a short time limit from 10-15 minutes to keep them from over-thinking and rely on their intuition and first-impressions.
Skills Prioritized: Flexibility and Creativity
