Abstraction with Paper Pixels

Notes

Teacher-facing slide. Use before class to open any materials you will need. This slide can be skipped when presenting to students.

Say

Welcome to our first Fractal expedition: Pixels & Possibilities. In this expedition, we’re going to explore how artists and people working with technology can use simple pieces to create much more complex images and ideas. Expedition 1: Pixels & Possibilities introduces students to abstraction through a progression of hands-on, digital, and collaborative art experiences. Students begin by exploring how pixels work and how artists simplify images into recognizable forms, first creating pixel art on paper and then using Fractal Studio to experiment with digital pixels and resolution. They investigate how changing the number of pixels affects detail and abstraction, and connect these ideas to artistic traditions such as mosaics, pointillism, and quilting. In the final lesson, students apply abstraction, pattern, and repetition to design individual quilt blocks inspired by North Carolina nature and combine them into a collaborative class quilt. Across the expedition, students see how artists and computer scientists build complex ideas from simple parts, make intentional choices about what information to keep or remove, and use shared visual systems to communicate ideas and create together

Say

In Fractal, almost all lessons begin the same way, Think-Draw-Discuss. In these warm ups, you will have 90 seconds to do a quick sketch that may or may not include words to help you get into the lesson and settled for the day. Once you have made a basic sketch, there is a discussion prompt for you to share with your near neighbor

Do

Decide where students will keep their sketches over the course of the Fractal unit (e.g., journal, scratch paper) Give students approximately 90 seconds of independent think/draw time, followed by about 2 minutes of partner discussion.

Say

Here are some examples you may recognize: Star sprite from games similar Super Mario Bros., Roblox art style in Minecraft, and or pixel art from Among Us. What do these images have in common with what you drew or described?” Even though these images look different from one another, they all use visible blocks or squares of color to build recognizable characters and objects. Listen for words such as blocky, squares, video games, old-school, or digital to bring into the next slide.

Do

Invite 2–3 quick student observations. Use this as a bridge rather than a lengthy discussion. Minecraft and Among Us made by team in in Fractal tool Pixel inspired sprite start work via ChatGPT as

Say

Today we have three main goals. We’re going to figure out what a pixel and pixel art are, explore how pixel art connects to other forms of art, and then use what we learn to create pixel art on paper.

Say

Pixel art isn’t only something we see in games. Visual artists use digital tools to create artwork, animation, characters, environments, and graphics. Where else have you seen art that was created on a computer or another digital device?

Do

Take 2–3 responses. Possible connections include games, apps, websites, animation, digital illustrations, emojis, or social media graphics.

Say

The word pixel is short for picture element. A pixel is the smallest unit of color in a digital image. For our purposes, we can think of a pixel as one tiny square of color. On its own, one pixel doesn't tell us very much. But when lots of pixels are placed next to one another, they can form an image.

Do

Ask students to share their best guess by finger voting: Which image represents a pixel (1-3)?

Say

Pixel art is a kind of digital art created by arranging individual pixels into recognizable images. Because the artist is working with squares, they have to make decisions. Which details are important enough to include? Which ones can be left out and the image will still make sense? This idea—simplifying something while keeping its most important features is a big idea in our unit and connects both to artist and computer programming.

Do

Image: Composite image created in Canva featuring Wikichan

Say

Pixel art makes the pixels easy to see, but pixels aren't limited to pixel art. Digital photographs and graphics on a screen are also made from pixels. If we zoom in far enough, eventually the smooth-looking image begins to break into individual pieces of color.The more information we have to work with, the more detail we can usually show. When we have fewer pixels, we have to simplify more.

Do

Use the enlarged sections of the cat and flower to visually reinforce the transition from whole image to individual pixels.

Say

Although pixel art uses digital technology, the basic idea isn't entirely new. Artists have been creating large images out of many small pieces for thousands of years. This is an ancient Roman mosaic from Pompeii. Instead of pixels on a screen, the artist arranged many small pieces of material to build the larger image. “What similarities do you notice between this mosaic and pixel art?”

Do

Look for student observations about many small pieces forming one whole, repeated units, limited detail within each piece, or viewing the image from farther away.

Say

Artists have experimented with another related idea using paint. This work is “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte”, created by Georges Seurat in 1884. Why do you think this is called pointalism? Have you seen paintings made up of repeated shapes before? Where?

Say

Pixels are like tiles in mosaic artwork or dots in this painting. Up close, we can see that Seurat built areas of the image from many tiny marks and dots of color. This technique is called pointillism. Ask students to turn and talk: “What idea connects all three?” So we now have three different approaches: mosaics use small pieces of material, pointillism uses small dots of paint, and digital images use pixels. Conclude:And in each case, artists make choices about how much detail they need in order for us to recognize the larger image and that is what we will do today.

Do

Allow several responses, then reinforce: many simple parts combine to create a more complex whole.

Do

Teacher-facing slide to help gauge lesson pacing and highlight the four main parts of the lesson: Warm Up (5 min), Whole Group Instruction (7–15 min), Activity (15–25 min), and Closing (5 min). This slide may be skipped when presenting to students. Materials:Decide how you will have students access the lesson materials (e.g., stations, assigned material collections person)

Say

Your goal is to use graph paper to create a pixel-art image. You’ll start by choosing an image for inspiration from our collection or from an image here in the room or in your mind. Then, you'll recreate or reinterpret it using the squares on your graph paper as pixels. Finally, you'll share your piece with another artist. Distribute a half sheet of large-cell graph paper and coloring materials to each student. Make the Pixel Inspiration Images available digitally or provide approximately one printed copy per group of 4–5 students, as indicated in the lesson plan.You will have 20 minutes to create a pixel art inspired image.

Do

Tell students where to get materials (e.g., graph paper, colored pencils/crayons/markers, reference items)

Say

Here's an example of the kind of thinking you'll need to do. On the left, we have a smooth drawing of a heart as an example. On the right, the same basic idea has been recreated using squares. Notice that the pixel version doesn't include every curve or detail. The artist kept enough information for us to recognize the heart. Artists intentionally simplify images, especially with pixel art. They often start with a real image like a photograph or image in their mind. They ask, how can I simplify the design. What are the most important parts I want people to see?

Say

You have several inspiration choices with different challenge levels. Choose something that feels interesting and challenging. You don't have to reproduce the inspiration image exactly. You can change colors, simplify it, or use it as the starting point for your own idea. [Share with students where to find the sample images]

Do

Direct students to the printed or digital Pixel Inspiration Images. Students who need additional support may start with a simpler image or work with a partner; students wanting a greater challenge can choose a more detailed image. This aligns with the learner variability options in the lesson plan. Remind students they only have 20 minutes to make an image. To help you pick one quickly, we have small collection to inspire you. 1_1 Lesson 1 Abstraction with Pixels Materials: Inspiration Deck A

Say

You have about 20 minutes to create. Remember, the goal isn't perfect copying. Your goal is to communicate the important parts of the image using pixels. If you finish one image, you can try another challenge level or create a new pixel design of your own. Remember each square is filled with only 1 color

Do

Encourage students to color whole squares rather than drawing smooth curves across the grid. Circulate while students work. Ask questions such as: “Which feature is most important for someone to recognize your image?” “What could you simplify?” “What happens if you leave that detail out?” “How are you using the grid to help you?” Give a 5-minute warning before moving into sharing.

Say

Artists don't only make things—they also talk about the choices they make. Pair up with another artist. Each person will share their artwork and answer one or two of the questions on the screen. Make sure both people get a chance to be the artist and the interviewer.

Do

If time allows, invite 1–2 students to share something interesting they learned about their partner's process.

Say

Tomorrow we will use a digital art tool to make pixel art in the computer.

Do

If students do not bring computers to class each day, remind them to bring it for next instructional day and charge the device.

Notes

AmongUs Inspired Mosaic created by ChatGPT