VISUAL ARTS GRADE 8 NOTES

ARTS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP.

This involves selling artworks in order to earn a living.
Costing of artworks
This is the process by which an artist determines how much each work
costs.
The price of an artwork is determined by considering all the costs
involved.
Factors to consider in costing of an artwork
 Cost of materials
 Time taken to produce the work
 Hourly wage
 Market price
 Overhead costs, ie the direct costs incurred during production of
the artwork.

Factors that influence a consumer’s purchasing decision.

 Function of the artwork, it may be for personal use or for
decoration.
 Size of the artwork
 Economic factors
 Social status of the buyer.
 Aesthetic aspects of artwork. This refers to the beauty of the
artwork.
 Packaging or presentation of the artwork.

Key factors in packaging or presentation

 Frames- they should complement the artwork.
 Mounting- proper mounting should be done to prevent damage of
the artwork.
 Presentation – this is exhibition. The showroom should be well lit
with enough space and proper arrangement which impacts the
viewer’s experience.
 Communication skills of the seller.
  Be polite, clear able to convince the buyer.
 Physical appearance- first appearance of the seller that is
meeting the consumer is salient. A well -dressed seller, proper
facial expression attracts the customer.

PICTURE MAKING
Drawing
Two -point linear perspective
This is a way of creating illusions of depth and space on a flat surface
line.
Two- point perspective involves creating two vanishing points on the
horizon line.
Components of two perspective
Grade 7 notes
Painting
It’s the process of applying paint on a surface.
This art can create pictures.
Cool temperature
This helps attract the viewers, invites emotions, and create room for
mood.
This is the coolness or warmness of a colour.

Imaginative seascape composition

Seascape is a photograph, painting or other work of art which depicts
the sea.
The ground is typically a distant sea, clouds and possibly distant cliffs.
Example is a coastal view with rocky shore.

The Colour wheel

This is circular diagram with an arrangement of colours that shows the
relationship between colors.
Analogous and complementary colours are clearly seen on the
wheel.

Analogous colours.
These are colours that exist next to each other on a colour wheel as
they create harmony and uniformity when used in a composition.
Complementary colours
These are the colours that appear to directly opposite each other on a
color wheel. They contrast or appear opposite or different when placed
side by side.
They do not have any common color between them.
Cool colours
These are colors that show calmness. Cool colours include green blue
and purple.
Cool colours are those in the green, blue and purple family.
Warm colours.
These are colors that are in the red, orange and yellow families.

Task: Creating a seascape painting using warm colours and

cool colours.
Materials needed.
 Drawing paper
 Paints with warm colours.
 Palette
 Paint brushes.

Symbolic Meaning Of Colors

Different colors represent different aspects in life.
People across the world associate with colours with different
symbolisms.
Cultural symbolism
Some cultures associate black color with death.
Some cultures associate red color with strength, courage.
Conventional symbolism
This depends on how majority of people in the world give meanings
of different colours.
Blue – represents water on a map.
Green – represents vegetation
And on traffic; red represents STOP, GREEN represents GO while
YELLOW or AMBER represents GET READY.
Emotional symbolism
Colours are used to show our emotions or how we feel.
Cool colours like blue, purple, and green show calmness, relaxed
mind or even sadness.
Warm colours like yellow orange and red show warmth and love.
These can be symbolized by the colour of the clothes we wear.

MOSAIC
This is a technique of creating a picture by cutting and pasting one
type of material onto surface to create a pattern or an image.
Mosaic is characterized by use of colour and tonal range to create
depth or 3 dimension effect in a composition.
Characteristics of a mosaic
 Materials- They are of the same type for example tiles, papers,
leaves, glass, stones, egg shells, pebbles and fabric.

 Tonal variation- This involves using different shades or colours of

tesserae (small pieces) to create and highlight the mosaic
artwork. This is done by changing the darkness or lightness of the
small pieces. It eventually makes the mosaic more visually
interesting.
  Spacing- This is the intentional spaces left during sticking of the
tesserae when creating a mosaic. The narrow spaces left are
called the interstices.
Mosaic can be used in interior decoration which is furnishing or
decorating spaces inside the house or offices.
It can also be used to make decorative mosaic arts to mount in spaces
for beauty.
TASK: Creating a paper mosaic landscape pictorial
composition.
A landscape involves artwork features on land surface like
mountains, water, hills and houses.

Materials needed.
 A pair of scissors
 Drawing paper.
 Pencil
 Adhesive/ glue, glue stick.
 Colored papers or magazine papers
 Brush or other application tools.

MULTIMEDIA ARTS
Traditional 2 dimensional animation.
This refers to any form of visual arts that exists in two dimensions such
as drawing, painitng, prints and photographs.
Media for creating 2 D media
 Pencils
 Charcoal
 Ink
 Water colours
 Oil paints
Note: Most traditional fine arts are 2 D.
Animation
This is the rapid display of a sequence of images to create an illusion of
movement.
A FLIP BOOK
This a drawing book that changes gradually through the book, intended
to be made to seem animated by flipping pages fast.
A good flipbook should have a painted background.

Features of a good flipbook

Sequencing of images
This involves arranging objects in a such a way that they appear to
change position from one page to the other in a sequence.
Frequency of the images
It is the continuous speed in which the frames are seen when being
operated.

Materials and tools used.

They include paint brushes, glue or staples, pencil, clips and paints.
Background
Animation requires background since the background makes it appear
real.

Importance of a flipbook
 Offers entertainment
 Educates and demonstrates processes.
 Showcase art and creativity.
 Advertising

GRAPHIC DESIGN
Logo Design
A logo is a symbol or other small design used to identify an
organization or company.
Examples of logos;
 Advent hill school logo
 Kenya forest service logo
 Pathfinder logo
 Adventurer’s logo
 Airtel logo
 Safaricom logo
 Starlink logo
 Olympics logo
 Toyota logo
 Facebook logo.
Features of a good logo
 Simple – easy to understand.
 Versatile- should look good.
 Timeless – should be relevant for many years.
 Memorable- should be remembered easily
 Relevant – relevant to the product or the company it represents.

Forms of logos
Image logos
They use a specific graphic element to represent a brand or a
company. For example, the facebook logo.
Letter logo
It uses single or many letters.
Mostly initials of a company like NSSF, NHIF/ SHIF.
Word logo
It uses a full name of a brand as a primary visual element to represent
the brand for example; Google.
Combination logo
This is made by combining image and word, image and letter or word
and letter. For example; unicef, Safaricom etc.
Designing a logo.
Materials needed to design a logo.
 Water color paints
 Drawing book
 Eraser
 Pencil

Steps in designing a logo with two contrasting colours.

 Identification of the symbols to be used
 Selection of letters types and styles
 Colouring
 Refining the design.

Designing an institution logo

Procedure
 Decide on the name and the product of the company.
 Choose the form of logo
 Make different sketches of the deisgn.
 Choose the company colours.
 Complete by refining the logo.

TRADEMARK
This is a symbol word or combination of symbol and a word used to
identify and represent a product or a company.
Trademarks are designed in image, word or combination of image and
words.
Symbols used to indicate trademarks.
Importance of trademarks
 Creates a brand recognition as it makes it unique
 Encourages customers to pick out items easily
  Companies are able to tell their products from others in the
market.

Ornamentation of objects
Ornamentation is the process of adding decoration to objects to
make them look more attractive in appearance.
Yarn ornamentation
This involves decoration of objects using yarn.
Yarn is a long material of fibre that has been twisted for weaving or
knitting.

Categories of yarn fibres

 Synthetic fibres – also known as manufactured yarn like
polyester, acrylic and nylon.
 Natural fibre – they are gotten from plants and animals like
linen,cotton, sisal, flax, jute, silk, wool, mohair.

Task: decorate a bottle with different colours of yarn.

Paper Ornamentation
This is achieved by using ornaments made of paper to decorate items.
Some of the techniques used in paper ornamentation are;
 Twisting
 Curling
 Folding
 Pleating
 Gathering

Factors to consider when collecting the papers

 Texture- some papers are smooth, rough, or soft.
 Colour- color interests the eye.
 Weight- this is the thickness or heaviness of the paper.
  Paper finishing- this is the treatment applied to the paper to
enhance appearance.
Types of paper used to create a paper ornament
 Kraft paper- thus is a brown paper with a rough texture.
 Tissue paper
 Crepe paper
 Newsprint paper
 Strawboard paper
 Construction paper.
Objects that can be decorated using paper ornamentation
 Table lamp
 Flower vessels
 Wall hanging toys
 Cards
 Necklaces.

Decorations that can be made out of paper

 Geometric paper bowls
 Rolled paper flowers
 Paper chain snake
 Abstract 3D wall art
 Paper wreath
 Fruit slice bookmarks
 Paper ball garlands

Importance of using paper ornamentation

 This method is cheaper
 It easier to re- use with little environmental impact.
 Encourages creativity.
 Encourages concentration
 Develops motor skills.

INDIGENOUS CRAFTS
Sculpture
This is an artistic form in which materials are worked into a 3D art
objects.

Types of sculpture
 Sculpture in the round- freestanding, exists on its own and can be
viewed from all directions.
 Relief sculpture - this is viewed from two dimensional
background.
 Mobile sculpture- this consists of s series of shapes, found from
materials such as wood.
 Found sculpture- These are found in natural state. They have a n
interesting shape.

Principles of sculpture
 Balance- keeps the sculpture stable since there is even
distribution of visual weight.
 Movement- gives the sculpture a flowing appearance
 Dominance- gives special attention to particular parts of the
sculpture.
 Contrast- creates visual interest
 Unity and harmony- all elements work together smoothly
 Proportion- ensures the sizes of different parts appear balanced.

Assemblage and construction

This is the process of joining found objects to make new artwork.
Materials used in assemblage
 Wires
 Wood
 Sheet metal
 Papers
 Fabrics
 Rubber
 Buttons
 Hairs
 Fibres
Factors to consider when choosing assemblage materials
 Weight of the materials
 Joining techniques
 Display space
 Size

Modelling technique
Done in grade 7

Casting technique
This is the art of dropping or pouring liquid or other materials such as
pulp of paper mache onto a container to make its shape.
The container is called a mould.

Pottery
Materials used in pottery
 Clay
 Thin wire
 Sieves
 Buckets
 Wedging table for wedging clay

Properties of clay
 Porosity- must be able to absorb water air and other fluids.
 Plasticity- elastic quality of clay.
 Vilification- must be able to stay converted.

Slab technique
Done in grade 6.
Pellet technique
This is a technique used in pottery that involves use of small balls of
clay joined together.
The small balls of clay are called pellets.
The vessels can either be functional or decorative. Some of these items
include pots flower vases, plates cups, and decorative items such as
lamp stands.

Factors to consider when modelling a vessel using pellet

technique.
 Size of the balls.
 Even pressing of the wall/pinching.
 Smoothening / finishing.

Methods of joining pellets

 Moist to moist method – this pressing them together when they
are wet.
 Slip method – using thick clay paste or slip as an adhesive to join
the pellets.

Firing modelled vessels in an updraught kiln.

Firing is heating the modelled vessel in a kiln to make it hard and
durable.
Firing uses high temperatures to harden the modelled equipment.

An updraught kiln.
This is a kiln used for firing ceramics, pottery and other materials.
The main use of an updraught kiln is to heat and cure the clay to
create ceramics, pottery or other products.
Fuels that can be used in an updraught kiln are firewood and charcoal.
An updraught kiln has the following parts.
 Chimney – allows air to flow in and controls the temperature.
 Damper – regulate the entry of air and to control temperature.
 Stack area – this is where pottery items are arranged.
 Firebox- this where the fuels burn and generates heat at the fire
chamber.

WEAVING
Pile weave
A pile weave is a technique of weaving rugs, carpets and mats whereby
loops of fabric or yarn are formed on the cloth surface that extends
above the initial weave.
This technique uses three sets of yarn or fabric.
The first two yarns are used as the base/ground and the third one is
woven over to create a brush-like thread on top of the ground weave.
Finishing techniques of a woven wall hanging.
 Knotting
 Tasseling (trimming, alignment, uniformity, color alteration)