Instructions for Navigating this Course
What you can expect from each unit
There are 6 units in this course, including an introductory unit. Each unit is designed to last one week, requiring at least 5 hours/wk.
In each unit, you'll find a number of different documents. The documents are arranged in the order in which you should view them.
- The first document in each is the Lesson for that unit. Lessons introduce new terms and techniques for drawing with a focus on plant subject matter. Please read each lesson carefully before attempting the exercises for that unit and email the instructor if some concept or explanation is not clear to you.
- In some units, you'll find printable guide sheets where certain aspects of the lesson are explained in further detail. Some units also have supplementary lessons and exercises that are optional. They are meant to provide a different angle in the explanation of the lesson in case the first mode of explanation fell out of line with the way you learn.
- Below each lesson is a Reading Assignment from the text, Botanical Illustration Course with the Eden Project, which will clarify the concepts and provide some illustrations to aid your understanding of the material. Required reading is entirely from the text, while optional reading comes from other texts as noted. More information about these books can be found in the Work Cited document under the Additional Resources unit.
- Below the reading assignment, you'll find either warm-ups or exercises, where you will have the opportunity to experiment with the lesson through drawing. Warm-ups are not due for submission to the instructor, while Exercises must be submitted by the date specified. You can upload the exercises for submission by following the directions below.
- After the exercise, you'll find a Journal Entry. This is mandatory since it keeps an open dialogue between you and the instructor, and is a means through which we can get to know you. It provides a chance for critical reflection, and is meant as a place for you to pause and reflect on some aspect of your art or work.
- Lastly, each unit has a Student Open Forum. This provides an opportunity for you to communicate with fellow students; one thoughtful posting per week is suggested. Often, conversing with students at the same stage relieves stress you might be experiencing as you learn. Once you open the forum, you'll have the opportunity to either Reply to a fellow student's comments by clicking on the title of their discussion and then hitting Reply at the bottom left of their comment, or you can begin an entirely new discussion by selecting the box 'Add a new discussion topic'.
Simple Instructions for Submitting your Exercises
You will submit your assignments and to some degree, this will be a product of the kind of hardware you have available to you. You may use either a scanner or a digital camera; a scanner is preferable since it will preserve the original format of your artwork much better than a camera will. We do understand that size can be an issue with a scanner, so if you have a piece of artwork larger than your scanner, you may take a digital photo of it and indicate the scale to the instructor via an email.
The instructions for scanning documents vary depending on the type of scanner you're using, but some generic instructions are given below:
- Make sure your scanner is turned on and is properly installed into your computer using the software that came with it.
- Find and click on the program on your computer desktop that you use for scanning. This might be HP PrecisionScan Pro, Epson Scan, or Adobe Photoshop, depending on which program you usually use. Make sure that a window opens so you're ready to scan.
- Load your piece of artwork face down on the scanner bed so that it is aligned with the arrows corresponding to a document of its size.
- After closing the scanner door, you will scan your document. You may see an icon that you can click to scan simply, or you may have to select File>Import>Twain (or whatever the name of your scanner is) if you are using Adobe Photoshop.
- If you have an option such as Scan To, you want to select an image file. Please scan all images as either .jpg or pdf files so that the instructor will be able to open them. You'll also want to use the Save As option to give your file a name. Please name the file with your initials, followed by the Unit number, followed by the number of the exercise. For example, if Jane Doe were submitting Exercise 2 from Unit 4, she would save the image file as jd-4-2.jpg. Please save your own copy of each, in a folder labelled with this course on your computer, as well as sending a copy via the Upload functiom of Moodle under that exercise to the instructor.
The other option for making an electronic version of your work is to take a digital photo.
Suggestions:
- You may want to scan your images as grayscale rather than color or black and white, since grayscale is better at picking up mid tones from your pencil, and the other two options might overlook some of your important pencil marks in a search for bolder lines or color.
- You may also want to resize your document so it takes less time to upload. Ideally, it is best if the instructor doesn't have to scroll through your document to see the whole thing at once. Try to save it in dimensions that can be printed on a single side of standard 8.5 x 11 computer paper so the instructor can print and view it on a page, rather than only on the computer screen.
- When scanning multiple files, I suggest scanning them all at once in one pdf. If you get an error message saying 'invalid json string' it means that the image is too large to upload.