EDCI 706 – Bonfire

Procreate Tutorial

Procreate is an ultra-versatile art app that allows for all sorts of image creation and editing. With digital art becoming more and more prevalent, having tools like this as an option for students is increasingly important. I have used procreate for a long time, but I have not looked at it through the lense of an educator. I have gone through a few artworks I’ve created using the app and would like to talk about how the methods used for making them can be applied in the classroom.

Seen above is a small logo I made for a friend, it was the first time I had worked with creating text. Procreate provided a means for me to take what I had drawn on paper, move it to digital, and edit/tweak it within a system that supports technical detail. Normally working with perfect lines and edges is challenging and with little room for error. Procreate allows you to individually edit angles and lines degree by degree allowing for a much more streamlined and much less frustrating workflow. For students wanting to delve deeper into things like logo making and graphic design procreate can be an easy step in the middle that doesn’t require learning a complex new program

Above is an album cover I made for a friend. Procreate can provide an easier approach to image editing than photoshop with most of the key features intact. Things like autoselect, applying filters, and creating layers you can spin an image any way you like. The process of drawing on top of images is much easier in Procreate. Rather than needing a drawing pad and an insane amount of hotkeys, you can get started with minimal prior knowledge. My main issue with photoshop has always been that it is difficult to figure out without extensive guides. Procreate is a much easier program to get started on in my experience.

The built-in and downloadable brush libraries for Procreate allow you to create nearly any texture or linework within one program. Experimentation is the name of the game. There is also no punishment for failure as you can undo what you have done with the touch of two fingers. Being able to play with new ideas without fear of ruining an art piece has let me work in ways I never would have otherwise.

Finally, Procreate is just an interesting tool for making drawings or digital paintings. I do not have a steady hand, I tend to work too quickly at times and screw up a piece. For people like me Procreate is a godsend, allowing me to work with detail I would never be comfortable doing on paper. The skills you develop on the screen or paper carry over more often than not, so providing alternate ways of working that may be more comfortable for certain students comes at no cost to their learning. Obviously some projects will have to be done physically, but there is a clear opportunity for things like procreate to gain even more traction in coming years.

A Brief Aside on the Conflict Between Artistry and Teaching in a K-12 Setting (Jesse Miller)

Image credit: Dr. Jörg Bittner Unna

As a practicing artist, one is expected to have social media, it is a tool for spreading your work like no other. However, this has the potential to directly clash with the teaching profession. Having accounts on tictok, Instagram, or whatever else allows for the possibility of a crossover with students also using these platforms. One solution would be using a handle, but if you already have a functioning practice it is a hard ask to just throw aside the reputation associated with your name and current customers.

For an experienced artist who would want to pivot into teaching, it could end up being difficult. Especially if they have a background in work with more mature subject matter (for example paintings scenes from warzones). Students will look up that teacher’s name, and will likely find explicit content. But what lines do we draw with explicit content? Gore, horror, nudity?

I have a core memory from high school of the day we tackled the holocaust in History 12. I watched naked dead bodies thrown into mass graves with no censorship on the class projector. That experience was incredibly important for understanding just what World War 2 was and how horrific it had been. Adult topics are not necessarily bad for students but managing the line between self-expression and giving people the opportunity to take advantage of students must be clear. The issue lies in how we can define people’s work when art is at its core subjective.

FIPPA and Social Media with regards to the Classroom (as an artist)

The Importance of Internet Education

In the modern world social media is ubiquitous.
However, ubiquity does not mean that limits should not apply.
Students filming and posting within school settings is a guarantee. There is also an extremely high chance they will be putting personal information online through social media, gaming, or any other method. I think there is no way or reason for us to stop this. Thus one of the things we can do for students is teach them how to operate safely in online spaces and the laws we have in place around such places.
Media literacy and proper online safety are some of the most important tools to place in the hands of the current youth. Unlike current generations who have had to pick up these skills outside of the classroom, this group has the chance to learn these things in a classroom setting. This means they can be operating safely from a much younger age than previously. With the dangers of catfishing, misinformation, and however many other evils of the digital age bearing down more than ever, these skills are truly vital.