Dots by Chuck Close Chuck Close Artist Close

Dots by Chuck Close

Chuck Close, Artist • Close was born in Monroe, Washington in 1940. • His art focuses on portraits of himself and his family and friends, often produced at a very large scale • Close typically begins with a photograph of a face, creating a painting or print through a grid-based reconstruction of the image that he accomplishes by hand • His paintings are even more impressive, given that Close had to relearn how to use his hands following a 1988 spinal infection that left him a quadriplegic. • Close suffers from Prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness, in which he is unable to recognize faces. Due to this disorder, Close was first driven to paint portraiture.

Pointillism • Art technique that uses small dots of pure color close together that create a larger image • “Visual Color Blending” = where several colors seem to blend together to make a larger image • Concentric - objects share the same center, axis or origin with one inside the other • Concentric Circles – Circles that • overlap and share the same center

Student Work

Your Assignment • Bring in a picture (minimum of 4 x 6” print) of a person- picture can be photo or printed • Grid the picture with ½ inch squares • Grid the art with 1 inch squares • Redraw the image on the art paper • Color each grid square with concentric circles, minimum of 3 colors in each square. Try to match skin tones and values and shadows. • Use Colored Pencils