The Secrets of Orchids By Mary Erickson Ph
The Secrets of Orchids By Mary Erickson, Ph. D. and Jennifer Pooler, Arizona art teacher with 3 rd grade students at Kyrene de la Paloma Elementary
Many people appreciate the beauty of orchid flowers and also get vanilla from orchid beans. Scientists study orchid roots trying to solve the problem of finding clean water for people to drink. This is called biomimicry. Artists study orchids looking for interesting artistic problems.
People keep orchid plants to enjoy their beauty. Orchid flowers can be fancy or simple and can be many different colors.
Scientists study how orchids live in the rainforest. The plants grow high in the trees to get sunlight.
They hold onto the tree with their roots.
Do you like vanilla ice cream, vanilla cookies, vanilla pudding, or vanilla frosting? Vanilla flavor comes from the beans of a special kind of orchid that grows on a vine.
Plants that can attach themselves to vertical surfaces and get water nutrients from the air. Such plants are called epiphytes. This orchid is an epiphyte that lives high on a palm tree.
Orchids like this one have “air roots” that can get water directly from the air.
The left photo shows the dry roots of an orchid. The right photo shows the same roots full of water. How do the roots change when they are wet? [Epidendrum is a species of orchid. ]
Scientists have studied the inside of orchid air roots to find out how they collect water from the air. • The center works like a pipe that takes water from the roots to the leaves and flowers. • The middle layer is made up of living cells. • The cells in the outside layer are dead. They work like a sponge to soak up water from the air.
There are places in Africa where clean water is not available. Women walk miles every day to collect water. And that water is not clean. Scientists are working to solve this problem through biomimicry. They made a nylon mesh to mimic the outer cells of an orchid’s air root. Rain, fog and dew condense on the mesh.
They designed a light, bamboo structure. The orange mesh hangs inside the bamboo structure. The water drops that collect on the mesh run down into a large bowl. People can fill their water jugs from a faucet in that container.
Like scientists, some artists look for inspiration from nature. Jose Benavides’ problem was how to create a cactus garden with recycled aluminum. Jose Benavides Alumguaro Aluminum cans and automobile wheel covers
Like a scientist, you will study nature by observing and analyzing orchids. As an artist, you will solve four problems. How to: 1. Work with oil pastel and watercolor, 2. Show the organization of shapes in an orchid flower (called bilateral symmetry), 3. Use changes in light and dark (called value) and 4. Organize visual elements in your final painting.
You will first make a sketchbook to record your observations and plan your final painting.
Fold white paper to make four pages. Fold heavier paper to make a cover. Add a title and your name to the cover.
Glue the first and last pages to the inside of the cover to make your sketchbook.
When something is the same on both sides, it has bilateral symmetry. That is, the two sides are mirror images of each other. Many things in nature have bilateral symmetry like animal faces and butterflies. HINT: Bilateral means two sides.
Some flowers have bilateral symmetry and some do not. Which two of these flowers have bilateral symmetry?
All three of these are bilaterally symmetrical orchids, even the fancy one in the middle.
See how the two sides of the flower mirror each other.
Look carefully at photographs of orchids to study the shape of the petals. Look for the bilateral symmetry.
On the first page of your sketchbook, use a fine-tip marker to draw an orchid flower. If you use a petal template, trace around it to make one side, then flip is over to make the other side.
Next, you will observe how things in front block out parts of things behind them. Notice how the smaller seal in front overlaps the larger seal behind. Which is in front, the black or the spotted bird?
Study photos to see how orchid roots look and how they overlap. Draw overlapping orchid roots on the second page of your sketchbook.
The color of some orchid petals have gradual value changes. This means the color changes little by little from dark to light.
On page three of your sketchbook, use oil pastels to show gradual value changes in the color of an orchid flower. Draw the orchid first with pencil. Trace over the pencil with oil pastel. Press harder at the outside edge of each petal to make a dark value. Press more lightly to make a lighter value in the center.
On the last page of your sketchbook, start to plan your final work. This student has finished her sketchbook and is planning her final painting.
Your final orchid painting should: 1. Show orchid flowers with bilateral symmetry, 2. Have gradual value changes, and 3. Have visual elements organized with: a. changes in scale (size), b. at least on thing that crosses the edge of the paper and c. contrasting warm and cool colors.
Look at your sketch as you make your final drawing with pencil on a larger sheet of paper.
Trace the outlines of your drawing with oil pastel.
Add value changes by pressing more land more lightly. Notice that this student used value changes on the stem as well as on the flower.
Use watercolor to add even more gradual changes in value. Using more water with less paint makes lighter values.
Finally, in your painting use both warm colors (yellow, orange or red) and cool colors (blue, purple, and green). If you made cool flowers, make a background with warm colors.
Or add a cool watercolor background if you made warm colored flowers.
Finally, give your painting a title and write about your work.
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