Notan Drawing

Discover the power and MAGIC of NOTAN design and art principals. This website has 150 examples of outstanding notan art, design, and photography. The following art compositions are created in Mr. Peter Tiner's art program at Laguna Beach High School. For the past 25 years, Mr. Tiner has worked diligently to teach his students various creative techniques and artistic processes. From drawing to photography to painting, Mr. Tiner constantly encourages his students to explore different artistic media and challenges their creative thinking. Notan Drawing is an aesthetic reflection of Mr. Tiner's art program at Laguna Beach High School. The art students developed these drawings and photographs with a design emphasis on the interaction between positive white and negative black shapes playing off each other. The idea is to create the illusion of light on paper through the use of dark shadows. Light has energy and we can visually control it through the use of tone and value. "Paper is to light, as pencil is to shadow, we are creating "lighting illusions" on paper through the use of shading. Our job as artist's is to master the shadows", Mr. Tiner's sayings. The class studied various design aesthetics from Japanese woodblock Notan studies of the eighteenth century.

(Example of Japanese woodblock design)

Additionally, the students studied 8th - 9th century Cambodian Khmer design.

(Example of Khmer Design)

Contrast organically drawn natural forms in pencil and pen & ink, on geometric shape, the students incorporated lessons of design including static & dynamic shapes, the golden mean and its application to design.

According to Mr. Tiner, "Visual Art is meant to be a journey created in the eyes touching the heart and mind. Creating Notan is to develop balance between all aspects of the visual experience. We are all looking for harmony, balance, and equilibrium. Visual art can create this experience, if you know how to develop it in your art expression through guided instruction. The following artwork was inspired by looking and drawing from the natural world around us. When viewing the artwork please blow the images up to see all the beautiful details. Thank you to all the art students listed for sharing their artwork with the Internet public. Enjoy .
Peter Tiner

From Art 1 to Advanced Placement Art Studio, Notan Drawing is regularly updated with recent compositions from Mr. Tiner's classroom. Please revisit for updates.