Abstraction vs. Realism

Now that we've tackled abstract art using lines to create shapes and mixing colors, K1 is ready to move on to Realism, and is learning how to put lines and shapes together to create more complex forms, and break down objects so that they are easier to draw. 

We began by discussing what a still life is, and that it is important for artists to draw from observation because the act of looking and observing helps artists become better at their craft. We read Mouse Shapes by Ellen Stoll Walsh, and talked about how the mice created all sorts of objects by putting different shapes together. We observed that a mouse's face is more triangular since it has a pointy nose, while our own faces would be better represented with circles or ovals. We then looked at some of the objects in our own still life set up and talked about the shapes we could use to draw them. We saw how Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso used shapes to identify the objects in their still life paintings. 

We were then ready to draw!

In Day 2 of our Still Life/Realism unit we are focusing on pattern and color. We talked about what a pattern is and how we can use almost anything to make a pattern as long as we repeat it many, many times. We read Pattern Fish by Trudy Harris and looked for pattern in the room and even on ourselves! We viewed still life paintings by Henri Matisse and observed how he used patterns in his backgrounds, almost like wall paper.

Using oil pastels, students drew patterns in the background of their still life drawings, as well as on the tables. They then colored in the objects in the still life.

                          Stay tuned for the final phase of our project- watercolor resist!