Owls, Peacocks, Patterns!

Mona Lisa Parodies

Fifth and sixth grade artists created original parodies of the World's Most Famous Painting, the Mona Lisa.  What similarities can you see between the original and these parodies?

What do you know about the Mona Lisa?  Click here to read "50 Fantastic Facts about the Mona Lisa!"

Matisse Paper Cut Out Shapes

"It is not enough to place colors, however beautiful, one beside the other; colors must also react on one another. " - Matisse 

First and second grade artists made "shape collections" inspired by Matisse's paper cut outs. 

 

Click here to read more about Henri Matisse from MoMA.org

Click here for an interactive tour of Matisse's work from the Baltimore Museum of Art 

About Henri Matisse 

Henri Matisse grew up in the northern part of France. His father was a grain merchant and strict with Henri. He went to school in Paris and studied law. In 1888 he passed the bar and took a job as a law clerk. 

Becoming a Painter 

In 1889 Henri came down with appendicitis. During his recovery his mother got him some art supplies for something to do. He fell in love with painting and art. He decided he wanted to become an artist. His father was very disappointed. 

Henri began to explore painting. His mother encouraged him not to follow the normal rules of art, but to try out new things and to paint his emotions. 
In 1897, Matisse was introduced to impressionism and to the work of van Gogh. It opened up a new world to Matisse. 

Early Works 

Matisse painted his first masterpiece in 1897. It was called The Dinner Table. He continued to paint being influenced by artists such as van Gogh and Cezanne. He studied the works of J.M.W. Turner as well and even took on some of the style of Pointillism from Seurat. 

Fauvism 

In the early 1900s Matisse developed a new style. He began to paint with bright masses of colors that were freely applied. He used the colors to express emotion often using colors that had nothing to do with the natural colors of the subject. One critic called them "fauves", which meant "wild beasts". The name stuck and their style of art was called Fauvism. 

Cutouts 

In his later years, Matisse began to experiment with cutouts. He would cut out colored paper and make collages. He released a book of these cutouts called Jazz that was very popular. Some of his cutouts have become famous pieces of artwork including The Blue Nude, The Knife Thrower, and Icarus. 

Legacy 

Matisse is considered one of the founders of Fauvism art. He is also considered one of the leading figures of modern art as his paintings and art influenced many artists throughout the 20th century. 

Interesting Facts about Matisse: 

• He was good friends with artist Pablo Picasso. They later became rivals.
• Major patrons of Matisse included Americans Gertrude Stein and the Cone Sisters. They purchased a number of his paintings. He also introduced them to Picasso, whose paintings they also purchased.
• He ran a small art school called Academie Matisse in Paris between 1908 and 1911.
• Some of his paintings have sold for over $20 million.
• Movie star Al Pacino is set to play the role of Henri Matisse in a movie called Masterpiece.

Click here to read more about Henri Matisse from Ducksters.com

Children looking at Matisse's work at the Tate Museum 

Footage of Matisse Making his Paper Cut Outs 

Roy Lichtenstein and Onomatopoiea

Pop Art!

In the 1950s and 1960s, young British and American

artists made popular culture their subject matter. 

By incorporating logos, brand names, television and

cartoon characters, and other consumer products 

into their work, these artists tested the boundaries

between art and everyday life. 

Roy Lichtenstein was one of the originators of this 

new pop movement. Fascinated by printed mass 

media—particularly newspaper advertising and 

cartoon or comic book illustration—Lichtenstein

developed a style characterized by bold lines, bright

colors, dot patterns, and sometimes words.

The art of today is all

around us. 

Roy Lichtenstein

"America's Worst Artist Ever??"


What is ONOMATOPOIEA?

"Splat, Giggle, Moo"


click here to learn more about Roy Lichtenstein from the National Gallery of Art 

Harvest Bean Mandalas

As the art teacher, I frequently have random boxes and bags of supplies appear in the art room.  One of the donations that I was most excited about was a bag of jar kids. Kindergarten, first and second grade artists used these lids to create Harvest Mandalas using different types of beans and seeds.

More Mandalas

Fifth and sixth graders are finally finishing their mandalas, which we started back in September in celebration of International Dot Day. 

Click here to see more mandalas by fifth and sixth grade artists. 

Collograph Printing

Third and fourth grade artists learned about collograph printing.  Collograph comes from the french work for glue, colle. Can you think of another art term that has the same root?  

Each student created a plate based on a nature word.  We used a combination of natural objects and found or recycled materials to create our plates.  Through much trial and error, we discovered that we had the best luck with printing our plates when using damp paper and acrylic paint.  

Stay tuned to see how third and fourth graders integrate these prints into some writing around their nature words.  

Collograph plates 

Collograph prints 

Kindergarten Nighttime Adventures

Kindergarten artists looked at the book "Flashlight," by Liza Boyd  (a Vermont Artist!).  They took themselves on an imaginary outdoor nighttime adventure.  These paintings show what they saw.  

Robbie

My picture is the night when there are a lot of stars and I see a pile of gold.  There’s a big golden finger cloud on top of me and it’s shooting out a claw.  

Adelaide

This is gold around the trails and this is a flower and there are clouds and there is a star.

Navin

I am in India and I see a rainbow grasshopper with a bird.  

Lyla

My picture is all about Night.  I always see the stars making an animal or a shape.  They are making a porcupine.   There are stars and a moon.

Hannah

I am out searching for animals and I see my dog Tess.  

Madden

Mine is about a big giant monster with a porcupine and some rocks.  

Wyatt

I see a rainbow in the sky.  I see snow.  I see a golden rock.  

Waylon

This is gold on top of a spider.  I am making a rainbow.  

Lola

It is a picture of a deer and a bear and me shining my flashlight on the moon and five stars and two trees.  

Oliver

I see a white-tailed deer and a lake that’s golden.  

Irissa

I am going to draw a person and my cat and my mom and my sister.

Zach

Andrew

A boy was going to a place at nighttime and on his walk there he shined his flashlight on a bear and he saw some fish and a diver.  

Logan

It is the sky.  There are stars and moons.  

Ryan

All of this is about animals technically, like bears, dogs and any animals in the world.  I made a meteor.  

Ashley

It is about porcupines.  They are getting some food.  

Silas

This is a white-tailed deer and this is my flashlight and this is me.  

Dylan

This is a storm and this is my costume.  I am a wolverine.