maandag 17 juni 2013

Castle and Sun, like Paul Klee


Artworks are made by students of grade 4
You need:
  1. printed drawing sheet 
  2. crayons
  3. watercolour paint 
  4. brushes
  5. jars with water
On the Italian art blog  Arteascuola from Miriam Paternoster, I came across this terrific art lesson about Paul Klee. Be sure to visit Miriam's blog, it's great!

Paul Klee (1879 – 1940) is a German/Swiss painter. His work belongs to modern art. Klee developed mainly as an autodidact and left more than 9000 artworks. In 1912 he saw the work of Picasso and Malevich and met Robert Delaunay, who believed colour is the most important element in a painting. After a trip to Tunisia in 1914 Klee started to paint more colorful and abstract. He painted landscapes, portraits, animals, mythology, mysterious machines. In his work he combined abstract and figurative shapes. Klee 's work cannot be described in one single word. Surrealism, cubism, abstraction are terms which are applicable to his paintings. He is classified by expressionism. (Source: Wikipedia)

Print any text on drawing sheets or choose an old book page. I had chosen the Wikipedia page about Paul Klee. Show Klee's artwork 'Castle and sun' and discuss the characteristics: Klee used just squares, rectangles and triangles. What colors are used?

The students use a crayon in a color that contrasts with the watercolor paint (sharp point to make thin lines) and draw a frame around the text. Then they draw a building consisting only of rectangles, squares and triangles. Do not use a ruler, because the text provides sufficient support.
Paint with watercolour. Choose cold or warm colors. Do not allow the same colour next to each together.