Mark Rothko - Exploring Colors and Emotion

Today we began our class with a short slideshow introducing the kids to the work of Mark Rothko. We discussed the difference between realistic art and abstract art. We looked through many of his pieces and noted how we felt about each. Colors can both represent emotions (for the artist) and illicit emotions (in the viewer).

Then we began our project. Following the style of Mark Rothko, the kids were asked to fill their pages with solid blocks of color. After their pages were filled we talked about how they felt when they looked at their creations. The kids were VERY prolific!

 Hope you enjoyed these!

Welcome to the city!

If you thought last weeks prints were amazing (and they were), just wait until you see what the kids made with them!

We began this weeks class by prepping a background for the prints. Although technically the background was supposed to be the sky, the kids were free to paint it in any way they chose. Most chose to experiment with color mixing. Here are a few pretty and examples of the varied approaches the kids took:

After finishing the watercolor backgrounds, the kids moved on to cutting their building prints from last week out. This was a bit challenging because finding the "skyline" in some of the prints was difficult. After cutting out the buildings, the kids glued them on to their backgrounds, beginning at the top of the page and moving down. The layering of the prints added a beautiful depth to each city scene -- and the buildings themselves showcase so much of each artist's style and personality.  Enjoy!!

 

 If you have a chance to swing by school, these pieces will be hanging in the main hall starting tomorrow (Wednesday, 1/11). These are really worth seeing in person-- and are going to look spectacular hanging as a group.