Student Art from Oregon

Last week I received this email:

“Attached is a photo of the O’Keeffe Poppy Mural we made for our school’s auction this year. It was completed by Ms. Kenney’s 3rd and 4th graders at Westridge Elementary in Lake Oswego, OR. We used acrylic paint on canvas paper and then attached them to a large 30x40 canvas. The original sold quickly at the auction and raised a lot of money for our PTSO. We also sold reproductions that were scanned prior and printed on a smaller canvas. Thanks so much for the download and guidance!  — Jennifer Pahl”

Thanks so much Jennifer for sharing your school’s work, which got incredible results with acrylic paint and canvas paper. I have to try that combo myself . . . very soon!

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Overlapping Matisse Shapes

I combined an overlapping lesson with Matisse-like shapes to make a colorful drawing exercise. You could begin by talking about how Matisse didn’t start painting until he was about 20 years old, but then would paint morning, noon and night for pretty much the rest of his life. He eventually became a key figure in the world of modern art.

1. I had a lot of scrap chip board on hand and first gave the students several squares and rectangles they could spread out on their paper and trace for the background.

2. I passed out organic-looking shapes I had cut from posterboard to imitate the leafy and flowery shapes in many of Matisse’s most famous paintings. My students were just kinder and 1st grade, so they got a lot of tracing practice. Older students could draw these shapes freehand. To make the organic shapes look as if they were all in front, all lines inside of them were erased before coloring.

3. All shapes were traced in oil pastels and colored in as solidly as possible.

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La Boca House Collage

La Boca is a neighborhood, or barrio of the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires and is a popular destination for it’s colorful houses. Looking at lots of photos of these amazing buildings is a good way to start this project.

1. I discovered these really cool Fiskar paper crimpers at JoAnn Fabrics, and brought several to class. Older students can try to roll the paper themselves, and younger ones can watch a demonstration to see how they work. I started with giving each student a white background paper, and then lots of crimped paper to experiment with. I prefer the nice stock used for scrapbooks, but I think any construction paper will do.
2. Ask the students to cut large rectangles and matching roof shapes for their homes, and distribute white glue for attaching them to the white paper. The buildings should all be sitting side by side. Rotating the texture adds interest to their collage.
3. Finally, flat paper may be drawn on with a marker to create windows and doors. These shapes are cut out and glued to the buildings.
CA Visual Art Standard: Creative Expression, Grade One
2.7 Use visual and actual texture in original works of art.

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