Paul Cézanne

It is January already and another new year. I think I want to introduce you to Paul Cezanne, a French painter who was born on January 19, 1839. He was born in a southern French town called Aix-en-Provence. He was often called the father of modern art because his paintings laid the foundations for the transition between 19th century art and a new different world of art in the 20th century. He was a Post Impressionist painter.
We have been discussing different types of compositions in class and I have chosen three of Cezanne’s paintings that demonstrate a still life, a portrait, and a landscape.

Is this a still life, portrait, or landscape?


What do you think this one is: a still life, a portrait, or a landscape?


How about this one: a still life, a portrait, or a landscape?

Also if you click on this title “Apples and Oranges” you can read more about Cezanne and see a still life and a self-portrait. You can view the slide show and see several of his works. There are some fun activities at the bottom of the page including some puzzles.

Wassily Kandinsky

As we end 2009 and start thinking about a new year, I wanted to introduce you to an artist that paints in an abstract style. His name is Wassily Kandinsky and he was a Russian painter born on December 4, 1866 in Moscow. His paintings just make me feel good when I look at them. I love the colors most. Take a look at some of my favorites and see if you would like to paint some similar compositions.







Kandinsky wanted viewers (of his paintings) to get the same emotional power from his compositions that one gets from listening to musical compositions. He felt music allowed the listener freedom of imagination and interpretation. He wanted to express his emotional perceptions with color and form in his paintings the way music expresses itself through sound and time. This led to the development of his abstract style of painting.



Kandinsky loved music, especially classical music and Wagner's “Lohengrin” (German opera) stirred him so much that he decided to devote his life to art, convinced of the emotional powers of music. He was one of the first modern artists who painted abstract shapes to express his feelings. He would listen to music and try to paint what the music made him feel. He wanted to paint the musical notes as if they were colors instead of sounds.



You can create a painting using this same method Kandinsky used. Gather your paints, brushes, water, containers, paper, paint shirt, and desk cover. Listen to some music (either classical or some you like) and close your eyes. Think about the way the music makes you feel. With your eyes still closed, imagine the sounds of the music as colors and shapes. What colors are you seeing? Are the colors bright or dark? Do the shapes have straight lines or are they soft and wavy? Open your eyes and try to paint what you saw in your mind.

René Magritte

I love the art work by René Magritte and wanted you to see some of my favorite pieces.

He often played with the positve and negative space in his compositions.

René Magritte was born on November 21, 1898.
He was a Belgian surrealist artist. Surrealism was a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and the art work featured unexpected juxtapositions and the element of surprise.

This one makes me laugh.
He died on August 15, 1967 after creating many "dream-like" paintings.
Do you see a recurring theme or an idea used more than once in his work?



I think this is my favorite. I hope you like his art work as much as I do.
Why don't you try your hand at making a surrealistic drawing? Here is a helpful hint to get you brainstorming. If ________ were __________. Think of something crazy like "if mice were hair" or "caterpillars were toothpaste."

Alberto Giacometti

Alberto Giacometti (pronounced "jocko-metty") is the artist I have chosen for our October artist. He was born October 10, 1901 in an Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. He came from an artistic background. His father was a well known painter from the Post-Impressionist period. Alberto was the oldest of four children. He was especially close to his younger brother, Diego. From the age of 14, he made many portrait busts using Diego as his model - a bust is a sculpture of a person's head and shoulders. So you see from the beginning, he was interested in art.
The image you see above is from the archives of LIFE magazine, which first appeared on January 1, 1966. It shows Giacometti with several of his sculptures.

He was a Swiss painter, draftsman, printmaker, and sculptor. I think I like his Surrealistic sculptures the best. He is famous for his elongated human forms. Since we have been studying 3D in both 4th and 5th grades, I thought you might like to see some of his sculptures.

Man Striding


Three Men Walking II


Nose 1947


Cat



In Bust de Diego (below), Giacometti shows his brother (who was not only his friend but also his assistant and critic). He shaped clay to make the figure and later cast the form in bronze.


He died January 11, 1966 at the age of 64, but left many wonderful art pieces behind for all of us to enjoy today.

Louise Nevelson

Louise Nevelson was born on September 23, 1900 in Kiev, Russia. Her family moved to the United States when she was very young. Louise grew up in Rockland, Maine and spent most of her younger years there. She married Charles Nevelson after she graduated from high school in 1918. She studied art during the years of her marriage, but this met with disapproval by her husband. After her divorce in 1931, she really began to study and create art.

Her sculptures were first shown in the 1930s. She is associated with several art periods, but became well known after embracing Abstract Expressionism. Louise began creating large, predominantly wooden "found object" pieces or assemblages typically painted jet black. Later she painted some in white and some in gold. Louise loved to use found objects or things that others threw away in her sculptures. She died on April 17, 1988 in New York City, New York where she had spent most of her adult life.

Look at the sculptures below by Louise Nevelson and see if you think you could find some found objects or recycle some materials to create your own relief sculpture or free standing one.




Mrs. N's Place


Night Leaf


Sky Cathedral


City on the High Mountain

Hale Woodruff

Hale Aspacio Woodruff was born on August 26, 1900, in Cairo, Illinois so he is one of our American born artists. I picked Woodruff as our artist for August because I just loved the painting below. It is called "Poor Man's Cotton."

Hale Woodruff was an African American artist known for his murals, paintings, and prints. He moved to and grew up in Nashville Tennessee. While in high school Hale was the cartoonist for the school newspaper.

After his art training he contributed to the development of African American art as an artist and a distinguished art educator. He was a leading artist of the Harlem Renaissance (an African American cultural movement of the 1920s and early 1930s that was centered in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City).

He died September, 1980 in New York City. His art work depicted his heritage. When painting, he used an abstract style and his prints were often made from woodcuts. Below is an example of one of his prints. This print is called "Returning Home."


Why don't you create a picture called "Returning Home?" You can do it in color or black and white and use your favorite art tools and materials.

Rembrandt

There are so many visual artists who have their birthdays in July; it is always difficult to pick just one for you to investigate. I think Rembrandt is who I will highlight this year.

Rembrandt van Rijn was born on July 15, 1606 in Leiden, Netherlands. He died on October 4, 1669 at the age of 63. He was a Dutch painter and etcher (that’s a special kind of printmaker). He is considered the most important painter and printmaker in Dutch history. Let me show you some examples of his work.

The Night Watch is one of Rembrandt’s most famous paintings because it is very large (11’ 10” X 14’ 4”), shows the perception of motion and the use of light and shadow. Let me introduce to an art term: chi•a•ro•scu•ro (kee-ahr-uh-skyoor-oh). This is the use of light and shade to show feelings or share drama. Rembrandt was a master of chiaroscuro.

He also did self-portraits every so many years during his life. I picked out three for you to study.
1628


1655


1658

If you want to learn more about Rembrandt van Rijn and create your own self-portrait click on the following and read the information provided.
http://www.nga.gov/kids/rembrandt-is.pdf