Art Curriculum- Week 17/18- Expressions in Color

Art Curriculum- Expressionism + Abstract Expressionism

Movements: Expressionism/Abstract Expressionism (who knew?!)

Last week we did 2 paintings, one on expressionism and one on abstract expressionism. We smashed 2 projects into one week because the past 8 days I've been on vacation in Italy (maybe I'll have a blog post coming about that too... *hint hint*)

Expressionism: a style of painting, music, or drama in which the artist or writer seeks to express emotional experience rather than impressions of the external world.

What you will need:

-brushes (we used the cheap foam sponge brushes)
-watercolor paints
-multimedia paper

I allowed each child to pick their own colors. A limit of three. We made our backgrounds (which we tried to give a vaguely checkered pattern), then I instructed them on making their swirly trees.

I think they all turned out beautifully.

I don't know why it refuses to post right side up!

Abstract Expressionism: a development of abstract art that originated in New York in the 1940s and 1950s and aimed at subjective emotional expression with particular emphasis on the creative spontaneous act (e.g., action painting). Leading figures were Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning.

(See how I emphasized spontaneous there?)

What you will need:

-tempera paints
-multipurpose paper
-brushes (any kind/any sizes)
-a timer (optional)

This one was a challenge for the kids! We always focus on making the smooth and tidy strokes, planning and gliding along. This required the kids to be spontaneous and limited how much they could do.

This one is fast, so you could do multiple pieces and experiment in different ways.

First you plop 2-3 colors on every child's paper in random splotches or patterns. Because they each have their favorite color they pick EVERY SINGLE TIME I deliberately gave them colors they never use or don't like! That already made them uneasy.

We gave them 30 seconds.

That was too long, a lot of the kids work turned to mush. I suggest (depending on your age group) 10-15 seconds.

Finished trial of the first.

The second time everyone got the same colors. And we didn't time it, instead we went one brush stroke at a time. For the younger ones this was a bit difficult and they required a lot of guidance. Each child could brush up/down/diagonal/big/small. But they could ONLY do one stroke.

It was interesting to watch.

The finished results of the second trial.

Overall: Both projects were quick and fun. However if your kids are younger, they could find it challenging. Abstract art is hard to grasp.

Related blog posts:

-Cubism Portraits
-Watercolor Winter Scene

(logging 2 1/2 hours for prep and execution of both projects)