Abstract art
Focus Questions
1. Before you watch the Abstract art story, record what you think abstract art is.
2. Complete the following sentence: `Abstract art represents things you can’t see like…’
3. Abstract art is always created using paint. True or false?
4. Name a famous abstract artist.
5. Where is Aelita Andre’s exhibition being held?
6. How much did one of her artworks sell for?
7. In the BtN story, Kirsty’s artwork was done in the style of which famous artist?
8. What do you think makes a good piece of abstract art?
9. Does an artwork need to make sense to everyone who looks at it? Explain your answer.
10. How has your thinking changed about abstract art since watching the BtN story?
Abstract art
Students will explore what abstract art is and create an artwork in the style of a well known abstract artist such as Kandinsky, Pollock or Mondrian. Begin by asking students what they know about abstract art and what they would like to find out. Record their responses on a large sheet of paper. Students will then use the Internet to research the topic. Some possible questions to consider are:
· What is abstract art?
· Who were some well known abstract artists and what influenced their work?
· What are some elements of abstract art?
Students can view examples of abstract art at the following websites:
Piet Mondrian http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/mondrian/
Wassily Kandinsky http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/kandinsky/
Jackson Pollock http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/pollock/
Students choose an abstract artwork to respond to using the following questions to guide their response:
· What do I like or dislike about the artwork? Why?
· What emotions does the work evoke/ how does it make me feel?
· What colours are used? What does this communicate?
· What materials are used? Why might the artist choose these materials?
· What does the title of the artwork tell you about the meaning?
Students will then create their own artwork in the style of a famous abstract artist. They need to give their artwork a title and invite students from other classes to respond to it. Some ideas for creating artwork include:
Mondrian used masking tape to create the straight edged line of his paintings. Create a large scale Mondrian style artwork in your classroom or space in the school using black or coloured masking tape and coloured paper.
Create an abstract artwork online using Brushter http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/index.htm#brushster and display it in the classroom or space in the school.
Jackson Pollock was an abstract artist who dripped, poured, and splattered paint to create his artworks. Create an artwork in the style of Pollock using either tempera paint dipped in marbles or paint in plastic sauce bottles (or both).
Reflection
What do you like about your artwork?
What would you do differently next time?
How do you feel about abstract art?
8 Related Research Links
ABC News – Four-year-old Melbourne artists shows in NY
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/06/06/3236939.htm?section=justin
Kids.net.au – Abstract art
http://encyclopedia.kids.net.au/page/ab/Abstract_art
National Gallery of Art – Kids Zone
http://www.nga.gov/kids/kids.htm
The Artists Toolkit – Visual elements and principles
http://www.artsconnected.org/toolkit/encyclopedia.html
© ABC 2011