Henri Matisse, Goldfish

Henri Matisse (1869-1954) was a famous artist. But did you know that his first career was in the Law? He studied hard and did very well until he got appendicitis in 1890. It was then, while recovering from surgery, that his mother tried to amuse him with a gift of a box of paints, a set of brushes, and a do-it-yourself book on painting. Matisse felt for the first time, in his own words, "free, quiet and alone." He would later be known as the artist that was "born to simplify painting." (The World of Matisse, John Russell, Time-Life  Books, NY, (c)1960)

Our Kindergarteners have been studying Matisse's painting, "Goldfish". Their collages represent some pretty serious planning, cutting, and gluing. Great work!

Johnathan L. and Elizabeth C.

                                        

Kara M., Trey W. and Alana R.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shea M. in Mrs. Vigue's class

Cody B. in Mrs. Minke's class

Kaja D. in Ms. Conroy's class

Third Graders Study Cave Art

Did you know that relief sculptures covering the huge wall surfaces of caves were among the first pieces of art created in what is now the United States. Native American cave paintings have recently been found dating over 1000 years old. Like every artist in every age in every medium, the artists had to answer two questions before starting: (1) What will be the subject? and (2) How should I represent it? We have discovered that the answer to the first question was almost always animals, and the answer to the second question was that the animals were presented in strict profile. (Gardner's Art Through the Ages, Twelfth edition, Volume 1)

Lilianna B. - Mr. Wolfrath's class

Oliver H. - Ms. LaDuke's class

Carson Q. - Mrs. Hensler's class

Jordan S. - Ms. Mitchell's class

Our imitation of Native American cave paintings (pictographs) were made with paint, crayon, and oil pastels. Aren't they authentic?!