Arts Around the World: Kandinsky & Onion Domes from Russia

The second country in our Arts Around the World journey this year is Russia. 2nd grade students began by learning about the country, including where it is located and it's capital city, Moscow. 

Then we read The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky's Abstract Art. We learned that Vasily Kandinsky grew up in Russia, learning piano and math and history. His family also sent him to art classes, where they expected him to paint houses, people and flowers—like a "proper" artist. But when Kandinsky painted, he heard sounds and connected elements of music to colors and shapes. 

He wanted to show how music made him feel, and to paint a symphony of colors and shapes. He became one of the first painters of abstract art, focusing on shapes, lines, and colors, rather than recognizable objects. 

Kandinsky, Composition VII (1913)

Students first explored this idea by drawing to music, listening to different classical pieces by Russian composers that they would learn about in music class, such as Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Mussorgsky, and Rachmaninoff. Students used oil pastels to draw a variety of different shapes and lines, using different colors. Some students interpreted different parts of the music using darker or brighter colors, faster or lighter strokes, and curved or straight lines. 

The following class, we added watercolor paint and learned about the technique of wet-on-wet. In this technique, we made the paper wet by first painting a light wash of water, then dripping or dotting paint on top. We noticed that the paint moved around and created interesting and unexpected effects. 

We also noticed that the watercolor paint did not cover the oil pastel, but moved away from it. This demonstrated resist, where materials move apart. Below are some examples of our abstract artworks, inspired by Kandinsky.

Brian, 2nd Grade (Pearse)

Eleni, 2nd Grade (O'Connor)

Ethan, 2nd Grade (McIsaac)

Kaylee M., 2nd Grade (Pearse)

Shane, 2nd Grade (O'Connor)

Sofia, 2nd Grade (O'Connor)

For our second Russia art project, students learned about onion domes. We looked at an image of a building in Moscow and students pointed out the colorful shapes and patterns that they noticed, as well as the "Hershey's Kiss" shaped tops to some of the towers! We learned that these are called onion domes for their shape and they are an architectural feature first started in Russia. Onion domes are often seen on churches in Russia but have now spread to many other areas of the world and are seen on many different houses of worship. 

Russian onion domes are often very colorful and brightly patterned. Students also noticed that many of the designs had textural details. We designed and drew our own buildings with onion domes using oil pastel on black paper. Using a white pencil, students first started with larger shapes and added smaller details as windows, doors, and decorative details. 

Students had to include at least two onion domes in their building and although many of the buildings we looked at were symmetrical in their design, students could choose to make them asymmetrical as well. Some students chose to hold their paper horizontally and others chose to design vertically. 

Students also looked at images of Russian buildings with onion domes as reference. After sketching out their design with the white pencil, students used oil pastel to add color to their work. We reviewed complementary colors and also noticed that lighter colors, like white and light pink, stood out better on the black paper than colors like dark purple. We also talked about how, if you wanted to use a darker color, you could use a contrasting lighter color around it to help it stand out. 

Students spent some time on their buildings with onion domes and it shows! Below are some examples:

Aaron, 2nd Grade (McIsaac)

Wyatt, 2nd Grade (McCarthy)

Dayton, 2nd Grade (McCarthy)

Ana, 2nd Grade (Pearse)

Dylon Z., 2nd Grade (Hinds)

Kemiyoda, 2nd Grade (Pearse)

Paulo, 2nd Grade (Pearse)

Noah, 2nd Grade (O'Connor)

Mera, 2nd Grade (McIsaac)

Evelyn, 2nd Grade (Pearse)

Abstract Paintings with Primary Colors

Kindergarten artists have been learning about primary colors: red, yellow and blue. We used them for our shape robots, as well as our collage artworks inspired by Mondrian's paintings. 

Sophia, Kindergarten (Segreve)

For our paintings, we began by looking at paintings by Franz Kline and Vasily Kandinsky to learn about abstract art. Students noticed the lines, shapes, and colors in the artworks. They noticed that sometimes the same lines and shapes reminded one student of a house, another student saw a ladder, and yet another student connected them to roads. Different students had different ideas and because the paintings are not showing us something we immediately recognize, everyone can have their own interpretation. They were not paintings of people or objects. 

Vasily Kandinsky, Composition VIII (1923)

We learned that in abstract art, artists are not trying to show something from the real world. They use lines, shapes and colors to show an idea or feeling. Sometimes they are inspired by music. Students painted their own abstract painting, using lines and shapes that we have learned, with black paint. Students left plenty of white space inside and around their shapes. 

The following class, we learned about our primary colors. We learned that primary colors are important because you cannot mix other colors to make them, but you can use them together to make new colors. To remember the primary colors, we looked at Superman's logo, because it has the three primary colors and these colors are strong and powerful, like Superman! Then we used the primary colors to paint inside the shapes and around the spaces in our painting. We focused on washing out our brush in between colors, so that they did not mix. Here are some of our finished abstract paintings, using lines, shapes and primary colors. They are currently on display in the connector hallway!

Kenjisan, Kindergarten (Segreve)

Thomas, Kindergarten (Segreve)

Dylan, Kindergarten (Blackwood)

Finn, Kindergarten (Blackwood)

Kai, Kindergarten (Segreve)

Will, Kindergarten (Tan)

Zoie, Kindergarten (Bolton)

Abstract Cardboard Sculptures, Inspired by Frank Stella

Last month, 1st grade artists looked at and discussed the work of artist Frank Stella. We learned that he is a contemporary artist, which means he is still alive and making art today.  

Frank Stella, Pachanak (1979)

Stella began his career making abstract art, focusing on geometric shapes, and later on he explored large 3D collage artworks. We looked at and discussed some of his later 3D artworks. Students noticed that Stella used many different kinds of shapes, materials and colors.  

Frank Stella, Shark Massacre (1988)

We also discussed the abstract nature of his work, focusing on what we noticed and observed in the artwork. We spent some time on one artwork in particular, called Shark Massacre. Some students thought the sharp triangles reminded them of shark fins, while others connected the shapes to waves on the ocean and other students felt they were similar to rows of sharp teeth. We talked about how abstract work allows us to have personal interpretations, depending on how we see and connect to the work.

After discussing his work, we learned that we could combine different pieces of cardboard to create our own abstract sculptures in different ways. One method we focused on is slotting, which involves cutting a slot into two different pieces and sliding them together. Students chose several different pieces of cardboard and combined them together, using slotting among other techniques. We added glue to make sure all the pieces were secure and let them dry. 

The following class, students painted their cardboard sculptures, making sure to turn them around to get all the different sides. Students expertly mixed together a variety of different colors, sharing "recipes" with each other for new colors. After allowing them to dry, we added patterns to the sculptures during the next class. Students brainstormed different pattern examples, such as stripes, polka dots, zig zag lines, repeated shapes, etc. Students also got metallic paint to use, which worked well with many different color backgrounds.

The very last step was to coat the sculptures with a layer of Mod Podge, to seal the paint and to make sure all the pieces stayed together. Students also created titles or names for their sculptures, thinking about what inspired their design or what their sculptures reminded them of. Below are some examples of our abstract Frank Stella inspired sculptures on display at the recent Art & Music Extravaganza

 

 

Anna, 1st grade (Massa)

Katie, 1st grade (Salvucci)

NJ, 1st grade (Salvucci)

Sophie, 1st grade (Salvucci)

Abstract Cubist Self Portraits, Inspired by Picasso

After drawing their self portraits from observation, using mirrors, 3rd grade artists looked at portraits painted by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. Students noticed that Picasso's portraits have many different shapes, the colors are not natural to a person in real life, and the facial features seemed to be at different angles. For example, one eye looks like it is looking forward and the other eye is from a side profile view.

Pablo Picasso, Portrait of Dora Maar (1937)

Students learned about Cubism, an art movement developed by Picasso and another artist, Georges Braque, in the early 1900's. In Cubism, artists wanted to represent the world differently, and encourage viewers to look at the world in different ways. They would break up the subject into different geometric shapes and look at it from many different angles. We looked at other examples of Cubist artwork, including still life paintings and landscapes, and noticed that while the subject was often recognizable, they were not necessarily realistic.

Students then started their own Cubism inspired self portraits. We started off similarly to our self portrait drawings from observation, with a head, neck and shoulders. This time, students had more freedom to play around with shape and size. Some students chose to represent their hair style very differently! Using oil pastels, students colored in their hair and shirt, but left their faces blank. 

Next class, students used different colored pieces of paper to add their facial features, considering how they could make them abstract and different from the way they might normally approach them. We experimented with making one eye looking forward and the other looking sideways. 

Students used many different colors and techniques with their oil pastels, blending colors together and selecting complementary colors to help details stand out. After arranging the pieces within their face, students glued them down. Then they added a background, adding different areas of color. Here are some examples of our creatively abstract, Cubist style self portraits:

Dorie, 3rd grade (Lutz)

Kiran, 3rd grade (Monfette)

Nola, 3rd grade (Lutz)

Sona, 3rd grade (Monfette)

Andrew Parker, 3rd grade (Donato)

Emily, 3rd grade (Stone)