Starry Night

Starry Night, by Vincent Van Gogh, is a very kid friendly artwork.  It can be used to teach some of the basics of landscape (horizon line, foreground, middle ground, background) and also for teaching about using our imaginations.  Did you know that the village nestled quietly beneath that windy night sky does not actually exist?  Vincent made up the picture from his own imagination!

My first grade students created their own 'starry night' paintings using oil pastels.  I wasn't interested in getting a room full of Van Gogh look alike paintings.  However, you can tell from the similarities amongst the designs that I did do an example drawing on the board.  Example drawings are a catch 22.  You need to show the students what to do, but then you end up with a room full of the exact same image.  That is one I am still working on.

2nd grade - Pastel Landscapes - Student Examples

The pastel landscapes are turning out very beautifully!  Here are just a few examples of what the students in Miss Maurin's class have been doing.  Each photo shows not only the student's work, but also the photo reference landscape the student was using for landscape inspiration!

Second Grade Pastel Landscapes

The second grade classes recently finished a landscape assignment. 

Each student selected a reference photo to work with before drawing out their landscape on a white paper.  Still using the photo as a reference, the students used pastels (colorful chalk) to 'paint' their landscape.

We talked about tips and tricks that artists use to prevent the artwork from being smeared while it is being worked on and the students self evaluated themselves each day on how they did at keeping the mess to a minimum.  The tips and tricks are...

1. One hand is the 'dirty' hand that holds the pastel and paints with it.  The other hand stays clean to hold onto the artwork.
2. Start at the top of the artwork and work your way down so that you don't accidentally drag your hand or sleeve through already finished parts of the artwork.
3. Keep your painting hand floating in the air.  Never let it rest on the paper.  It is best to stand up while you work to make it easier for your hand to float.
4. If there is too much chalk dust on your paper, tap it gently onto the newspapers.  DON'T blow on it!  Your picture will get lighter, and some people are allergic to chalk dust (like ME!)
5. Always use newspapers to protect the table, and wear a smock to protect your clothes!

Here are some examples of second grade pastel landscapes...

Truly beautiful landscapes!