Saturday, June 23, 2012

Lesson II of Session II - More Picasso and His Three Musician Buddies

Watercolor/Collage Tree Project
The second day of art fulfillment for Session II went very well!

Students finished their watercolor projects and we moved on to another Picasso-inspired project that proves how huge Picasso's range was with style and how it can inspire us.

First, we had other projects to wrap-up. But it's a little misleading to say one thing was completed and another one was commenced. Projects were often done back and forth, because of the steps that included some that needed to be set aside to dry, so to fill the time, another project was picked up.  Then when a break was taken with that one, the other one would be worked on again.

Our Watercolor Discoveries, Warm Color Desert Paintings, and even our Watercolor/Collage Tree Collage projects were done with those interchangeable steps. In fact, while most of those are now completed, there are still a few to be finished next week.


Watercolor/Collage Tree Project
Watercolor/Collage Tree Project in Progress
Watercolor/Collage Tree Project in Progress
Watercolor/Collage Tree Project in Progress
Watercolor/Collage Tree Project Completed
Watercolor/Tree Collage with Watercolor portion finished.
Watercolor/Tree Collage Project Completed
Watercolor/Tree Collage Project Completed

Desert Paintings
Warm Color Desert Watercolor In Progress



Watercolor Discovery Paintings
 

Picasso the Prodigy
It's funny how when we did our first Picasso-specific project on Monday (Picasso's People), it involved pretty much just watercolor pencils (and watercolor paint if desired). Now the next Picasso project will involve all collage. That is the kind of range Picasso had. His early stuff was very traditional. He was even considered a prodigy with his early works. But his early works were very traditional in his techniques. As we saw, he quickly moved onto methods and styles that were groundbreaking for the time. 

Yes, this is a Picasso painting!  (below) And even more amazing? He was FOURTEEN when he painted "Old Fisherman".

"Old Fisherman" Pablo Picasso 1895
"Woman in a Chemise" Pablo Picasso 1904
Then not too long after his "Blue Period" that Woman in a Chemise (above) is from, Picasso took the dramatic turn in his style and focus. After 1907, Picasso's work and "Cubism" go hand in hand. Of course, being that he took his art in a direction that was almost unheard of for the time (or shall I say, "unseen of"), he had a lot of barriers to break through. Therefore, I really like this quote:

“Cubism is no different from any other school of painting. The same principles and the same elements are common to all. The fact that for a long time cubism has not been understood and that even today there are people who cannot see anything in it, means nothing. I do not read English, and an English book is a blank to me. This does not mean that the English language does not exist, and why should I blame anyone but myself if I cannot understand what I know nothing about?”
-- Picasso 

The Three Musicians
In 1921, Picasso completed "The Three Musicians" Technically, this work came after his "Cubist" period, but it's hard to look at this and separate the style from that movement. It is also the inspiration for the project we began on Wednesday.

This is one of my favorite projects. As I've said before, I also love it because it can work with all age groups - from kindergarten all the way into adulthood.And we are all moved by music in one way or another. It is something we can all identify with. Picasso's "Three Musicians" was done over 90 years ago, but we can identify with it today - just as we will 90 years from now.

"Three Musicians" In Progress
"Three Musicians" In Progress
"Three Musicians" Completed
Links:
After this Picasso-inspired Collage is completed, we're going to cross the pond and look at an American artist (that is still living in fact!) and find inspiration in his "patriotic" art. Those are the only hints I'm giving for now!

Until next time...

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