Students looked at and discussed abstract art by a variety of abstract artists such as Wassily Kandinsky, Gregory Christeas and Teresa Young. As we began our project, we focused on three things: Line, Shape, Color.
Students started with a scrap of cardboard and with crayons, markers, and watercolor paints. They used lines, shapes and colors to create unique, colorful abstract art. The students said that this was the first time in school that they had the opportunity to just make totally abstract art. Some seemed reluctant at the beginning (which I can totally relate to) because it is sometimes difficult to embrace the idea of making art that is not representing a cat, or a tree, or a house, etc. Once the students were fully immersed in their art, they seemed to really enjoy themselves.
Next they used a variety of colors and different sized papers to create paper rolls. They made the rolls by wrapping paper strips around pencils, then dipping the end in glue, and attaching it to their painting.
The individual pieces of art look pretty cool alone but when displayed all together, it creates a powerful, exciting work of art. I hear people in the hallway adoring the work almost every single day. Staff, parents, and students of all ages seem to really appreciate this piece.
The first graders really enjoyed creating abstract art. Some referred to the finished projects as looking like big cityscapes.