The Goodrich Way

Shapes make the cat

         

The artist Paul Klee's abstract artwork titled "Head of Man" inspired first through third grade student fantasy felines.  We began our lesson with a wonderful animated video introduction to the artist, titled Mati and Dada:Paul Klee .  Students used simple circle, triangle, and oval shapes to compose a cat drawing with pencil. Students divided the large circular head into four sections with a ruler and learned about proportion and placement of facial features in their drawing. Then they learned to layer and blend bright colored oil pastels to create a painted effect. Details were outlined to create emphasis and a background was applied with pastels.  Finally, students were asked to use their imagination to create and write about some interesting characteristics or activities for their cat.