Pablo Picasso
November lesson Plan for Kindergarten
Abstract Faces
Biographical information
Pablo Ruiz Picasso
Born October 25, 1881 in Malaga Spain – died April 8th, 1978 in Mougins France
Pablo Picasso was labeled the “Hero of Modern Art.” At the age of seven, Picasso began to paint, completing his first oil rendering one year later. He began formal art studies at the age of 11 and continued until he was about 16. By his 20th birthday, Picasso had moved to Paris and had begun to develop new art styles that the world had not yet seen.
Picasso, as he was known, is one of the most recognized figures in 20th-century art. He is best known for co-founding the Cubist movement and for the wide variety of styles embodied in his work. One of Picasso's greatest fears was to be inadequate as an artist. Picasso produced a monumental 20,000 artworks during his 70-year career.
While Picasso’s career included many different styles and mediums, in this lesson we are going to be learning about Picasso’s Abstract period. Abstract art is defined as art that departs significantly from natural appearances. In such art pieces, forms are modified or changed to varying degrees in order to emphasize certain qualities or content. Abstract art is a subjective medium that allows artists to depart from reality. Abstract art uses a combination of colors and lines to create compositions that reflect something maybe only the artist sees. This type of art is open to extreme interpretation; challenging artists to create something others can find beauty in as well. Abstract art is different from most art. It is not as much about the subject as about the feeling it invokes. Interpreting abstract art takes more than simply looking at the art. For abstract art to become more than just "a piece," the artist must invoke feelings in the viewer. Because of this, when a group of people view a work of art, they may all have a different viewpoint of what the artist was trying to show us. Below is a list of things to consider when viewing abstract art.
- Look at the art, but do not search for meaning. Great abstract art will hold different meaning for each person viewing it.
- Look at the use of colors, shadows and textures. Study the art to see if these elements work well together.
- Find out the feelings the art evokes, feelings are often expressed by colors and shapes. Elements that contradict each other create feelings of turmoil, strife, fear, anxiety, hate or sadness. Elements that complement each other create happier, calmer feelings.
- Read the title of the art. The title may allow you to see the abstract art from another perspective. Ask yourself if the title changed your thoughts about the piece.
Show the students Picasso's paintings, Girl Before a Mirror, Woman with a Blue Hat and The Lesson.
Direct the students to the faces in the paintings and discuss how Picasso changed the faces from natural looking faces to abstract faces.
Vocabulary Words
Color – Helps to create the mood of a painting. Bright, warm colors can give a feeling of warmth, love or enthusiasm. Cool colors can give a feeling of calm or peace. Whereas, very dark or drab colors can give a feeling of sadness and disrepair. Color is relative, which means that how a color looks depends on the colors around it, the colors it is mixed with, and the amount of light on it.
Line – A line is whatever appears in an artwork in the distance between two points. A line has more length than width and can be straight, curved, or jagged. Lines can be made by a pencil, a marker, a stick, or other items. The outside edges of objects can be lines. Lines are used to show direction and to communicate moods and feelings.
Shape – Can be two or three-dimensional. Two-dimensional shapes have only height and width. They are created when the ending point of a line connects to the beginning point of the same line. Three-dimensional shapes have height, width, and depth.
Abstract - Art, including painting, sculpture, and graphic art that does not represent recognizable objects.
Discussion Questions
Here are a few questions to ask the students while showing examples of Picasso’s works of art.
What do you see?
Why do you think he uses the colors he does?
How could he rearrange the faces to look interesting or silly?
Do you see any sort of pattern that he seems to use in his paintings?
Why do you think Picasso chose to represent his figures in this manner?
Here are some questions to ask the students after they have completed their project. If time allows, they can even use their own works of art to answer the following.
How did this project make them feel?
Did they like drawing this way?
Basically a brief reflection on what they had created. This is designed to be a fun activity that introduces children to a new style of art.
Picasso Faces Project Details
Materials: 12”x18” black construction paper, Oil pastels and white crayons (students can use their own white crayon). Project example
Girl Before a Mirror painting
Read –Picasso and the Girl with the Ponytail
Play – Songs in the key of art by Greg Percy, “Picasso’s Polka”
Trifold board with artist examples
Demonstrate the lesson by following these step by step instructions, please remember to have the students put their name on the back of their paper and to roll up their sleeves.
- Draw a circle for a face, using a white crayon.
- Draw a profile down the face.
- Draw the front view of an eye and a side view of an eye. You can place one eye in a different place.
- Draw the mouth.
- Make crazy hairstyles. Draw each hair.
- Outline every single line with a black pastel.
- Color all parts a different color.