Thank you to Janis from Dream Draw Create for this lesson idea. Her abstract name lesson was the perfect way to kick off my Abstract and Representational Art Class with my 1st through 5th graders. I was excited for this class since some children get very hung up on their art looking "right" or "okay". We discussed abstract art in its' simplest terms being a piece of art that doesn't portray a person, place or thing, but uses color, line, shapes or brushstrokes. We looked at what is considered to be the first abstract painting by Kandinsky from 1910. One of my student's reactions was priceless, "well that just looks like a bunch of colors and scribbles!" A perfect lead in to my commentary about it being possibly the most subjective form of art. ( Along these lines, if you want to have some fun, take this quiz Can You Tell The Difference Between Modern Art or Art By a Toddler? A landscape painter that I follow on Facebook posted it and asked everyone to try it and give feedback. I only missed 1, fairing better than everyone. But I know this is only because I teach children's art).
As you probably surmised, acrylic name paintings were cut up into 16 equal pieces and reassembled. I encouraged my students to think about the play and balance of color and form, rather than just putting them down arbitrarily. Yes, these are young children. But they could see that some compositions were more pleasing to the eye than others. I have another group of mostly Kinders next week and plan to do this with them. Looking forward to seeing their take on it.