"Art washes away from the soul
the dust of everyday life."
~Pablo Picasso
Melissa, blogging over at The Bonny Glen, has posted some very helpful
information on Picture Study, and I thought I'd share some ways that
we have enjoyed the study of great artists and their work here at our house.
For us, Art Appreciation has always been a playful pursuit . A few years ago,
when Haleigh was about six, I used to say something along the lines of,
“Let's play a game. I'll show you a picture, and you may look at it as long
as you want. Then, when you tell me to, I’ll turn it over and hide it, and you
can tell me all about it—absolutely everything that you can remember about
the picture.” And she would do just that.
Sometimes I would write down what she said about the painting.
Later, I would keyboard her observations and add this narration
to her Art Notebook.
Here’s a page showing a painting by Fragonard:
This print was part of a set purchased from Angela Zimmerman at Ambleside Online.
Other times, she would try to capture what she remembered about the picture. Here is a crayon drawing that Haleigh did several years ago after studying a Renoir painting:
 This print came from a calendar.
Art calendars are my favorite source of Picture Study prints. And this time of year, you will find many beautiful art print calendars for 50% to 75% less than their original retail price. These prints are usually large and printed on nice, heavy paper-- very good for framing.
We have always framed the art prints that we’ve studied, and hung them on the wall to enjoy for a few weeks afterward. Like most children, mine are naturally drawn to beauty, and have become very attached to certain works of art. One day, I was removing a framed print of Van Gogh’s Starry Night that had been hanging in their play area. I wanted to replace it with a new painting, but stopped when I heard cries of, “Mom! Please don’t take that down. We love it!” Needless to say, I have stocked up on inexpensive picture frames, and our walls are well-decorated.
It's also fun to try out a new medium (like charcoal or chalk) and try to copy what the artist has done. Love this one-- it's a study for a painting done by Da Vinci.
The soft colorful chalk is nice to work with and smudge.
This print came from a book purchased from the bargain shelves at Barnes and Noble (gasp!) Yes, I do cut pages from very inexpensive books sometimes. My motto: better to bring the artwork out and let it "live" on our walls and in our hearts than to gather dust on the bookshelf.
Picture Study, like everything else in this home education adventure, can be approached in many ways, and our ways are not meant to be prescriptive. I’m only showing you a peek into our world and what Picture Study looks like at my house. I hope you’ll be inspired to enjoy this with your children in whatever way feels best for you.
I'll post more ideas for Picture Study later this week. | 