Lessons:
P-5 Hilma af Klint
The Ten Largest, No. 3, Youth
Overview
- Discuss The Ten Largest, No. 3, Youth by Hilma af Klint.
- Learn how line, shape, and color create abstract art.
- Create an organic abstract painting.
Reflection
- Who lives in the house that you created?
- What colors and objects did you add to describe mood of the house?
- What is the title of your artwork?
The Ten Largest, No. 3, Youth by Hilma Af Klint, public domain photo credit: Hilma af Klint - The Ten Largest No. 3 - Youth - 1907.jpg by Spinster via Wikimedia Commons
Discussion Presentation
Discussion Questions
Follow the loops, is your hand moving slow or fast?
Af Klint used swirling, loopy lines that create a sense of energy and move you all around the canvas.
What shapes can you find: snail? flower? pea pods?
Af Klint painted organic shapes found in nature. All around the painting are familiar natural shapes and lines. By using only parts of organic shapes, the painting is abstract.
This painting has a lot of lines and colors. How big do you think it is?
The scale or size of the painting is 10 feet tall. The height of a wall. That is why it can have so many organic shapes and colors.
Biography
- Hilma af Klint (HILL•mah ahv KLINT) was an artist from Sweden.
- She painted using lines, shapes, and colors. She used “automatic drawing,” closing her eyes.
- Her paintings were not seen for forty years after her death, hidden away in storage.
- She painted using lines, shapes and colors.
Project
Materials
- 9×12 white paper
- oil pastels
- tempera color wash: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple
- 1/2 in. tempera brush
- paper towels
Warm Up & Brainstorm
- No warmup required.
Project Directions
Organic Abstract
1. Draw organic shapes.
Use gray oil pastel to draw basic shapes found in nature. 4-5 shapes and keep them simple.
2. Paint shapes and background with color wash.
Explore painting color that feel right. Don’t worry about painting within the lines.
3. Blot pooling excess color wash.
Lay flat a paper towel to absorb excess liquid. Blotting also helps dry the paper to allow drawing looping lines.
4. Add 1-3 fun lines.
Use oil pastel to draw looping or curving lines that connect or add fun to your organic abstract painting.
5. Give artwork a title.
Pre-Lesson Preparation
- No prep required.
Day of Lesson Setup
- Demo drawing with gray oil pastel the two big shapes. Do not use any pencils on the final project paper.
- Demo drawing lines with white oil pastel and a color wash, oil resist occurs, because oil and water don’t mix. White is like a “secret pattern.”