4th grade still life paintings a la Matisse

Yes, the 4th grade paintings are FINALLY getting done! I've previously posted how we drew from a still life setup, using viewfinders, squinting like pirates.

Then we began to paint. The paintings are big - 18"x24" paper with an interior frame to make them easier to handle (in other words, a border of about an inch was kept white). Students were instructed to paint big areas first, including negative space, and then the patterns would be added later.

Students were responsible for mixing their own colors. I set out a tray of some basics: red, yellow, blue, and white (of course), and I also included in the tray some bottled green and orange just for more choices. Each color had a pop stick in it. Each student got his own little "palette" (actually a microwave dinner dish). We talked about the color wheel, and that we didn't want to mix mud puddle or swamp water, as they weren't "Matisse-like" colors. We reviewed how colors close to each other on the color were good mixes, and why you might use a color across the wheel. For example, the green wasn't used "straight" - they might change it by mixing with yellow, or blue, or white, or maybe with a dab of red for an olive or darker green, since there was NO BLACK.

The students were finally allowed to use black for outlining if they wanted, when all other painting was done. Most did, and some didn't.

I explained that the still life offered a starting point for colors and patterns, but that they were free to make their own decisions as to what worked best for their art. They got so into color mixing that I thought these paintings would NEVER be done. I did offer some "premixed" colors to a few students who were stuggling to make progress.

Some paintings are decidedly more abstract than others.

As for cleanup: with lots of dirty brushes, and lots of dirty palettes, how do we do it? At the beginning of each class, certain students were designated as brush washers and palette washers. The other kids all put paintings in the drying rack, washed tables, dumped water bowls, covered paints, etc. Of course some days went better than others!