Color Play

PINES AND ASPEN, ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK, COLORADO, 1929.

Birger Sandzen (American, 1871–1954)

Oil on canvas, 20 x 24 in. Crocker Art Museum, gift of Jean and Bruce Conner, 2007.27.

Objective

Students will classify and sort collage materials to compose a color wheel showing primary and secondary colors.  

Artworks:

• Maija Peeples Bright
• Wayne Thiebaud
• Outrigger
• Monterey Pines (purple and green landscape)

Instructional Materials:

• Class set of color wheels
• Large teaching wheel
• Children’s books
• Color Discovery Tubes (Lakeshore Learning)

Opening Discussion 

• Color is one of the elements of art. 
• Show repros and talk about the colors seen, etc
• Explain the color wheel

Procedure

• Today we’re going to make our own color wheels.  
• Show template and sample color wheel. 
• Use papers to fill in each color section. Give glue sticks and scissors.
• At the end, fill in gaps with oil pastels and/or colored pencils. 

During the Work Period

• Help one-on-one, giving explanations and demos as necessary.
• Count and log number of students and number of adults served. 

Clean Up

• Everything but their work of art needs to go back to the supply table. 
• When their table is clear ask them to check the floor. When the floor is clean ask them to sit at their desk with their art in front of them so they can move on to the next activity.

Sharing

All, some, or none of these can be done, depending on the class and the remaining time. 

• Tell them that they’re going to move around the room and look at each other’s work. The artwork will stay on the table and they will be moving. Ask them to stand and push their chairs in and stand behind their desk. They will be quiet, and concentrate just on looking. They can walk around the room and return to their seat when they feel like they’ve seen everything.

Conclusion

• Thank them for their work. Tell them to take their artwork home and share them with their friends and family. They can use their artwork in the same way you used the images in the beginning to teach people about multi-media artworks. 
• Explain family passes, if they’re getting them. Encourage them to visit the Crocker to see the artworks they saw today.

Materials

• Color wheel templates, printed on tag board
• Scissors
• Collage materials (specialty papers, magazine pages)
• Glue sticks
• Oil pastels and colored pencils