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Mesmerizing Matisse

Foreground and Background

The use of colors, shapes, and patterns will help students create the illusion of depth in an original artwork.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

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  • White Paper

Steps

  • Step 1

    Backgrounds in art are ubiquitous. As soon as you draw a dot on a piece of paper you have a subject and a background. Understanding their importance is key in creating art. They provide context for the subject, set the mood, and can add a sense of depth and distance. Using contrasts can also make the subjects stand out. Have students look at examples such as "The Lute" by Henri Matisse or "The Tea" by Mary Cassatt. Have them notice how the patterns and contrasting colors make the images in the foreground pop.

  • Step 2

    Have students choose a subject to depict. Ask them to first plan and sketch the foreground and then fill the background with colors and patterns that will make the foreground images more prominent and appear closer. Encourage the use of patterns and contrasting colors for the background.

  • Step 3

    Have students present their work and discuss their use of patterns and colors in their art.

Standards

ARTS: Speculate about processes an artist uses to create a work of art. 

ARTS: Explore and invent art-making techniques and approaches. 

Adaptations

Artists can create optical illusions by manipulating the boundaries between positive and negative space. Ask students to look at illusions such as Rubin's vase (where you either see a vase or two faces looking at each other) and "Sky and Water" by M.C. Escher (where images of birds slowly convert to fish and vice versa). Have students experiment with ways to create contrasting positive and negative spaces.

Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908-2004) was a French photographer considered a master of candid photography. He photographed figures such as authors Albert Camus and Colette, poet Ezra Pound, and artists Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. Have students explore his photo series of Matisse (who also provided the cover drawing for his book of photographs "Images à las sauvette.")