A
Sailing Party by
Edward Henry Potthast (1857-1927)
American
Oil on canvas at Cincinnati Art Museum
, ARTIST: Edward Potthast was described as a quiet, conservative man. Born in Cincinnati in 1857, he was the son of a German cabinet maker. At the age of 13, he began his early art training at the McMicken School of Design (Now the Art Academy of Cincinnati).
Potthast worked as a lithographer (printmaker) and saved the money he earned to travel to Europe to study art. He studied art in Germany for three years, then returned to Cincinnati. He then traveled to France where he focused on landscape painting and fell under the influence of the French Impressionists.
In 1896, Potthast moved to NY
where he lived the rest of his life. He went to the beach everyday to
draw and became famous for the beach scenes he painted near Coney Island and
other NY beaches. Potthast is known as an American Impressionist artist.
PAINTING:
1.
In A Sailing Party. Potthast was interested in capturing a moment in
time. This is a trait of IMPRESSIONIST ARTISTS. He painted a scene
from everyday life which is called a GENRE painting. Why did he paint
their backs? (Puts you in the picture watching the people.)
2.
How many of you saw the movie, "Honey. I shrunk the kids"? To
get into this genre painting from everyday life, we are going to use our
Shrink-o-meter to shrink you to about
3.
After you shrink, jump into the painting and go anywhere you want and do
anything you want. I'll be asking questions to make you think while
you're in the picture. Just think the answers to yourself. Close
your eyes and we will count down from ten. Now open your
QUESTIONS:
(Space out the questions and if the children get restless, tell them the 3 1/2
min. are up.)
- What season is it?
-
How many people are there?
- How do you
know?
- What are they wearing?
- What kind of day is
it?
- Is this how you would dress at the beach?
- What sounds do you
hear?
- Do you see any wildlife?
- What might you
smell?
- Do these people know each other?
- How many can fit in the
boat?
- Is this an ocean, lake, or river?
4.
Now, we will return you to normal size, so we can find out where you have been
and what you were doing? (reverse Shrink-o-meter procedure and set dial to
medium size.)
5.
Let each child give a brief description of where they were. and what they did.
Choose quietest rows to go first.
COLOR WHEEL: This is a Color Wheel. Primary colors are the main colors that cannot be made by mixing other colors. What are the Primary Colors? (red, blue, yellow)
1.
By mixing two primary colors in equal amounts, we make Secondary Colors. 2.
What are the Secondary Colors and what two Primary colors are mixed?
(purple = red & blue, ., green = yellow & blue, orange = red
& yellow)
COLOR:
1.
Who can come up and find the Primary colors Potthast used? Secondary colors?
2.
Where is there a color wheel in the picture? (main characters & water
3. Which colors look bright, warm, and bold? (red, yellow, orange) These are the warm colors.
4.
Which colors look soft, cool, soothing? (blue, green, purple) These are the
cool colors.
5.
How do you feel about the warm colors? (happy, bold, fun)
6.
How do you feel about the cool colors? (sad, relaxed, moody)
7.
If you divide the color wheel in half, one side is warm and one side is cool
colors.
8. The two colors directly across from each other are Complementary Colors. Name them.
9. Opposite colors make each other seem stronger when used together.
COLOR VALUE: An artist adds white or black to a color to change the value of the color. Black makes a color darker and deeper. White brightens and lightens a color.
1.
What kind of day is it? Bright and sunny. How do you know? (shadows)
2.
How does Potthast make the painting look so light? Uses white & light colors
(pastels).
3.
How many shades of blue do you see? What shade of blue is the deeper water?
(dark blue) 4. What shade is the shallow water? (light blue)
MOTION:
1.
How has the artist shown motion in the picture? (blowing skirts, holding hat,
sail boat, clouds, birds, water)
2
2. Complimentary Colors fight each other and make each other seem stronger when
used together. This can also create motion. Where are opposite colors used
together? red stripe on green boat - boat is going to move
3. Diagonal
lines show motion. Where are there diagonal lines? (shore line, boatman's arm.)
INTERPRETATION:
1.
Do these people know each other?
2.
Are they returning or just leaving for a ride?
3.
How many people are there? Could someone be hidden in the bow of the boat?
4.
Is the man with the lady in the boat, or is he the boatman who gives rides to
people?
5.
What mood did Potthast create by using such bright, warm colors?
6.
How does the painting make you feel?
7. How many people can fit in the boat?
Craft #1 Color wheels
Have
the Children make their own color wheel with construction paper or crayons or
markers. Have patterns of circles available and drawing paper. Use a brad
and black construction paper for the black pointer in the middle.
OR
Craft #2 Pinwheels
1.
Color your two circles a complimentary color to your paper. Yellow-purple,
red-green, orange-blue.
2. Fold paper to make a triangle. Unfold. Fold other two corners together. Unfold.
3.
Place one sticker in the center of the folds.
4.
Cut along the fold lines to the edge of the circle.
5.
With a pencil, mark every other corner or point with an X.
6. Glue the cardboard square to the back at the center of the pinwheel.
7.
Put your name on the back.
8. Decorate the backs of the X'ed corners and the front of the pinwheel.
9.
Bring X'ed corners to center and place a circle sticker on them to hold.
10. Stick pin through center of both stickers and cardboard, then into eraser of pencil.
11.
Roll points around a marker to curl them.
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