Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow, we hibernate

Synopsis of yesterday's episode:  Beartrand Bear enjoyed the reception and he also interviewed Sweet Suzie Bear. She let him know that she wanted to go to the Land of the Giants, along with Beartrand Bear, Bearnacle Bear, and his crew. 

Beartrand Bear enjoyed a wide variety of foods and he walked around the gallery, viewing the paintings. There were a wide variety of styles. Most of the paintings featured bears in different places. Some of the bears were realistic and others were abstract. A few of the paintings featured only color and form and no bears or humans or giants. One of those paintings looked very geometric and fascinating. One side of the painting was all primary colors (red, yellow, and blue), and the other side of the painting was all secondary colors (orange, purple, and green). Beartrand took a look at the artist's statement.
"In art school, I spent a lot of time making color wheels, as do all art students. I learned that colors are connected to each other and that the world is full of color. Art is about color and shape. And, because color and shape are life, art is life. Without art, the world would not know joy. Our world would be less colorful and more dull. I am so fortunate that I can share this vision with the world through my painting. Therefore, I have named this painting 'A World of Color, A World of Life.' As you go about your life in the beautiful Land of Bears, I hope that you will always notice the colors of the world.'"
Beartrand Bear went to the studio to finish reporting on the evening's event. He was happy and ready to hibernate.

Friday's episode: The Bears hibernate. There will be a surprise waiting for you on Friday.  Tomorrow, I will take a break to share the painting that I will do at Stella Niagara at my art class there.

Notes about today's painting: Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) contributed to a movement called De Stijl, which is a Dutch term, meaning "the style." Another name for De Stijl is "neoplasticism." The style is nonrepresentational and abstract. It is focused on geometric shapes. The painting above was based on Composition II in Red, Yellow, and Blue (1930). This style of geometric shapes and colors can be seen in Frank Lloyd Wright's stained glass windows in the houses that he designed, such as the Darwin Martin house in Buffalo and Fallingwater in Pennsylvania.

3 comments:

  1. I think that these blog posts would make a good introduction to art for children. You know, you could tell the story, and then show the painting that it was based off of. It would make a good book for young kids to be introduced to the variety of art available, and the different styles.

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  2. Hello, I agree with Vicki. I love how you have interwoven simple art concepts with the more complex subject matter of De Stijil. I can't believe I just finished an Art History course and briefly learned about this style of art and I already don't remember what it is. Is there a particular reason you picked this painting?

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  3. Hi Vicki and Victoria, Thank you very much! I am seriously considering doing a book. I chose this painting because of the colors and the shapes. Also, I thought that it would fit in with the story of the bears and the bear art museum and the sheer delight of color and shape. Thank you so much for asking.

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