LESSON PRESENTATION INSTRUCTIONS SHAPE

ABSTRACT LANDSCAPE

Artist: Andrew Dasburg – Chantet Lane

Students will create a landscape using colored pencils and chalk pastels.

Time Required: 1 hour

Lesson Objectives: Students will understand 3-D, Rhythm, Shapes, Abstract, and Texture as it relates to artwork.

Materials: 9”x12” White construction paper Pencil Colored Pencils Chalk Pastels

Procedure: 1. Discuss artist and artwork and Lesson Objectives. 2. Students will sketch an abstract landscape picture that represents a use of rhythm, shape, and using diagonals to show distance and space. 3. After the drawing is lightly sketched, students can use their pencils to add texture. 4. Finish the artwork by filling in color and blending with the chalk pastels, trying to create a 3-D effect using tints and shadows.

Andrew Dasburg – Chantet Lane

This artwork by Andrew Dasburg is considered abstract. This was a painting he had done in 1926. It depicts a village road flanked by a double row of cottonwood trees. In this painting he uses abstract images of the trees, the lane, and the building at the end of the lane. He does not put every detail into his painting; he chooses what is most important to him.

Notice the lack of texture in the trunks of the trees and the lack of detail, such as the individual leaves in the trees. This artist gives an impression of the trees, not an accurate representation of them.

Dasburg’s work was based on rhythm and form. Notice that he combines both diagonal lines with vertical and horizontal ones. The shadows of the trees across the lane are an important horizontal element. This along with the trees creates a tunnel like form. The use of tints in the background suggests sunlight reflecting off the building. LESSON PRESENTATION NOTES SHAPE

About Andrew Dasburg Andrew Dasburg was born in France in 1887. At the age of 2 his father died and his mother moved them to Germany. At the age of 5, he and his mother moved to New York City. When he was 7, he fell into an excavation site and developed a tubercular hip (tubercule: a tuber-like swelling – small and rounded). He was moved into a home for crippled children and it was there that his attendants recognized and encouraged his artisitic abilities. He received no formal education, but at the age of 15, he began studying at the Art Students League.

Later, he traveled to Europe where he married a close friend. While in Paris, he discovered the work of Matisse and Cezanne and his work was greatly influenced by them. As a mature artist, he kept a strict schedule, working 7 days a week. He would drive into the country and sketch from his parked car. He made initial sketches of his observations outdoors and developed them into paintings in his studio. He believed that artists should keep looking and sought to see nature anew before beginning each painting.

In his later life, Dasburg’s only goal for his work was to excite and impress himself. He was an active painter well into his 90’s.

About “Chantet Lane” This artwork by Andrew Dasburg is considered abstract. This was an oil painting he had done in 1926. It depicts a village road flanked by a double row of cottonwood trees in northern New Mexico. In this painting he uses abstract images of the trees, the lane, and the building at the end of the lane. He does not put every detail into his painting, but chooses those that are most important to him.

Notice the lack of texture in the trunks of the trees and the lack of detail, such as the individual leaves in the trees. This artist gives an impression of the trees, not an accurate representation of them. The fleecy foliage of the trees contrasts with the sturdy trunks and branches and the shadows cast by them. He used regular or geometric shapes in the road and the house as well as irregular or organic shapes in the trees and leaves.

Dasburg’s work was based on rhythm and form. Notice that he combines both diagonal lines with vertical and horizontal ones that make the painting seem more active. The trees in the foreground are larger than those in the background. The shadows of the trees across the lane are an important horizontal element. They, along with the trees, create a tunnel-like kform that stretches from the foreground through the middle ground. The use of tints in the background suggests sunlight reflecting off the building. Using dark colors in the foreground and light colors in the background is the reverse of the way many landscapes are painted. Dasburg’s color scheme is predominantly warm. The cool blue sky and the green grass and leaves are a contrast to the warmth of the trees, road and building and offers some relief from the warmth (creates balance).

About the Project

Lightly sketch the basic shapes of trees, bushes and flowers. Notice the geometric shapes that create trees. Remember that the basic shapes of the trees can be circles, triangles, ovals, upside down triangles, and even squares – but they are usually irregular forms of these shapes.

Remember that subjects that are closer to you will appear taller and have more detail than subjects that are farther away.

Suggested Questions: Are the colors warm or cool? What time of year is it? Do you think this is precise or abstract? How has this artist achieved distance? Describe the shapes.