Lesson Overview:
In this lesson, students analyze different visual representations of the night sky. They begin by looking at how artists such as Vincent van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Henri Matisse, and Joan Miro painted the night sky, then compare these artworks to scientific representations of stars and constellations. Students then create a painting of the night sky using the ideas they have gathered from the artists' and scientists' work.
Length of Lesson:
Three 45 minute sessions
Instructional Objectives:
Students will:
- draw a star and explain what it looks like.
- observe common representations of five and six-point stars.
- compare star paintings by Van Gogh, Munch, Matisse, and Miro.
- study real stars in photos from observatories and satellites.
- create a painting of the night sky, incorporating ideas and techniques from the artistic and/or scientific renderings explored in the lesson.
- write a description of the painting describing its scientific and artistic elements.
Instructional Plan:
NOTE: Background information on paintings and artists is provided throughout the lesson. You may wish to include/exclude this information as appropriate for your grade level.
Provide students with a pencil and a plain piece of paper. Give them one minute to draw a star. Have students share their drawings, discussing the similarities and the differences among them. Most students will draw a five or six-sided closed figure with points. Ask students to explain why they drew the star the way they did. Where have they seen stars shaped this way? (Responses may include: on the United States and Texas flags, on a graded paper, on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on a synagogue, etc.)
Ask students to consider the following questions: Is this what stars really look like from the earth? Why do people draw them with points at the edges instead of as spheres? Why does that happen? Has anyone ever seen a star twinkle?
Distribute the Vocabulary handout. Explain to students that stars are actually spheres of gas. They appear to have rays or points because we are looking at them from a great distance, through the filtering of the atmosphere. Tell students that they will take a closer look at stars through some photos that have been taken from telescopes.
When the first telescopes were used in the 1600s, Galileo Galilei recorded his observations in the form of drawings. He drew the craters of the moon, the rings of Saturn, the moons of Jupiter, and sunspots. His records reflect a combination of artistic interpretation and scientific observation. Fascination with the night sky continues to this day, with representations of objects in the sky becoming increasing clear with the use of cameras, filters, and radio waves.
Stars in Art
Artists have painted the night sky or nocturnes for centuries. The Starry Night (1889) by late 19th century painter Vincent van Gogh is one of the most recognized paintings in the world. Visit The National Gallery of Art to view the painting. Ask students: How did Van Gogh represent the stars in the night sky? How do his stars differ from the ones you drew? Do they have points or are they spherical? Why do think he painted halos around the stars and moon?
The Starry Night is just one of several Van Gogh paintings that focus on the night sky. Have students view Starry Night, Arles, Sept. 1888. (You may also wish to have students view print copies of The Café Terrace at Night, 1888 and/or Road with Man Walking, Carrige, Cypress, Star and Crescend Moon, 1890.) Each painting has a different rendering of stars, and together mark the beginning of the Expressionist period, during which artists focus on the emotional reactions to the world. Van Gogh painted The Café Terrace on the Place du Forum, Arles 1888 at night with candles on his hat and around the frame of his easel to illuminate the canvas. The stars in Road to Cypress with Cypress and Star, 1890 have halos around them, suggesting the influence of religious paintings. Van Gogh painted The Starry Night while looking out his window at an asylum in St. Remy, France.
Create a large Venn Diagram with on the board or chart paper. Have students share observations about the settings in each of the paintings, as well as the representations of stars. Arrange the paintings chronologically for easy comparison. (Depending on the age of students, you may or may not wish to point out that these were paintings were done during a two-year period when Van Gogh became increasingly mentally ill. He committed suicide in 1890 thinking he was a failure because he only sold one painting during his lifetime.)
Visit Art Resources on the Web to view Starry Night, painted by Edvard Munch in 19th century. This painting was created three years after Van Gogh's death, and was influenced by his work. Have students compare the Van Gogh and Munch Starry Night paintings. Ask students: What similarities and differences do you see in Munch and Van Gogh's depictions of stars? What colors were used in the paintings? Both paintings are oil, how did each artist appear to have used the paint? In which painting is the landscape clearer? Have students write a paragraph, comparing the two paintings giving their opinion on which one is better and why. Students should support their opinion with at least two pieces of supporting evidence.
You may also wish to have students view print versions of Henri Matisse and Joan Miro's star paintings. Their works are considered Abstract. Joan Miro used stars in many of his works in the 1930's, '40's, and 50's and especially in his Constellation series. (Some of these works need to be screened for young eyes.) Miro's stars are either asymmetrical five-sided closed figures or four intersecting lines that create an eight-lined symbol. Have students view the following work by Miro: Constellation-The Morning Star. (You may also wish to have students view print versions of Characters in the Night, Dragonfly with Red Wings Perusing a Serpent Guiding Spirally Towards the Comet-Star and/or Smile of the Blazing Wings.) Compare his work to that of Van Gogh and Munch. Many students should recognize that Miro's stars look like the ones that they created at the beginning of the lesson. Miro has ignored the reality of stars as spheres.
Matisse began as a painter. He was a follower of the Expressionist movement for a while, but as he grew older, his work became a study of lines, color, and form. His paintings became abstract and flat. In the 1930's, he became famous for his collages, paper cutouts using form and color. One of his most famous works, Icarus, uses bold colors and star shapes. Have students compare Matisse's stars to those of Miro.
Stars in Science
Begin the next class period with computers bookmarked to NASA Kids or HubbleSite.
These sites will allow students to access scientific photos and paintings of stars. NASA employs artists to render images of things that are found by radio waves. To find these images, the students need to look for the words indicating it is an artist's impression. Most of the images on these sites are from the Hubble Space telescope and from observatories on Earth.
Tell students that they will have fifteen minutes to explore what real stars look like outside of the earth's atmosphere. Distribute Post-it notes for note-taking and have students record colors, shapes, images, or other information that they find interesting. Have students think back to their observations of the different artworks. Ask them: What do real stars look like? Do they look like the stars in any of the artworks we looked at? If so, in what ways? Are they all white or are some colorful? Do they have points or are they spherical? Do they appear to have halos around them?
Create a large chart divided according to the following headings: COLORS, SHAPES, IMAGES, and INFORMATION. Have students place their Post-it notes in the appropriate section of the chart. Read each note and discuss the observation with the class. After the discussion, have students write a brief reflection about what was learned about stars, highlighting at least three new pieces of information. Collect these papers after five minutes.
Becoming a Sky Artist
Give students the rest of the period to plan for the nocturne that they will create. Students may use any ideas gained from the artworks or images from space, as well as their own impressions or expressions of the night sky. Inform students that after the painting is done, they will be asked to describe the choices they made and the reasons for each.
Distribute white, blue, and black paper for use in creating a nocturne. Place tempera and watercolor paint, brushes, and water where the materials can be shared easily. Since a nocturne is a night scene, dark colors will probably be used more than lighter colors. Tell the students to plan the work in pencil first, then paint using the light colors first. Special techniques that can be used in watercolor would be very effective for these paintings. You may wish to have students use rubber cement over the light star parts. This will seal the area so that the dark sky paint will not seep into the light parts of the painting. When the painting is dry, students can then rub off the rubber cement to reveal clean light areas. This will lower the chances of the lighter colors being darkened later by dirty water or brushes. Students can also sprinkle regular and/or rock salt (rock salt works best) on the painting when the background color for the sky is painted. If the salt is sprinkled when the paint is still wet, the salt will absorb the color leaving a speckled hazy effect that will look much like a constellation.
When the paintings are complete, have each student write a paragraph describing his/her piece. The description should include the title of the piece, the style in which it was created (noting a specific artist or the student's own style/technique), and any scientific information used in the creation of the piece. If the piece is abstract, the artist should note that scientific information was not used. For example, a student might write, "Five-point purple stars are not scientifically accurate. I painted them that way because I liked the cartoon look of Miro's stars and purple is a good color for a night sky."
Display the finished paintings and their descriptions in the classroom or hallway.
Assessment:
Use the Assessment Rubric to assess your students’ works.
Extensions:
- Look for five-sided star shapes in nature, such as flowers, starfish, and sand dollars. In what ways have these star shapes been used in art? How could one make art using these star shapes?
- Study the nocturnes of other artists like Turner (early 19th century English painter) and Whistler (late 19th Century American painter). What techniques do these painters use to create night scenes?
- Listen to Chopin's Nocturnes while working on the paintings. Ask to consider how Chopin might have gotten the ideas for his works? How is the music suggestive of nighttime?
- Listen or read the lyrics to the '70's pop song Vincent (Starry, Starry Night) by Don McLean at http://www.don-mclean.com/pdf/vincent.pdf. What information does McLean give about Vincent van Gogh? What impression of Van Gogh's life and work does the song create?
Sources:
Print:
- Berger, Melvin and Gilda. Do Stars Have Points? New York: Scholastic, Inc., 1999.
- Ford, Harry. The Young Astronomer. New York: DK Publishing, Inc., 1998.
- Green, Jen. Vincent van Gogh. London: Franklin Watts, 2002.
- Kohl, MaryAnn F. and Kim Solga. Discovering Great Artists. Bellingham, WA: Bright Ring Publishing, Inc., 1996.
- Malet, Rosa Maria. Joan Miro. New York: Rizzoli International Publications, Inc., 1983.
- Mason, Antony. In the Time of Renoir - Art Around the World. Brookfield, CT: Copper Beach Books, 2001.
- Messer, Thomas M. Edvard Munch. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1985.
- Schapiro, Meyer. Vincent Van Gogh. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1983.
- Simon, Seymour. The Universe. New York: Morrow Junior Books, 1998.
Ridpath, Ian. Stars and Planets Atlas. New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1992,1997.
- Venzia, Mike. Henri Matisse- Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists. New York: Children's Press, 1997.
- Venzia, Mike. Van Gogh- Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists. Chicago: Children's Press, 1988.
- Waldman, Neil. The Starry Night. Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mill Press, 1999.
- Wiggins, Colin. Post-Impressionism. New York: Dorling Kindersley, Inc., 1993.
Web:
Authors:
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Mary Beth Bauernschub, Teacher
Kingsford Elementary School
Mitchellville, MD
