SNOWFLAKE MELODY – Painting To Music, Geometric Design

Students will be able to:

• create a mixed media abstract artwork inspired by a piece of music;
• follow instructions to cut out a 6-pointed star;
• turn three 6-pointed stars into snowflakes;
• use lines and shapes to create movement;
• demonstrate technical accomplishment and creativity; 
• support their ideas with evidence found in the works. 

Have students:

• work in small groups to arrange their artworks in a way that best reflects the music from beginning to end;
• create a video that uses the arrangement as a backdrop and includes other creative elements to highlight the music, for example, stop motion animation; a dance/movement performance; shadow puppet performance;
• share their videos with the class.

1. Download and display the Contrast and Emphasis posters available on this website.
2. Download the images of Bertram Brooker's painting, Sounds Assembling, 1928, and Wassily Kandinsky's, Yellow, Red, Blue, (1925) from the Internet.
   Bertram Brooker
   Wassily Kandinsky
3. Review or teach dodecagons - 12-sided polygons.
4. Download and print the 6-pointed star instructions - 1 per student. (Downloads - SixPointedStar.pdf)

1. View and discuss the paintings, Sounds Assembling, and Yellow, Red, Blue without sharing the titles.
2. Introduce the artist Bertram Brooker, and share a few points about him:
   - born in England in 1888, came to Canada in 1905
   - the first Canadian artist to exhibit abstract paintings (1927)
   - Brooker added perspective to his abstract compositions
   - he was also a writer, his first novel won the Governor General’s Medal for the best Canadian novel of the year in 1936
   - he was influenced by Wassily Kandinsky
3. Introduce the artist Wassily Kandinsky, and share a few points about him:
   - born in 1866
   - Russian artist
   - had a special gift called synaesthesia cognate - a condition that meant when he heard a sound he also saw a particular colour
   - he used colours and shapes in his abstract paintings to express feelings and music
   - he painted the first non-objective painting called the First Abstract Watercolour, 1910
   - he thought each shape created specific feelings – square caused calm feelings; triangle caused aggressive feelings; circle caused heavenly feelings
4. Introduce the challenge.

1. Display the completed paintings as a body of work. 
2. Ask students to view the artworks while the music is playing. From time to time stop the music and ask students to show where they see some aspect of the music. Remind them to support their ideas with evidence found in the work. Ask them, "What do you see that makes you say that?" 
3. During the discussion include references to:
   ​- movement – How has the direction and flow of lines created a sense of movement?
   - space – How has the use of oil pastel added to the sense of space?
   - creativity – How does the composition reflect the uniqueness of the artist?
4. Ask a few volunteers to share what they learned.
5. Display the paintings in the classroom for several weeks.

1. Observe students as they work – thoughtful focus, discriminating, seeking more information, elaborating, experimenting.
2. Observe students as they discuss their paintings – active listening, insightful contributions, supporting ideas with evidence found in the artwork and from personal experience.
3. Use a checklist to track progress. (Downloads – SnowflakeMelody_tracking.pdf)
4. Have students use the self-assessment form to evaluate their work. (Downloads – SnowflakeMelody_self-assessment.pdf)