Virtual Resources
At-Home Art Activity
This exhibition explores a tendency in mid-twentieth-century American abstract painting in which vast areas of color appear as the dominating force. Although this type of painting was prefigured in the work of previous generations of abstract painters, such as Barnett Newman and Mark Rothko, it is identified with artists including Frank Bowling, Helen Frankenthaler, Sam Gilliam, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland, Jules Olitski, Larry Poons. Frank Stella and Alma Thomas, among others. Color Field painting was but one of several art movements that emerged in America during the early 1960s, including Pop Art, Minimalism, Op Art, Photorealism, hard-edge abstraction, and the Black Arts Movement, to name a few. Although critics tended to categorize the Color Field artists based solely on their shared formal characteristics, each artist approached their process from a distinct perspective, while maintaining an awareness of each other’s innovations.
The exhibition’s title Glory of the World, takes its cue from Frank Stella’s writings on Hans Hofmann’s abstract painting Gloriamundi (1963): “Hofmann proved that the straightforward manipulation of pigment can create exalted art…Glory of the world this painting surely is, and glory of the world his painting surely was and is.” Like Hofmann, the monumental Color Field paintings in this exhibition arouse a sense of wonder and discovery.
Materials
- Cardstock
- Markers
- Crayons
- Tape
- Glue
- Scissors
Art Vocabulary
Color Field painting – Paintings characterized primarily by large fields of flat, solid color spread across, stained into, the canvas. These paintings are less about form and more about color and human emotions.
Abstract Art – Art that Increasingly moves away from the naturalistic image although it is still somewhat identifiable.
Pop Art – Art made from commercial items and cultural icons such as product labels, advertisements, and movie stars.
Minimalism – A way of making modern art or music that uses simple ideas, sounds or shapes.
Op Art – A style of painting which makes use of optical illusions and other kinds of unusual optical effects.
Photorealism – A style of painting or drawing. The picture is done with a lot of detail to make it look exactly like a photograph.
Hard-edge abstraction – An approach to abstract painting that became widespread in the 1960s and is characterized by areas of flat color with sharp, clear (or ‘hard’) edges.
Black Arts Movement – An ideological movement that emerged in the USA in the early 1960s when black artists and intellectuals came together to organize, study, and think about what a new black art and black politics movement might be.
Virtual Resources
Inspiration for your Imagination
Installation view of Glory of the World; Color Field Painting. Photography by Steven Brooke
Art Activity
Instructions
Step 1
Your materials: Cardstock, Markers, Crayons, Tape, Glue, Scissors
Step 2
Use a black marker to draw squiggly lines overlapping one another, from one side to another.
Step 3
Use your markers, crayons, and colored pencils to fill in the organic shapes you made.
Step 4
Once all the shapes are filled in, turn your paper over and repeat the process.
Step 5
Draw shorter squiggly lines that move towards the center of the page. The lines should end with a point.
Step 6
Cut along the squiggly lines and stop at the end point.
Step 7
Roll, or fold the loose tabs inward toward the center, and attach them using glue or tape.
Step 8
Glue or tape the paper sculpture to your base, and here if your finished artwork!
Art Activity
Notes
Thank you for joining us, dont forget to snap a photo of you and your artwork!
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*If you have any questions about these art activities please contact NSU Art Museum at [email protected] or call 954-262-5500*