Lesson
Students recreate Starry Night using chalk pastels
Recommended Ages
Elementary school to middle school
Historical Art Examples or References
Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night
Vocabulary
Impressionism: a style of painting using small brush strokes to make an image
Materials
Paper
Picture of Starry Night
Chalk pastels
Anticipatory Set
Discussion the movement, artist, and piece
Directions
1. Start with the brown foreground
2. Make the ground green beyond the foreground.
3. Color the yellow stars.
4. Slowly build the surrounding of the stars into a darker blue.
5. Every stroke must be short, to emulate impressionism.
Reflection
Life applications; how the lesson might apply to non-art related experiences or other types of knowledge.
1. What was Impressionism?
2. Who was Vincent Van Gogh?
Many students thought they could not accomplish this piece because it was made by a famous artist, however, when I taught them how to do it step by step, they followed very well. One girl did not quit for a second even though she was very unsure of continuing. I kept praising her work, and she eventually finished her beautiful art work! Emulating artists is an easy way to discover how far you can go in an artwork. It also helps you find what your style is and how it differs from another artist’s.