This spring, have your kids join our awesome artsy weekly classes! We have a great variety of art classes available, our most popular being Mixed Media and Sculpture for kids as young as 3 to youths as big as 15. In March and April, come step into Mr. Henri Rousseau's fantastic jungles filled with courageous cats and beautiful birds!
Who is Henri Rousseau?
Henri Rousseau (1844-1910) was a self-taught painter from France! Believe it or not, he worked as a customs' officer all his early life, and started painting in his late 40's (when he was retired). It is truly never too late to start doing something you enjoy in life!
When he first started painting, his childlike art was made fun of by critics, but that never made Rousseau want to give up. He kept practicing and trying... painting all sorts of self portraits, ferocious animals, and Parisian jungle fauna. He never travelled any where else, so most of his exotic inspirations came from other artists' work (like Paul Gauguin). Soon enough, many people saw him as an art genius! There was new imagination in his work, his animals looked so wild but happy, and his art would inspire other future famous artists like Pablo Picasso and Jean Hugo. Rousseau is most famous for works such as these:
The Sleeping Gypsy, 1897, MoMA, New York
What will kids learn in the summer months: March and April?
Kids will explore the whimsical world of Rousseau, and learn his many beautiful styles that touch on themes Post-Impressionism (art that has lots of light and colour, and may not look like real life) and Naïve art (art that is simple and childlike).
In March art classes, we will be drawing, painting, sculpting and creating amazing jungle life. Kids will have the opportunity to observe their favourite animals (such as tigers and toucans), and paint them together amidst thick green leaves and blooming flowers. There's going to be a lot of colour blending, shape forming and contour drawing to practice.
In Alphabet + Art class, we'll be learning how to draw different types of animals, and build on animal vocabulary.
In April, we'll look closely at one of Rousseau's most popular painting called "The Sleeping Gypsy", and we'll try to recreate it in various mediums (acrylic painting, silkscreen, or ceramics). There are so many rich colours, and layers to work on. It is an ambitious artwork reference for our students, but it will be a lot of fun for them to add their own twist to this fantasy landscape. There are so many odd details to capture; we cannot wait to vivify this masterpiece with the kids!
Will the class projects repeat if my child signs up for both months?
There will be different art styles and references to work with because his range of work is spans more than 15 years. In the end, kids should be able to learn much about the artist’s early and late life, his inspiration, and his wonderful artistry.
Check our schedules here, and sign up today to book your spots!
Can't wait to create with you,
Messy Jessy + Trendy Wendy