Picasso Blue Portraits

First graders learned about Pablo Picasso and his artwork.  We started by reading the book "Just Behave Pablo Picasso," by Jonah Winter.  I can't say enough good things about this book!  Sometimes even children's art books can be a little too much for first grade but this book did a great job of talking about Picasso's life in a way that my kids could understand.  It also provided grade level appropriate imagery that highlight the most famous works and periods in Picasso's life.  I will be buying this book for my art room library! 

The key facts we focused on for Pablo Picasso was the fact that he painted blue paintings when he was sad.  He painted rose colored paintings when he became happy again.  And, he was inspired by African masks when he started painting masklike faces.  We used 4 different values of blue for this project to remind us of Picasso's blue period.  We also created faces that look sort of like masks, in the style of Picasso.  Great job 1st grade!

Learning Goal: I can...

- Tell about Pablo Picasso

- Create a collage

- Explain what value is (the lightness or darkness of a color)

- Create texture in paint (by scratching into the wet paint)

- Use contrasting values to help facial features show up