We learned about Stuart Davis and how he was an early American Modernist
painter. He created proto-pop art paintings that were colorful and
influenced by jazz music. The students noticed that he used geometric
and organic shapes in many of his paintings. We then focused a little
bit more on his painting "Ready-to-Wear" (1955).
"Throughout
his lengthy career as one of the preeminent American Modernists, Stuart
Davis looked to the sights and sounds of the United States for his
subject matter. In this vibrant painting, Davis explored the American
invention of ready-to-wear clothing, a term first employed in an 1895
Montgomery Ward catalog. The broad, flattened areas of red, white,
black, and blue may represent leftover pieces of fabric, while the
angular white shape in the upper-right corner suggests a pair of
scissors. With its bright palette and energetic composition, the
painting celebrates not only the vitality of the ready-to-wear clothing
industry but also America itself."
Kindergarten students worked on black construction paper and cut our a
variety of shapes from red, white, and blue construction paper. We made
sure that we used organic and geometric. We also made sure that we
were overlapping the shapes.
Here are some kindergarten examples below: