Josef Albers - Color Tints & Shades

Objectives:

Students will learn about Josef Albers and monochromatic color shading and tints. Students will participate in creating their own monochromatic composition.

Vocabulary:

Color, tint- when you add white to a color, monochromatic-one color, shade- when you add black to a color

Artist Biography:   Show picture #1

Josef Albers was an influential teacher, writer, painter, and color theorist. Josef Albers was born in Germany on March 19, 1888 (125 years ago). Albers grew up and became a school teacher in his hometown but only taught there for 5 years. He then pursued his love of art by studying it in many different cities and eventually enrolled in art school. After studying art for years he was then asked to teach it. Albers became an art professor in 1925 teaching all different kinds of art stained glass, painting, furniture making etc. In 1933 Albers and his wife Anni (who was also an artist) emigrated to America. Josef Albers was offered a job as head of a new art school in North Carolina. Albers taught there until 1949 when he and his wife moved so that he could teach at Yale University. In 1958 Albers retired from teaching to focus on his own writing and art.

Josef was accomplished as a designer, photographer, typographer, printmaker and poet, although Albers is best remembered for his work as an abstract painter and theorist. Albers most famous art series is the Homage to the Square, which includes more than 2000 works. He began painting pieces for this series in 1949 and is said to have still been working on it up until his death in 1976 (he was 88years old).

Show Artwork:

Homage to the Square #1:

·         Painted in 1964

·         Monochromatic using tints

·         size: 18” x 18”

       "What colors do you see? What does it make you think of?"

Study for Homage to the Square:

·         Painted in 1960

·         size 30” x 30”

·         monochromatic using shades 
      "Do you think he used more than just green & white in this painting?" 

Study for Homage to the Square:

·         painted in 1969

·         size 16” x 16”

·         monochromatic using tints

      "What does this make you think of? What is similar or different in this one from the others?"

Project:

What you need:

·         white paper for each student

·         desk cover for each student

·         paint mixing pallet for each 2 students

·         Blue and white paint

·         Paint brushes

·         Black shark silhouettes

Step #1- Pass out papers, desk covers, pallets with blue and white paint in two spots (for two students to share), and brushes. Students need to write their names on the back of the white paper.

Step #2- Students paint a white circle on their paper. Middle or to the side

Step #3- Students then add the tiniest bit of blue on the tip of their brush. They mix that itty bitty bit of blue into the white and paint another ring around their white circle.

Step #4- They continue to add itty bitty bits of blue to their original white all the while painting concentric rings and taking notice of the color getting darker and darker.  

Step #5- When their paper is covered with darker and darker tints of blue all the way to the edge they can then stick one shark silhouette to their painting with glue. If front names are desired it will need to be done after painting is dry.