Featured Artists

Henri Matisse

1st Grade Artists are working on paper collages inspired by Henri Matisse. Matisse was one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. His use of bold color, organic shapes, simplified shapes, and patterns make his work recognizable and unique. Matisse continued his painting style of simplistic shapes, bold colors, and patterns throughout his career. As Matisse got older, he started experimenting with paper cutouts. These paper collages became another art form that Matisse is known for. After surgery, in 1941, Matisse was often confined to bed, where he would often draw on the ceiling and walls with charcoal connected to a long stick. In one of his final projects he designed stained-glass windows, murals, furnishings, and sacred vestments for the church's priests for the Chapel of the Rosary in Vence. Matisse died at the age of 84 in 1954.

Leonardo da Vinci

5th grade artists are studying the life of Leonardo da Vinci. They started by exploring the Italian Renaissance and are now focusing on da Vinci. Leonardo da Vinci actually translates to Leonardo from Vinci. He was born in the town of Vinci. Hmmm...Da Vinci is one of the most influencial artists ever. He is best known for his works like the Mona Lisa and the Last Supper. However, what you may not know is that da Vinci was also a writer, scientist, inventor,and architect. He recorded many of his designs in detailed journals. Some of his designs included the first robot, helicopter, military tank, advanced weaponry, flying machines, and much more. He also studied human anatomy, producing many detailed sketches of the human body in correct proportion. The most famous of these is the Vitruvian Man. Leonardo da Vinci was also known for his cryptic writings. In fact, he used mirror writing in his notebooks. He was left handed and wrote from right to left, forming each letter backwards.