art nature - santa barbara museum of artthe shapes of particular leaves ... we associate with the...

ArtNature&

“If you can paint one leaf, you can paint the whole world.”

John Ruskin

About the Artist: Severin Rosen

Introduction: Art, Writing & Science

When students are given the opportunity to observe details and make personal connections, they begin to think like scientists and write like poets. This series

of lessons invites your

students to appreciate, note,

interpret, and render the

beauty they discover in the

natural world.

In this teacher packet, you

will be introduced to the

works of two artists. One

is Severin Roesen who

painted still lifes during the

nineteenth century. The other is the modern

artist George Rickey, who creates kinetic

sculpture.

Whether they are stilling life or engineering the spin of the seasons, artists and writers seek to interpret nature’s cycles. The shapes

of particular leaves and the patterns of their

veins (see the grape leaves in Roesen’s Still Life) may suit a composition perfectly, but they

also reveal the plant’s functional, botanical

structure. Similarly, when writing about plants

and/or leaves, a writer might use both the

lexicon of a scientist and the imagery of

a poet to describe botanical features. The

spiraling stem tendrils of Roesen’s grape vines

do in fact, look like calligraphic squiggles or

flourishes. The drop of moisture on the ripe

apple actually resembles a perfect teardrop.

Cyclical changes in the colors and patterns

of leaves can be abstracted into a sculpture

(Rickey’s The Seasons I) that

reveals a universal

and personal

artistic response or

interpretation to the

concept of “season.”

Known for sumptuous, highly realistic still life paintings with a brilliant palette, Severin

Roesen was born in Germany and likely trained

as a porcelain and enamel painter. In 1848, he

emigrated with his family to New York where

he exhibited his work. In 1857, he moved to

Williamsport, Pennsylvania and continued to

paint detailed floral still lifes in the tradition of

the 17th-century Dutch and German painters.

His paintings suited American taste in that they

reflected mid-19th century optimism in the

richness and abundance of the nation. When

Roesen arrived in New York, he brought (in his

art) the influence of lush 17th century Dutch

floral painting, which featured a meticulous

attention to detail interpreted in the clear,

sharp light and intense colors of the Dusseldorf

school.

Roesen’s work contrasted markedly with that of earlier American still life painters. The

early 19th century American style appeared

spare and austere when compared with

Roesen’s strikingly colored, elaborate floral

Severin Roesen, Still Life, not dated, Oil on canvas, SBMA, Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton for the Preston Morton Collection.

PAGE 2 ART & NATURE TEACHER GUIDE SANTA BARBARA MUSEUM OF ART

About the Artist: George Rickey

compositions and luscious fruit displays. His

work also contrasted in subject matter. Earlier

American still-life artists had mainly concerned

themselves with fruit compositions. Flowers,

when painted, were generally shown from

a botanical point of view, or as adjuncts to

portraiture.

Roesen’s art made the 17th century Dutch

tradition and the clear intense color of the

Dusseldorf school available in this country at a

time when American flowers and fruit paintings

were quite small, and still life was considered

a lesser art when compared to portraiture,

landscape, and historical painting. His style, as

well as his large paintings, gave considerable

impetus to the popularity of the still-life genre

in this country.

Roesen’s work was brought to the attention

of the larger public when First Lady Jackie

Kennedy hung several of his paintings in the

White House.

George Rickey was born in South Bend, Indiana

on June 6, 1907. His father was a mechanical

engineer employed by the Singer Company as

manager of their sewing machine factory, and

his mother was the daughter of a New York

Supreme Court judge and a drawing teacher.

In 1913,

George’s

father

was

transferred

to the company’s

Scotland branch. During

school holidays, George sailed his family’s

38-foot yacht through Scotland’s coastal

waterways, mastering the mechanics of sailing

as he gained an understanding of wind currents

and the laws of motion (central concepts of

Rickey’s sculptures).

After attending boarding school Rickey

studied history at Oxford, drawing at the

Ruskin School, and painting in Paris. His life was

comprised of painting, teaching, studying, and

writing, until the advent of World War II.

Once the Army Air Corps discovered his

mechanical abilities, they assigned Rickey

to projects involving the effects of wind and

gravity on ballistics. During this

time, he

produced

mobiles

of plastic,

brass,

copper, and/or

painted steel elements, using a mechanical

system called a catenary which had been used

on and off since 1932 by Alexander Calder.

Rickey wanted to create works where the mechanics of movement were hidden. In

the early 1950’s, he developed his first

universal joint that allowed his works, by

then being made of stainless steel, to

respond to the slightest movement of air, and

to move in unpredictable ways. His biographer,

Nan Rosenthal, wrote that his sculptures moved

with “a smooth randomness” and operated

with an “overriding order.” She continued:

“Such movement seems suitable for articulating

both the vast cycle and indifference to man

we associate with the mineral and vegetable

aspects of nature: seasons, constellations, the

rustling leaves…”

The bright colors painted on its planar forms suggest times of the year. Each rectangle

pairs contrasting shapes, curves vs. rectangles,

and contrasting colors, cool vs. warm. Rickey

carefully adjusted the weights and bearings so

that the pieces are never definitively at rest.

George Rickey, Diptych: The Seasons I, 1956, Oil on metal, SBMA, Gift of Mr. and

Mrs. Warren D. Tremaine

Although Rickey was clearly influenced by Alexander Calder, he did not use the organic shapes preferred by Calder, leaning toward more geometric and abstract imagery.


Some Background: Botanical Illustration

Lesson Plan 1: Begin with Observation

Botanical illustration is a marriage of art and science, and

is characterized

by accurate

observation

and highly

realistic forms.

With roots in

the botanical

drawings of

early Greek

botanists such

as Pedanius

Dioscorides,

contemporary

botanical art

has remained

faithful to many

centuries-old

traditions.

The focus

of botanical

illustration continues to be on accuracy

and documentation, but contemporary

botanical artists have forged new avenues of

representation. Communicating the physical attributes of a plant or flower remains central to any botanical illustration, but the modes of

communication have evolved in order to cater to aesthetic ideals as well.

In this vein, botanical illustration can be

understood as a variant of still life that is

defined by its artificial emphasis on and

isolation of specific elements. Though the

two styles are similar, botanical illustrations

rely heavily on objectivity and directness,

avoiding the atmospheric compositions and

lighting that typify most still lifes. Floral still

lifes, for example, are rarely considered to be

botanical flower illustrations even though their

subjects are the same. Botanical illustration

distinguishes itself as a unique discipline

through its accurate rendering and focused

celebration of the exquisite forms found

in nature. In still-life painting, there exists

an emotional component that reveals the

subjectivity of an artist who is free to arrange

objects to satisfy his personal aesthetic sense.

The best botanical illustrations add symbolism

to the image: implying taste through dew

drops, touch through textural details such

as thorns or bark, smell through vivid and

succulent color. Birds and insects (whose lives

are as brief as the flowers and trees they live in)

often stray into the composition, reminders of

ecology, climate and season. (Artspan)

When children are invited to look closely at

particular sections of a painting, they look more

carefully and discover details they

might not have noticed when looking

at the entire piece. Roesen’s Still Life

is filled with interesting and important

details that are easy to miss.

Begin with the far left side of the painting (the goblet of flowers and

the fruit). Ask students to find ten

details they can point out to a partner.

(Responses can be written or oral.)

Use the Think, Pair, Share routine and

invite students to compare their observations

with one of their peers, or have students share

one detail each with the whole group.

Repeat this sequence by looking

carefully at the remaining section of

the painting. What other details stand

out? What do the students notice

about the leaves? Consider the shape

of the leaves, and the prominent veins

(see charts of leaf shapes, edges, and

patterns). What do they notice about

the coloration of the leaves? The

twining, spiraling stem tendrils?

by Elizabeth Blackwell from her Curious Herbal published in London in 1737.


Lesson Plan 2: Observe Like a Scientist/Respond Like a Poet.

Begin by introducing students to the leaf terms description sheet (included in this

packet). Discuss the various terms, and allow

time for students to make quick sketches of a

variety of the leaf shapes, etc.

Direct students to choose one prominent leaf in the painting, and

write down, dictate, or verbally share

the particular details and features

(including shape, venation pattern,

leaf margin or edge, coloration,

etc.). Additionally, students should

estimate leaf size in inches or

centimeters.

Next, ask students to compose at least one simile that describes the

leaf, and/or an example of personification.

Additionally, they can creatively describe the

coloration; students can even make up color

names (i.e. “barely ripe green” or “rosy-cheeked

red”).

Demonstrate how students can meld together the two descriptions that they wrote — the

scientifically detailed and the creatively poetic

— into one descriptive paragraph. Encourage

the use of prepositions and prepositional

phrases that show direction (next to, on

top of, in front of, underneath, above,

etc.).

Organization matters! Sequence

the description so it reads like a

“tour” of the leaf. Where should

the reader begin? What follows

logically?

Sentence variety makes a significant difference. Ask students

to jot down the first two words of

each sentence in the paragraph. Are

words repeated too often? Do all the sentences

follow a subject-verb repetitious construction?

Mix them up! Add a question, make some

sentences long, and others short. Consider the

rhythm of the sentences. Suggest that students

read the paragraph aloud.

Next, consider the painting as a whole. What

fine details add realism? What do the students

notice about the coloration of the fruit, flowers,

and leaves? What particular colors do students

notice? (Encourage students to include very

specific colors, beyond primary and secondary

colors if possible.) Where are particular colors

repeated throughout the painting? Where

are the darkest and lightest sections of the

painting?

Where are the strongest lines in the painting?

Identify the lines as horizontal, vertical,

diagonal, intersecting, etc. Which intersecting

lines create angles? How are sections of the still

life connected visually? Look at the curves in

this painting: which curves bring the viewer’s

eye back into the composition?

Ask students to consider other compositional decisions the artist made: the directions that

the various pieces of fruit are facing, and the

particular placement of each object. Note the

foreground and background. What objects are

positioned partially or completely off the table?

Why did the artist make these choices?

Ask students to identify which detail (personal opinion) is the most important in the painting (where does the eye go first or

which is most significant). Which detail is their

favorite element of the composition or the

painting? Or, which object would the student

want to reach in and take? Why?

What questions do students have about this painting? Invite speculation from the group.

Make comparisons by going on a scavenger hunt for similes in this painting. Remind

students that a simile is a figure of speech in

which two unlike things are compared, and that

a simile is often introduced by “like” or “as.”


Examples of similies:

The grapes look like bright gold

coins.

The edge of the leaf is curled like

a baby’s hand.

The blue flowers look like fairy

caps.

Highlight the “golden words” or examples

of strong word choice. Which part of the

description stands out? Which verbs are

strong and precise? Are sensory descriptions

included?

Pair students together and have them read the descriptive paragraphs to each other without

pointing out the leaf from the painting that was

chosen for this exercise. Can the partners guess

the correct leaves? If not, what does the writer

need to add to the description?

Follow the same general sequence as described above, but this time, have students select real leaves to describe. Randomly place

a pile of leaves on a table, and invite students

to select the leaf of their choice.

Students begin by recording detailed, scientific observations. (Option: use the

Leaf Detail Chart included in this packet as a

prewriting exercise).

Next, add figurative language. The students

should create similes, metaphors, and/or

examples of personification to describe the

leaf.

Students compose a descriptive paragraph (or

paragraphs) by combining the scientific details

with the examples of figurative language, as

they did before.

Direct students to scan the paragraph(s) for sentence variety and fluency, and check for effective word choice (strong verbs, sensory

description, etc.). Students should also

consider the organization

of the paragraph, and the

order of the sentences.

Someone else will be reading the description. Scan the paragraph(s) for

spelling and editing, and

correct all errors. Is it easy

to follow the description?

Did the student include

enough specific details?

TIME TO PLAY THE GAME

Return the leaves to a table, and spread them out. Each leaf should be

clearly visible.

Collect the descriptions and pass them out to random students. Each

student should receive some else’s description

to read.

Students match the description they received with a leaf on the table. Occasionally, two

or three students will “claim” a match with a

leaf. In this case, read each description very

carefully and decide on the best match. The

others will need to search again. There is often

some switching involved until every leaf has a

match.

After all the matches have been made, the original authors confirm that the matches are correct. If time allows, each student can read

his/her description to the whole class.

Variation: Direct students to look for a leaf outside of school and write the description for homework. Bring the leaf and the description

to class the next day in a paper bag or small

box so others do not see the leaf. Repeat the

sequence described above.

Extensions: Photograph each leaf, and have

students enter (type) the descriptions into

a computer document. Create a Leaf Game

bulletin board that invites viewers to match

the descriptions with the photos, or create a

class book featuring the descriptions and the

images of the leaves. Or, create a bulletin board

or class book featuring the similes and the

photographs.

Another option is to have each student

sketch or paint his/her leaf using pencils,

colored pencils, pen and ink, pen and ink and

watercolor, oil pastels, etc.

Lesson Plan 3: The Leaf Game

STUDENT SAMPLE OF LEAF DESCRIPTIONS (4th GRADE) Can you find me? My length is six inches and my width is five. My back is fuzzy, but my front is not. Please don’t step on me, for I am as brittle as a Frito Lay chip. If you pick me up, I’ll be dirty brown with curly tips, and you’ll see that I look like a shriveled up, clawed hand. I have decomposed windows like old screen doors in my top left section. There is burnt orange running through my veins. I look like a hungry person munched on me like an old piece of chocolate. My edges are serrated and look like the blade of a bread knife. - A. S.


Lesson Plan 4: A Balance of Opposites

Lesson Plan 5: More Work with Poems

George Rickey’s bright and bold geometric shapes lightly move in a balance of opposites: cool and warm colors, angles and curves. As

they sail in small movements of air, his forms

suggest the changing seasons: summer to

winter, spring to fall.

What Rickey did with shape and color, we can do with words. Make a list of words

that are opposites. These can

include tangible things like hot

and cold, or intangibles like

fear and longing, jealousy and

indifference, etc. Now rearrange

the pairs,

making unusual

combinations

or changing

the word form

(adjective to

noun or adverb,

present tense

to past tense,

etc.) and

adding other

words to create

a poem.

Have students write an acrostic poem.

Mark the cycle of seasons by writing a poem of welcome or farewell.

L ovely leaves,

E ach one has

A special detail

F or us!

A ll the things

T hat are illuminated, like the

U mber leaves of

M y oak tree,

N ever the same, always changing

Examples of Opposites

Light Dark

Pain Numbness

Waking Sleeping

Jealousy Indifference

Early Late

Dawn Dusk

Comfort Annoy

Smooth Rough

Randomness Order

Loose Tight

Stillness Motion

Sample Poem

Indifferent to pain

I wake in jealous light

Darkly

My sleep has turned to numbness.

Hello, Autumn

Hello, autumn!Hello russet sunsets on the horizon,Thanksgiving, and visiting with aunts and uncles,and big and little cousins.Hello Halloween, trick-or-treating, glowing-eyed jack-o-lanterns,and eating candy all day long!Hello fall leaves, tumbling to the ground,making a colorful carpet underneath the trees.Hello new pencils,gliding across my paper,and new teachers, welcomg us back to school.Hello big waves,perfect for surfing.Hello night walks in the moonlightunder the golden Harvest Moon.Hello, Autumn!Hello! - J.B. (4th grade)

Goodbye, Summer

Goodbye sleeping in until lunch.Goodbye blowing bubbles and watching them pop on the bright green grass.

Goodbye slipping and sliding with my cousins,and good-bye staying up until the clock strikes midnight.

Goodbye swimming in my bright blue pool,goodbye sand, stuck between my toes,and shifting around in my sheets.And goodbye to giggling with my friends for hours, all during the night.

Goodbye watermelon, dripping down my smile,and goodbye lemonade stands on a hot summer day.

Goodbye, summer, goodbye! - K.S. (4th Grade)


Art Activity 1: K – 2nd

Art Activity 2: 3rd – 6th

Make a Multi-Media Realism to Abstraction Leaf Collage.

Materials: Large white or black drawing

paper or copy paper; white or black oil

pastels, chalk pastels in a selection of colors

or markers and crayons; small squares of

colored paper in warm and cool colors,

black stamp pads, scissors, glue sticks, and a

selection of leaves.

1. Have students compare Severin Roesen’s

Still Life and George Rickey’s Seasons I. In

what ways are these artworks similar? They

both have straight lines and curvy lines,

warm and cool colors, and were inspired by

nature. How are they different? Roesen’s

work is a painting done in a realistic style.

Rickey’s is a sculpture and is abstract.

2. Ask students to study a selection

of leaves, paying careful attention to

their outlines, the venation patterns and

coloration.

3. Give each student four squares of colored

paper (two squares in warm colors and two

squares in cool colors). Using a black stamp

pad, have them create leaf prints on each

of the squares. If the leaf is bigger than the

square, print part of the leaf.

4. Using paper, white or black oil pastels,

crayons, or markers have students draw

outlines of a leaf and repeat these outlines

four to five times; starting small then

increasing in scale until they are larger then

the paper size.

5. Have students select three colors of

chalk pastels or other coloring materials

to fill in the shapes that the crossed lines

created. When they are satisfied with their

composition, have them glue the leaf prints

to their drawings, grouping the warm colored

squares separately from the cool colored

ones.

Make a Multi-Media Realism to Abstraction Leaf Collage.

Materials: Large white or black drawing

paper or copy paper; small squares of white

paper, pencils, white or black oil pastels,

chalk pastels in a selection of colors or

markers & crayons, scissors, glue sticks, and

a selection of leaves.


Still Life and George Rickey’s Seasons I. In

what ways are these artworks similar? They

both have - straight lines & curvy lines, warm

and cool colors, and were inspired by nature.

How are they different? Roesen’s work is a

painting done in a realistic style. Rickey’s is a

sculpture and is abstract.

2. Ask students to study a selection of

leaves, paying careful attention to their

outlines, the venation pattern and coloration.

Have them select a leaf to create a botanical

illustration of.

3. Using white or black oil pastels, crayons

or markers and large drawing paper, have

students draw outlines of a leaf and repeat


these outlines four to five times. They should

start small then increase the scale until it is

larger then the paper size.

4. Have students select three colors of

chalk pastels or other coloring materials

to fill in the shapes that the crossed lines

created. When they are satisfied with their

composition, have them glue the botanical

illustration to their drawings.

Art Activity 3: 7th – 12th

Make a Rhyme in Nature Realism to Abstraction Triptych.

Materials: Three sheets of drawing paper,

pencils, oil pastels, and a selection of

botanicals.


Still Life and George Rickey’s Seasons I.

2. Ask students to select a plant and study

how the different elements of the plant

are connected, then create a botanical

illustration in pencil on paper.

3. Next, develop the sketch into an

abstracted drawing, focusing on the rhythms

of the different parts of the original subject.

4. Finally, have students create an oil-pastel

version of their second drawing, selecting

warm or cool colors for the object and the

opposite color group to fill in the negative

space completely. If desired, the negative

space can be covered with black oil pastel

and uncovered using scrafito technique.


LEAF ARRANGEMENTS ON A TWIG

Leaf Terms

circular

heart triangular lance

oval

elliptical egg diamond

COMMON LEAF SHAPES

alternate opposite whorled

COMMON TYPES OF LEAF MARGINS (OR

EDGES)

smooth wavy serrate doubly serrate lobed

Texture Colors Veins Shape Other Features

Edges

Similes: Size:

Leaf Game:

Look for a few interesting leaves that will be good to describe. Choose one. Complete the chart with the perfect words to help you describe the leaf you chose.

Next, write a description of your leaf. It needs to be accurate and complete – someone will be reading it and using the description to try and pick out your leaf! However, don’t tell us the particular tree your leaf is from – that takes the fun out of trying to find it. Use the two reference sheets to help you describe the shape of your leaf, leaf margins, venation patterns, etc.

EDITING and SPELLING count – and include at least one simile and/or example of personification. Consider adding a question or exclamatory sentence. Make sure your sentences start in different ways, and that they are not short and choppy. Example:

My leaf is circular in shape, with a palmate venation pattern. If you measure it, you’ll discover that it is three inches wide by three inches high. I think it looks like a colorful star. The margins of the leaf are serrate, jagged and sharp, just like the blade of a dinner knife. A crimson and brown border surrounds the leaf, but the inside sections are still yellow-green. Even though my leaf is starting to dry out, it is still shiny and smooth. The veins of the leaf really stand out because they are yellow-gold. There is a vein that connects to the tip of each of the sections of the leaf. The main vein ends in the stem of the leaf, and it is hard and thick. Four small holes are scattered around the surface of the leaf, and they have very dark (almost black) edges surrounding them. Can you find my leaf?

art nature - santa barbara museum of artthe shapes of particular leaves ... we associate with the...

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