Michelangelo was not a turtle! - teaching kids about Michelangelo and other artists through painting activities

Kids meet the master, and paint their world his way

Thanks to four crime fighters on the half shell, kids are familiar with the names of some of the Western world's greatest artists. But do they know that the real Michelangelo Buonarroti was a sculptor, architect, poet, philosopher, and as much of a celebrity in his day as any Ninja Turtle? With these projects, students will learn about Michelangelo by painting scenes of their own world using his techniques.

WHAT'S SO HARD ABOUT

PAINTING ON A CEILING?

Michelangelo (1475-1564) was commissioned by the Vatican to paint the ceiling of the sacred Sistine Chapel in Rome. The difficulties facing him in this task were enormous. First of all, there was the shape and size of the chapel's ceiling - besides being curved, it covered an area of 5,800 square feet, and stood 65 feet above the pavement. On top of that, Michelangelo wasn't familiar with the art of fresco painting (drawing designs on wet plaster). But he tackled the task anyway, and over a four-year span, the artist worked obsessively on the project that was to become one of the greatest masterpieces of all time.

THE ART PROJECTS

Kid-Size Ceiling Paintings

Michelangelo used a scaffold to paint while he was lying on his back. To show kids how this was achieved, try the following activity.

Grade level: primary to intermediate

Time: one hour

Materials: crayons, watercolor crayon sticks (see note, below), mural paper, and tape

Note: I have found that painting upside down is messy. Watercolor sticks, like Payons[R], solve this problem. Kids can draw with the sticks as they would with crayons, then use a little water to blend the lines so they look painted.

Directions:

1. For his paintings, Michelangelo chose scenes from the Bible - an important source of stories during his time. As a class, discuss scenes from stories students consider important to a particular culture. Vote on one scene to illustrate for your class ceiling painting. If kids work in groups, have each group choose one scene to illustrate.

2. Tape mural paper underneath a low table, or several tables if you're doing this activity in small groups.

3. Five or six students can get under the table at once to draw the scene. If this is a whole-class project, don't worry if kids have different approaches to illustrating the story; the finished product will be interesting if it is a mix of styles. You may want to take snapshots of students as they work, to display with the finished product.

4. Display ceiling paintings with reports about Michelangelo.

Mini Frescoes

Fresco painting was devised as a way of making painted scenes last longer. Many fresco artists chose scenes of daily life, or scenes depicting political ideals, as the subjects of their art.

Frescoes are created by painting scenes onto still-moist plaster. As the plaster dries, the illustration becomes one with the wall. In fact, some frescoes from Roman times still exist in as much detail as they were originally painted.

Grade level: intermediate

Time: two 30-minute sessions

Materials: plaster, water, plastic margarine containers, small paper clips, pencil, watercolor paints and brushes

Directions:

1. Prepare, plaster according to the package instructions.

2. Pour plaster approximately a half-inch think into plastic containers.

3. Let the plaster set. (After about ten minutes, kids should place one end of an opened paper clip into plaster. This makes a hanger for displaying frescoes.)

4. When plaster has set (it will still be slightly moist), pop it out of the margarine container.

5. Ask kids to draw a rough draft of a scene that illustrates something about their daily lives, or something they strongly believe in. Students draw pictures or de-signs onto plaster and paint it with watercolors. (The watercolors remoisten the plaster to give the fresco effect.)

6. Wash out brushes thoroughly - plaster left in bristles will ruin them.

ART EXTENSIONS

Check out the murals and frescoes of artists like Diego Rivera, Leonardo DaVinci, Pablo Picasso, and Georges Seurat. Also look at examples of "anonymous" artwork painted on Egyptian tombs and prehistoric caves.

Ask students to study the subjects of this artwork. How are they alike and different? Why might artists choose murals or frescoes, instead of other media, as a way of expressing their art?

Kids may want to compare Michelangelo's fresco to the work of modernists like Picasso or Rivera.

TECHNOLOGY CONNECTION

Michelangelo: A Self-portrait (Voyager) is a set of two laser discs that includes two famous feature-length films about Michelangelo's life, two hours of readings based on the artist's journals and letters, plus a detailed exhibit of his sketches, drawings, and paintings (including the Sistine Chapel). The set is priced at $99.95. Call (800) 446-2001.

COPYRIGHT 1994 Scholastic, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group