As of late, we have been immersed in the world of Henri Matisse. It's a colorful, fun world to find yourself immersed in. And for toddlers and preschoolers, this world is perfect for imaginative play. The type of play that merges storytelling and art - the best kind of play!
If you're in the mood to explore this world of Matisse with a youngster, you're in luck because there are several great books out there perfect for setting up play extensions. Each one helps children learn about the artist's life and work, while giving insight into what it means to be an artist.
With the three stories we explored, we followed the same basic pattern. I would bring out a book and add it to the library. The kids would discover the book and have me read it several times over the course of a few days. Then, after they knew the story really well, I would bring out an invitation to play and create. Before starting each invitation, I would say - "Let's pretend to be Matisse," and then as they played, I would hear the two saying "I'm Matisse, I'm Matisse."
Here are the three books, and the imagination sparking activities that accompanied them:
First of all, what a gorgeous name for a book, right? And the narrative lives up to the poetic name. The book basically looks at how certain elements of Matisse's childhood set him up to be a famous artist. I love that it captures the little things that make a big difference. It's not drawing lessons that made an artist - it's the way his mom let him arrange the fruit bowl, and how she put red carpets on the walls and floors.
Our invitation to play took those ideas and gave the kids an opportunity to try them on. I pulled out a red carpet and colored fabric, and let Rémy drape them to create a little studio scene. I gave Sierra a bowl and some oranges and asked her to set them up on the table. Both of them walked around the house to find plants to add to the arrangement.
When we were done, they had created a little Matisse still life. Then, I set up their double sided easel with paper, and provided them with paint and brushes. I said, "Let's pretend to be Matisse, and paint just like he would."
Sierra approached her still life in a careful, thoughtful manner, as she does with most of her work. Rémy wanted to fill his paper with the red, like he saw in the book. He dove into his paper with immense energy, as he does with most of his work.
Both of them painted as Matisse until they were satisfied and ready to move on. After they were dry, I hung their masterpieces up on the wall.
This book focuses on the period of Matisse's life where he had to adapt his materials and techniques due to severe illness. One of my favorite aspects about Matisse the artist is the evolutions that took place throughout his career. The last evolution, which led to his cut paper work, is a perfect example how a creative mind can overcome and thrive in the most difficult circumstances.
It's also a perfect set up for practicing with scissors, as his later work was focused on cutting colorful paper. Scissor work is something that all preschoolers need, so it's great to have a purposeful, meaningful way to accomplish that.
The set up is simple. After having read the book, I presented each child with a tray filled with colorful paper and a pair of scissors. I said, "Let's pretend to be Matisse, and cut interesting shapes out of paper." And so they did.
When they were done, Rémy took the cut out pieces of paper and started to arrange them on his desk. He would arrange them one way and declare that they were a train. Then a few movements later, he told us he had made a truck. I loved the fact that he had extended the play and was enjoying moments of composition.
This was a favorite book at nap time. It follows the relationship between an aging and sick Matisse and a night nurse named Monique. As he regains his health, she goes off to become a nun. They run into each other again when Matisse moves close to Monique's convent. Eventually, he builds the nuns of this convent a chapel that turns out to be one of his greatest artistic achievements.
The Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence, in the South of France has been on my list of art pilgrimages for a long time. When building the little chapel, Matisse used stain glass to fill a black and white space with glorious color. I decided to give the kids their own simplified chapel to play with.
I painted tracing paper to look like one of the stained glass patterns found in the chapel. I then glued the paper into an old white box with a hole cut out, so light could shine through. I added a couple details to the outside of the box so it would resemble the chapel exterior, and a black and white image on the inside of the box that resembled the interior tile work.
The kids then took peg people and played in the little chapel box. Rémy had one peg person be Matisse and the other was Monique. Then he wanted to hold the box up to the window to look through the stained glass.
That's when I introduced the second part of the invitation. On tracing paper, I drew out a few shapes that mimicked Matisse's stained glass. I presented the paper to the kids along with watercolors in the colors used in the chapel - blue, green, and yellow. They then painted in the stained glass until they were satisfied. The hardest part for them was fighting the urge to constantly put their wet work up against the window.
When their papers dried, I taped them up by our dining window so the two little artists could watch how the light played with the colors in their stained glass throughout the day.
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