Step 1 - Introducing the Maurits Cornelis Escher Slideshow Guide BEGIN READING HERE MOTIVATION Can you imagine a reason why an artist would get arrested and put in jail by the police? That is exactly what happened to our master artist, M.C. Escher. Let s find out why by going to the scene of the crime. Click Start Lesson To Begin 1. ALHAMBRA PALACE This is the famous Alhambra Palace in Spain. Escher and his wife were touring the palace. But something went very, very wrong during their visit. The police were alerted, because Escher was acting extremely suspicious. What was he doing? 2. MOORISH TILES For three whole days, Escher and his wife made detailed drawings of the beautiful designs on the floors and walls of the palace. The police started following them and finally made an arrest. They took all his drawings as evidence and transported him to the police station. They thought he was a spy! That was bad enough, but then another problem worried him even more! From the police station he heard a long, loud horn from the boat on which he and his wife were traveling. They had traveled far from their home in the Netherlands. The captain was sounding the warning that the boat would soon be leaving. They would be left in Spain, with no money, possessions, or way to get back! Frantically, his wife Jetta dashed back and forth between the police station and the ship, trying to stall the departure and get her husband released. Hours later Escher was allowed to leave, and they finally sailed back home. But the police never returned his three days worth of drawings, and Escher was very bitter. But even though he lost his drawings, he was forever captivated by the designs he had seen and drawn. Today we will see where that early fascination took him in his art career. 1 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
DEVELOPMENT Let s meet M.C. Escher in his self-portrait. To prepare to see this very unusual view of himself, do this with me. Place your left hand, Escher was left-handed, with your palm up about chin level (DEMONSTRATE) like you are holding a heavy, mirrored ball. Pretend to look very seriously into that ball and see yourself looking back. 3. HAND WITH REFLECTING BALL Did you imagine something like this? Can you guess Escher s personality from this selfportrait? Was he shy or out-going? Listen to Escher s words to find the answer. I am shy and find it very difficult to get along with strangers. I need to be alone. I can t bear to have anyone go past my window. I shun both noise and commotion. Was he mysterious or very open? Again, listen to Escher s words. I walk around in mysteries. Today we will learn more about his mysterious and unique world. Raise your hand if there is a lot of detail in this self-portrait. (YES) Can you see the wrinkles and tendons in his hand and wrist? (YES) But once our eyes wander from the realism of his hand, things turn mysterious. Point to the table lying on its side. (LOWER RIGHT CORNER) Point to the light fixture not hanging straight down. (TOP RIGHT) Escher seems to be supporting not only the mirrored ball itself but the whole room surrounding him. Is his real hand touching the reflected hand? (YES) What is in the exact center of this mirrored world? (ESCHER S EYES STARING AT THE GLOBE) Do you think Escher sees the world through different eyes? I will ask you to decide that after you ve seen more of his artwork. Let s return now to his time in Spain and look at one of his sketches. 4. SKETCH: ALHAMBRA TILES What fascinated Escher so much in those designs? He saw rich possibilities in the repeating patterns. He returned to the palace and once again, without police interference, sketched the tiles. On his return home, he studied them closely. He drew and sketched and developed a system to beautifully turn them into his own unique style of artwork. Do you like puzzles? Escher created fascinating art puzzles based on those early patterns. - 2 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
5. BIRDS What birds did you notice first, dark or light? (ANSWERS WILL VARY) Are there gaps or overlapping in these shapes? (NO) Do the shapes completely fill the flat surface? (YES) That is the definition of a TESSELLATION. A tessellation is like a puzzle with pieces that are all the same. Do they fit perfectly together? (YES) Escher spent years working on even more complex tessellations. Let s enjoy some more of his tessellations, this time in color. 6. HORSEMEN What can you identify? Look first at the light-colored ones, and then focus on the darker horsemen. Show me which you noticed first. Use a closed fist for dark, an open hand for light. How many directions are they traveling? (2) 7. FISH What creatures do you see here? Are all the fish the same shape? (NO) Are they swimming in more than two directions? (YES) This is even more complicated. How many colors will be in the next tessellation? 8. REPTILES I Do more colors make it more interesting? Remember I told you Escher created two kinds of puzzles. We ve discovered one in his tessellations; now let s see what else he developed. He started with a reptile tessellation like this, but just look what he did with it! 9. REPTILES II We see Escher s sketchbook, but out of the lower left hand corner, the little, flat, sketchy figures begin to come alive! They develop into fantastic 3-D creatures that can creep right out of the sketch. Point in the direction they are traveling. (RIGHT) As the reptile reaches the top, what does he do? (SNORTS, BLOWS SMOKE FROM HIS NOSTRILS) Do you 3 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
think it s his snort of triumph at reaching the top? Then the game is over, so he shrivels back again into a flat figure on the page. Escher makes the impossible come to life! He constructs impossible worlds, and the fun for us is in the discovery. He was a man of great imaginative power. Do you think Escher is good at drawing? Listen to what he thinks about that. I am absolutely incapable of drawing. I don t want to be labeled as an artist. Every work of art involved weeks and months of thought and an almost infinite number of studies and sketches. Let s move on to discover an even more fascinating puzzle by Escher. Remember the Birds tessellation? What fascinating world will Escher create from that? 10. DAY AND NIGHT What did you see first, the black birds flying to the left or the white birds flying to the right? Point in that direction. (ANSWERS WILL VARY) Stare at each for a moment, and you will discover something strange. Is it nearly impossible to see both at once? (YES) But the mystery of this masterpiece doesn t start with the birds; it is to be found at the bottom center. Find a light, almost diamond-shaped field in the bottom center. Now follow it upward; the field changes shape, and it takes only two quick stages to turn into a white bird. The bird is suddenly whisked higher in the sky and flies to the right. Now look below for the bird that is flying high above a little village by the riverside, surrounded by the dark night. We could just as easily have chosen one of the black fields down there to the right and left of the center line. Find a dark field; follow it upward in the same way. What did you discover? (MIRROR IMAGE OF PICTURE, BUT BLACK BIRD FLIES TO THE LEFT) It won t surprise you to hear the title of this artwork, Day and Night. And also, not surprising, Day and Night is Escher s most popular and admired masterpiece. Again, he makes the impossible come to life with his vivid imagination and great artistic skills. Look carefully at this next artwork and find a word included in the shapes. 11. METAMORPHOSE What is the word? (METAMORPHOSE) Can you tell me the meaning of the word? (TO CHANGE INTO SOMETHING NEW) Could Day and Night be a metamorphosis? (YES) Why? (FIELD CHANGED INTO BIRDS) 4 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
Remember Escher s self portrait reflected in the mirrored ball he held? Here is another self-portrait created 8 years later. Do you think it will be another strange view of himself? Let s find out. 12. SELF-PORTRAIT 1943 Have you ever looked through a peep hole on a door? Do you think this could be similar? What kind of feeling does it give you to see just a partial view of his face? (MYSTERIOUS, CAUTIOUS, AFRAID) What expression do you see on Escher s face? (STARTLED, QUESTIONING, CURIOUS) Do you see something strange where the top of his forehead would be? (BULGING OF SURFACE) What would that mean? (RESPONSES WILL VARY) Does this add to the mysterious nature of the artwork? (YES) Escher s imagination was amazing! Click Next To Finish Lesson to exit this unit click Back To Units 5 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
Step 2 - Learning From: Maurits Cornelis Escher A pattern is a shape, color, or line that repeats. Color these patterns. A tessellation is a pattern of shapes. It has no gaps or overlapping. Shapes in a tessellation Are like puzzle pieces That fit together. Can you solve the puzzle? Color each seahorse A different color. Start with the seahorse Marked with an X. You will need to turn Your paper to finish. M.C. Escher used simple details to make his shapes come alive. 6 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
Add a few simple details to these abstract shapes. Now draw two of your own shapes. Add some simple details to your abstract shapes. See if you can make them come alive. 7 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
The last few pages of this section contain the Art Activity for Maurits Cornelis Escher. This step-by-step outline will be a guide for instructing your child(ren) through the activity. The parent/instructor should review all steps necessary to complete this project before beginning any work. Cut out the Artist Profile Slip below and attach it to the back of the completed art project. MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER (ESH-er) Dutch 1898-1972 The magical and mysterious world of M. C. Escher was opened to the children. His tessellations and optical illusions invited and challenged their imaginations and creativity. They created their own tessellation and added simple details to make it come alive. ART ACTIVITY EMPHASIS: Shapes, Contrasting Colors, Line Details MEDIA: Cut Paper, Dry Tempera, Colored Pencil MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER (ESH-er) Dutch 1898-1972 The magical and mysterious world of M. C. Escher was opened to the children. His tessellations and optical illusions invited and challenged their imaginations and creativity. They created their own tessellation and added simple details to make it come alive. ART ACTIVITY EMPHASIS: Shapes, Contrasting Colors, Line Details MEDIA: Cut Paper, Dry Tempera, Colored Pencil 8 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
Step 3 - Working With: Art Activity Instructions ARTIST M.C. Escher (Maurits Cornelius ESH ur) 1898-1972 Dutch ART ELEMENTS Tessellation MEDIA Dry tempera paint EMPHASIS Interlocking geometric shapes LEVEL Intermediate VOCABULARY Tessellation, contrast, detail, diagonal, pattern PRINT Lizard SUGGESTED MUSIC Music of the 1900s MATERIALS FOR INSTRUCTOR AND STUDENTS One 9 x 9 white construction paper One 4 x 4 tag board One 12 x 18 sheet of newsprint paper (as placemat) Two sticker labels 2 cotton balls One paper towel (for wiping fingers) Artist Profile Slip Two colors of dry tempera paint per student (Choose between Blue, Purple, Magenta, and Yellow) Spoons (one for each color of paint) Plastic cups Black pencils Glue Pencil Scissors Completed Learning Packet PREPARATION Place the Escher print in front of the room. Construct an example to become familiar with the project. Tape the white paper to the board. Have black pencils, tag board, 2 stickers, scissors, cotton balls and paint nearby. SET-UP [ 5 minutes ] 9 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
Distribute the materials: SUPPLIES [3] 2 stickers, 2 cotton balls, black pencil to each student PAPER [5] One sheet of newsprint, One piece of white paper, one tag board square, one paper towel, and artist profile slip to each student ORIENTATION [ 5 minutes ] Today we will use shapes and our imaginations to create interesting and unique tessellations. Who was the artist who originally created tessellations? (M.C. ESCHER) Do shapes in a tessellation overlap? (NO) Do the shapes fit together like a puzzle? (YES) Do you need good imaginations to make the shapes come alive? (YES) Let s begin! Demonstration AND ACTIVITY ORGANIZE YOUR WORK AREA [ 2 minutes ] 1.Place your newsprint like a placemat in the center of your desk. 2.Place the white paper, Artist Profile Slip, and paper towel in one corner of your desk. 3.Put the black pencil, glue, and cotton balls in the other corner. 4.Put the tag board square, scissors, and stickers on the newsprint in front of you. CREATING THE SHAPE STENCIL [ 10 minutes ] 1.Cut the stickers in half, making four pieces. Cut \ Set stickers aside. 2.Draw two X s at the top corners of the tag board square. 3.Hold the square in front of you and cut it in half vertically with a curved line. You now have two pieces. X X X X X X 4. 4.Keeping the X s at the top, slide one piece over the other piece so that the outside straight edges meet together in the center, straight side to straight side. Use two sticker halves to tape together. (See above right.) 10 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
5.Turn the shape, so that the straight edges are now on the left and right sides. Make X s at the top of the shape on either side. See below drawing 5. 6.Cut again vertically through the center with a curved line. 7.Follow the same procedure, keeping the X s at the top, slide one piece over the other, placing the two side straight edges together in the center vertically. Use the last two sticker halves to tape together (below right). X X X X 5. 6. 8.Using the black pencil, draw two straight lines crossing the center of the shape. One drawn following the horizontal straight edges that were taped together and one drawn following the vertical straight edges that were taped together. Put directional arrow heads at both ends of each line. (above) 9.There should be no scrap. TRACING THE SHAPE [ 8 minutes ] (While the children draw the tessellations, teacher can be giving out cups with dry tempera paint. Students may share. Each student will use two colors. Very little powder is needed. 11 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
DRAWING THE TESSELLATIONS 1.Place the white paper in the center of the desk on your placemat. Place the tag board shape in the center of the white paper. The arrows of the tag board shape should point diagonally toward the corners of the white paper. Trace around it with the black pencil. 2.Slide the shape in the direction of the arrows toward one of the corners until it fits like a puzzle piece into the original shape. Trace around it. SLIDE the shape back to the center and slide it diagonally toward a different corner. Trace it again. Repeat until the paper is filled. Some of the shapes may be partial. COLORING THE MOSAIC [ 10 minutes ] 1.Choose two of the four colors to create a composition with contrasting colors. Contrasting colors show up very clearly next to each other. They are far apart on the color wheel. Examples: red-blue, yellow-red, pinkgreen. 2.Begin with the center shape. Dip the cotton ball into dry tempera color and tap off the excess into the cup. Rub the paint onto the paper and fill the shape. 3.Talk to the students about contrasting colors, and how shapes that border each other should be different colors. one the 4.Repeat the procedure, using the other cotton ball and color of paint. You will color in the entire mosaic. 12 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition
DRAWING THE FIGURE [ 8 minutes ] (Instructor and volunteers can pick up paint and cotton balls during this part.) 1.Lift the white paper and focus on one of the colored shapes as you turn it around and see what appears in your shape. It might be an abstract animal, person, object, or cartoon character. Use of imagination is essential! 2.In that shape, using the black pencil and a few detail lines, create a figure from your imagination. (Refer to Learning Packet for ideas.) 3.Repeat those same FEW lines in the other three shapes, in the same places within the shapes. Try to make them all the same to create a pattern. MOUNTING THE ARTIST PROFILE SLIP [ 2 minutes ] (Profile slips for each artist are provided. They give a brief description of the artist, the technique, and the media used in the art activity. They should be mounted on the back of each art project after it is completed.) 1.Write your name on the front of the artist profile slip. 2.Using glue, mount the profile slip on the back of your artwork. 3.Encourage students to discuss their artwork at home using this artist slip of information. CONCLUSION Your tessellations are very special. Each one is different and colorful. Escher would be so pleased to see how you used your imaginations along with your scissors and colors! CLEAN UP [ 3 minutes ] The paint can be put back into the jars if it is clean. CONCLUSION As he grew older, he gained success and popularity. He was called Everyman s Artist, because he made prints that everyday people could afford to buy. He also created art to be used in everyday life. He designed postage stamps, assembled murals in public buildings, designed patterns for t-shirts, and illustrated book covers. His fascinating designs captivated people everywhere. It affected him deeply when people who had very little money bought his artwork. But when he gained success, he had no interest whatsoever in the money he made. He only regarded his success as a sure sign of appreciation. That was of most importance to M.C. Escher. Let s see what YOU appreciated the most from what you ve seen today. We will quickly review his work, and you can vote for your favorite. Will it be a tessellation or a metamorphose? (REVERSE TO ALL ARTWORK FOR A SECOND VIEWING, THEN FORWARD TO VOTE FOR FAVORITES) THIS CONCLUDES THE MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER UNIT. 13 MAURITS CORNELIS ESCHER Ages 8 9 MeetTheMasters Online Edition