Classroom use of the art print.

Classroom use of the art print. Horton, William S. (1865-1936). Towers of a Thousand Eyes (nodate). Oil on canvas; 92 x 11.8 cm. Musee de la CooperationFranco-Americaine, Blerancourt, France. THINGS TO KNOW William Samuel Horton was born in Grand Rapids Grand Rapids,city (1990 pop. 189,126), seat of Kent co., SW central Mich., on the Grand River; inc. 1850. The second largest city in the state, it is a distribution, wholesale, and industrial center for an area that yields fruit, dairy products, farm produce, , Mich., and wasraised in Lisbon, N.D. He displayed artistic talent at an early age; at7 years old his wealthy parents discovered and destroyed his hiddenstash stashDrug slang nounA place where illicit drugs are hidden of art supplies. Ignoring his parents' orders to stop makingart, Horton began teaching art to local students at the age of 12, andlanded his first job at age 14 as a magazine illustrator. Later in histeens he attended the Art Institute of Chicago Art Institute of Chicago,museum and art school, in Grant Park, facing Michigan Ave. It was incorporated in 1879; George Armour was the first president. Since 1893 the Institute has been housed in its present building, designed in the Italian Renaissance style by before traveling to Paristo continue his studies. He later returned to the United States United States,officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. and enrolled at the ArtStudents League in New York City New York City:see New York, city. New York CityCity (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. . Shortly before his 30th birthday, hemarried and returned to Paris to live and work. While in Paris he metthe French painter, Claude Monet, who became his mentor. The work ofMonet and the other Impressionist painters hugely influencedHorton's style and subject matter. Monet called Horton "thegreatest painter of snow who ever lived." Horton and his wifecontinued to live in Paris and London, and traveled extensively. Hortondied in London in 1936. William S. Horton is considered an American Impressionist. Likefellow American painters Maurice Prendergast Maurice Brazil Prendergast (October 10,1858-February 1, 1924) was a U.S. post-impressionist watercolor artist who worked in oil, watercolor, and monotype. Technically, he was a member of The Eight, but the delicacy of his compositions and mosaic-like beauty of his designs had , Mary Cassatt, ErnestLawson and Childe Hassam, Horton's style and subject matter isheavily indebted to Monet and the French Impressionists. Like Monet,Horton often worked in series on a particular subject, such as Englishbeaches, the villages and mountains of Switzerland, and the New YorkCity skyline. This month's art print depicts the New York Cityskyline at dusk. Horton's true gift was as a colorist col��or��ist?n.1. A painter skilled in achieving special effects with color.2. A hairdresser who specializes in dyeing hair.col . His color palette isbolder and more vivid than Monet's, and is more akin to the paletteof Andre Derain. Although he frequently exhibited, Horton held onto much of hiswork. At his death, he left more than 1,000 works of art in his home andstudio to his son, who kept them in a private collection for 30 years.This is one reason why the artist is not as well known as some of hiscontemporaries. THINGS TO DO * Primary. Share the art print and title with students and ask themwhy the artist may have named his painting in this way. Give studentsthe opportunity to describe the picture and to ask questions about thescene. Ask students what time of day they think the artist has depicted(dusk or twilight). Introduce the word skyline. Point out how the artistcreated two skylines: one in the foreground and one in the background.Use your finger to trace over all the lines of the buildings, pointingout how the composition builds using squares and rectangles. Spend sometime discussing the vibrant color palette of this work, and how itevokes the time of day. Explain to students that this artist was notinterested in showing exact details, but giving the viewer a sense ofhow this scene looks in low light. Give students an opportunity to create a dusk/twilight sceneinspired by Towers of a Thousand Eyes. On white paper, instruct studentsto use pencil to sketch a skyline featuring buildings of varyingheights. Once students have completed their sketches, provide coloredpencils or chalk pastels in a similar palette as Horton's work tolay in color. Display the artworks in a horizontal line to create theeffect of a massive skyline. To incorporate a literacy element, read the classic Harold and thePurple Crayon, by Crockett Johnson (HarperTrophy, 1998), aloud to theclass. Students will love the part of the story where Harold draws anenormous city of buildings with hundreds of windows, and will be able toconnect this story element to the art print. * Elementary. Share the art print with students, discussing theelements described above. Place students in small groups and explainthat each group will be creating a mural of a skyline at dusk, ortwilight. Before executing the mural, students will work together todecide on and plan a design. Once sketches are completed and approved,work with groups to enlarge their design onto a sheet of butcher paper(dark blue or black paper would be appropriate for this activity).Students will recreate their skyline design onto the large paper and layin color with paints or chalk pastels. Display the mural in a publicspace in the school, such as the library, main entrance or multipurposeroom. * Middle School. After spending time studying and discussing theart print, take students on a walking tour of your city or town. Pointout important architecture, lines created by adjoining buildings, or ifyou live in a large urban area, an important skyline. Instruct studentsto sketch examples of interesting architecture to be used in a lateractivity. Back in the classroom, give students time to create an originalcityscape (company) CityScape - A re-seller of Internet connections to the PIPEX backbone.E-Mail: <sales@cityscape.co.uk>.Address: CityScape Internet Services, 59 Wycliffe Rd., Cambridge, CB1 3JE, England. Telephone: +44 (1223) 566 950. incorporating the sketches they created during the walkingtour. Provide ample time for students to present and discuss theirfinished work with their peers. * High School. William S. Horton is a relatively unknown Americanartist, despite having exhibited extensively during his lifetime andhaving received critical praise for his work. Give students time tostudy the art print in small groups, analyzing it for its use of color,brushwork brush��work?n.1. Work done with a brush.2. The manner in which a painter applies paint with a brush.brushworkNoun and other Impressionistic im��pres��sion��is��tic?adj.1. Of, relating to, or practicing impressionism.2. Of, relating to, or predicated on impression as opposed to reason or fact: impressionistic memories of early childhood. qualities. Bring in other examplesof Horton's work for students to analyze. Students might also findit interesting to compare examples of Horton's work to that ofthree important French Impressionist painters: Claude Monet, CamillePissarro and Andre Derain. As a concluding activity, students can createan original composition that incorporates some of the elements common inHorton's work.--C.C. Go to artsandactivities.com and click on this button for links toWeb sites related to this article.