Art Inspired by Aaron Douglas (1898-1979)

The 4th and 5th grade students viewed the painting Aspiration (1936) by Aaron Douglas. 

We thought like art historians and analyzed the painting.  Students suggested that the piece was about using knowledge to help achieve a goal, in spite of struggles and being held back. This tied into our studies for Black History month.  The students were truly moved and inspired by Aaron Douglas' work. We also discussed his style. Douglas uses tints and shades, layering, and profile views in his pieces.


The students took one portion of the painting and blew it up with "insect vision" (that simply means they drew it super-sized). They used a palette of only three colors, but were allowed to add white or black to make tints and shades. For this lesson we used tempera cakes and I think the opacity worked very well. I typically only use those paints for younger students, but the older students seemed to work with them effectively. 


Beautiful work with an Aaron Douglas feel. Great job!