Secret Code Artwork by 2nd Grade

Other bloggers are the best. I really enjoy the fact that there are so many of us that are so willing to take the extra time necessary to share all of the cool things we do in our classrooms. I've found that I closely identify with some bloggers. One in particular is Hope Knight from Mrs. Knight's Smartest Artists. I came across this project earlier this school year and had to borrow it. It's just too cool. It's not the first I've borrowed from Mrs. Knight this year!

The project is based on the work of the French painter Auguste Herbin. I hadn't ever heard of him prior to seeing Mrs. Knight's post. He is most famous for his abstract geometric paintings. He used something that he called "Alphabet Plastique," in some of his work. It is almost like a secret code imbedded in his work! 

Students started by picking out a couple of words to use as the title of their work. They gave each letter they used a simple geometric design. They then used their code letters to create the final artwork. We talked a lot about composition and design to make sure the final project was arranged in a cool way. 

I'm not going to post the lesson plan here because it really isn't mine to post. You can see more details over at Mrs. Knight's blog. I really liked how the artwork came out for this project. I was really bummed that I didn't do this until after the art show. It would have been a beautiful addition to the show. It's definitely on my list for next year.