We took a look at Dutch COBRA painter Karel Appel (1922-2006). Some of our students referred to him as "Caramel Apple". Appel's abstract animals and figures are bright, childish, expressive and most importantly, happy. Appel painted during the dark and depressing war and post-war era in Holland, and was therefore determined to bring joy and color to the world through his art. His colors are bold and fine-tuned with the careful placement of black and white. His subjects are animated and delightful. We discussed Appel's use of color, form and shape.
 |
| Karel Appel |
 |
| Karel Appel |
 |
| Karel Appel |
Day 1:
We began by taping our paper edges with artist tape, to give us that clean border when done, just like Appel. Then we drew our own imaginative, creative, fun, abstract figures. Using tempera paints and gauche we are using pure, bright colors to create strong contrasts.
 |
| Work in progress |
Day 2:
Backgrounds were added (we were careful not to let our backgrounds compete with our foreground subject), and strong black accents were added to bring our subject into focus. Following Karel Appel's approach, we were careful not to overdo the black accents, but instead used black to bring into focus our subject and draw attention to centers of focus (eyes and facial features). Tempera paint can be finicky (chalky, streaky, translucent.... to name a few bad characteristics) so to ensure a smooth, thick cover of bright paint we gave our shapes an EXTRA coat of paint. That means we worked EXTRA hard on these.
These figures are bright, happy, energetic and fun - abstract and avant-garde goes without saying...
|
Karel Appel-inspired figures in progress |
 |
| Marko, 11 |
 |
| Abby, 8 |
