Most of us know that art is important for children. But beyond why it is important for them to create art it is just vital to expose children to famous artists. Art connects us all. It can take us through history, introduce us to other cultures, the world around us, and to ourselves. Therefore the more a child is exposed to the arts, the more techniques they are aware of, the more they can problem solve to think critically, the more they can creatively express themselves, the more accepting they are, and the more beauty they can see in the world around them. Art is one of the fundamental components of what makes us ALL uniquely human.
Since we have been learning about Nowruz, today we learned about Reza Abbasi who was the leading Persian miniaturist of the Isfahan School during the later Safavid period c. 1565 – 1635. He spent most of his career working for Shah Abbas and he is considered to be the last great master of the Persian miniature art. After reading the Meet Reza Abbasi by @readwithyoubooks, talking about his art & looking at what he has created, we invited the children to adorn his beautiful art with frames + loose parts.
As they created the frames, more discussion opened up in detail about the art, the children created patterns, compared the different materials they were using, counted and sorted the loose parts, collaborated together to create masterpieces, all while learning about another aspect of Iranian culture!
We have a couple of the Meet the Artist books, which are a great introduction to the world of art where they weave interesting facts with art as the artists are engagingly introduced with their masterpieces. Throughout the books the artists point out significant details and personal touches in pieces that have captured the world with their beauty.