When Art Teacher, Alice Juliano introduced her students – mostly teen boys – to the work of French Impressionist Edgar Degas, she was ready for some resistance. Many students had never seen Impressionist work and were not all that interested in the subject matter – ballet dancers.
Juliano got creative. Before asking her students to create works of their own, she explained the hallmarks of Degas’s work, and how he was able to create the illusion of movement in his paintings and drawings. She explained the concept of “impressionism” and how artists used light and an open composition. She invited her students to squint their eyes so they could experience the ways in which colors blur and shapes soften, simulating an impressionist painting.
Some students were willing to use Degas’s work as a starting point, while others would not even look at it, opting instead to work from Juliano’s words and their own imagination. Using oil pastels, students created their own drawings in the style of Degas.
“Their work is stunning and demonstrates a deep understanding of the artist and his style,” said Juliano. “My students connect with art and simply need the opportunity to see and experience it in whatever way works for them.”
