Art and Design Key Stage 2
L'elisir d'amore Art and Design Key Stage 2
Lesson one
Theme/ Activity headline: Look at and compare images (paintings of harvesters, peasants)
Visual elements: Composition, Line, Colour
Starter activity
- Show ‘The Harvesters’ by Pieter Bruegel the Elder
- Zoom in to look closely at different areas.
- Get the pupils in small groups to list different activities going on.
- How has the artist grouped the harvesters?
- What activities are taking place?
- What clues show us that this is physical and demanding work?
Main activity
Show other works (paintings) of harvesters and peasants in the countryside these could include:
Work by Jean-Francois Millet, Leon Augustin Lhermitte, Edward Stott, Peter De Wint, Irma Stern
- What are the harvesters and peasants wearing?
- What time of day is depicted?
- How has the artist used lighting and colour to draw our attention to the figures?
- What do the expressions tell us about how they might be feeling?
Allow pupils to choose an image and make a sketch looking at arrangements of figures.
Small groups of pupils could try to pose in similar groups and take photos.
Homework/Extension
Write a poem based on one of the images seen. Make a sketch of a pair of dungarees or work overalls or an apron. Bring in old magazines/ papers for collage.
National Curriculum KS2: about great artists, architects and designers in history
Lesson two
Theme/ Activity headline: Look at the design for the tour programme and graphics 2019 and make a mood board/ swatch sample using collage
Curriculum attainment targets: Shape, Scale, Composition, Colour
Starter activity
Look at the Tour guide 2019 and the collages and images for L’elisir d’ amore.
(Look at work by Shadric Toop: Shadric Toop)
Identify the colours and mood from the graphics.
Explore similar ideas:
Take a mid-tone paper and express marks and symbols remembered/ in response to the production, or to playing music from Act 1, scene 1 or to those seen on the tour image for L’elisir.
Main activity
Make a collage of a group of peasants/ harvesters:
Take a coloured piece of paper and using black and white copied images of figures either drawn, copied from the previous artwork – or taken from magazines or photographs, cut and assemble your own group of peasants/ harvesters. Think about overlapping to create an ensemble. Think about scale – smaller figures in the background, larger in the front.
Select a colour palette. Choosing a few colours will unite the group. Are certain colours going to be used for certain people?
Now add colour to the collage using paint or pencil crayons. Focus on the colours on the clothes.
You might think about shapes and objects used by the harvesters and cut out symbols from coloured paper to add to the background (look at the bottle design in the Tour image)
Note to teachers:
- Look at photomontage collages e.g. work from Eileen Agar, Nancy Spero, Man Ray.
- Look at mood boards for fashion inspiration, fashion magazines.
Homework/Extension
Cut out a simple folded doll figure- it can be male or female. There are several cut out/ paper doll resources to use online.
Add costume designs/ colourways. How can similar colourways be developed using different patterns? Can accessories be added- hats and head scarves?
Develop a ‘mood board’ for the look and costumes with colours/ patterns in your sketchbook for the harvesters/ peasants/ Chorus/ Nemorino/ Adina.
National Curriculum KS2: to create sketchbooks to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas
Lesson three
Theme/ Activity headline: Look at images and paintings of peasants and translate with characters in L’elisir d’amore
Curriculum attainment targets: Shape, Colour, Pattern
Starter activity
Look at Kazimir Malevich’s paintings of peasants:
Paintings of women, male figures, girls in the fields.
Consider how the artist has simplified the figures using geometric shapes.
Use geometric shapes – templates of squares, triangles, circles, diamonds, rectangles, etc. cut out, assemble and stick down a simple silhouette figure.
You might look at other artists depictions of Peasants.
Main activity
Look at Malevich’s costume designs such as for ‘Victory over the Sun’ 1913.
Develop a composition of 1, 2 or 3 figures in a row using either the paper doll idea or the geometric shapes idea from Malevich’s peasant paintings and designs. You might design and use a template to help.
Think about whether the figures will be male or female and what they might be wearing. Inspiration can come from work wear seen in the artwork studied. Think about colour and pattern.
In the opera the peasants and main characters are seen in the village square. Think about using a simple background or plain colour to set the figures off.
Work in coloured medium. Paint or watercolour would suit this task.
Homework/Extension
Can you design some dungarees that you would like to wear? What patterns and colours would you like to have? What do they say about your character?
National Curriculum KS2: to improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials [for example, pencil, charcoal, paint, clay]
Lesson four
Theme/ Activity headline: Paintings and designs for peasants’ dress and colourways.
Curriculum attainment targets: Line, Shape, Colour, Pattern, Texture
Starter activity
Decide on a period and look at styles of clothes from the period-dresses and jackets.
Decide on a colourway of 3 main colours.
Look at patterns that have been designed in the same period. Look at the style of accessories- hats, bags, coats. What are the main shapes?
Main activity
Paintings and designs for peasants’ dress and colourways.
Design a simple template for a figure- A4 size. This can be inspired by your previous work.
Draw it out on a larger piece of paper- again, this can be used for 2 or more figures. Do not worry about putting details onto the face.
Using your research, draw the costume onto the figure template to make a costume design.
Apply colours and patterns.
Think about how the figures relate to one another- are colours and patterns similar across the design? What links the figures? How are they different?
If you saw these figures on stage, would they stand out, are the costumes eye-catching? Would you know they were peasants?
Homework/Extension
Collect and print images, patterns and samples including colours that you would like to use for your peasant costume designs. Arrange these on a page in your sketchbook. You may want to look at mood boards and how fashion and costume designers collect inspiration. You may want to include some text and written information and notes.
National Curriculum KS2: to improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials [for example, pencil, charcoal, paint, clay]
Image credits: L’elisir d’amore, Festival 2011, photo by Bill Cooper