Jacob Lawrence's Dynamic Cubism



Story Painter, By Jacob Lawrence



Giana, Grade 3

Aria, Grade 3

Christina, Grade 3

Isaac, Grade 3

Ivana, Grade 3

Kevin, Grade 3

Kiarie, Grade 3

Michaela, Grade 3

Wendy, Grade 3

What better time is there to study Jacob Lawrence than Black History Month?  I thought it was fitting to see his work, referred to by him as "dynamic cubism", right after we completed our unit on Picasso and cubism.  The students noticed right away that, like Picasso, Lawrence's work looks like collage, even though it is painted.  They decided that three common features of his work were the use of primary colors, the use of black paint for the skin and hair, and repeated figures in motion.  Using these three features in their own work, the second and third graders have been completing some tempera paint compositions inspired by Mr. Lawrence's work.  We have had daily read-alouds from Story Painter, The Life of Jacob Lawrence, by John Duggleby.  This book has introduced the students to The Great Migration and The Harlem Renaissance.  They loved that Jacob got his start at the YMCA and in after-school programs, using tempera paint and crayons.  They tried to mimic his procedure of working with one color at a time, like in a color-by-number.