Title: Learning Color Theory with Chosen Objects

Date: 3/13/24

Grade Level: 9th-12th

Time Required: 1 hour each class period throughout 4 weeks

Focus/Goal: We’re going to be teaching high schoolers about color theory and how to
apply it to their art. Each week students will focus on different categories within color
theory (i.e. primary, secondary, complementary, tertiary, analogous, and
monochromatic). To document their progress and understanding, students will practice
with each category of color theory in their sketchbooks. Then once students have
completed each category, the final project will be having the students pick a found item
of cultural/personal significance and create a still life of that object using what they’ve
learned about color theory.

Standards: High School Proficient;

- VA:Cr1.2.Ia
Shape an artistic investigation of an aspect of present-day life using a
contemporary practice of art or design.
- VA:Pr6.1.la
Analyze and describe the impact that an exhibition or collection has on personal
awareness of social, cultural, or political beliefs and understandings
- VA:Cn10.1.la
Document the process of developing idea from early stages to fully elaborated
ideas.

Lesson Objectives:
- Students will classify different categories of color within color theory
- Students will develop their understanding of each category by creating colors in
their sketchbooks and using those colors in a quick sketchbook study done
weekly.
- Students will apply their understanding of color theory by selecting an object and
creating a still life.

Contemporary Artists
● Yayoi Kusama: A current artist who abstracts everyday objects with the use of
polk-dots. Although her pieces are not color matched to real life, you can
understand the impact of different colors and the emotions that they can invoke.
 ● Andy Warhol: One of the first contemporary artists in history, Andy was great at
color matching and playing with different colorways. He understood how to create
shadow and light in his works. The term “pop art” is used to describe his work.
● Anna Valdez: This artist is relevant to our lesson as her art involves a lot of still
lives and random objects while using a wide range of bright and vivid colors. Her
art focuses on objects and how they can connect to one’s culture, and portrays
still life in a more contemporary sense. An activity based on her art could be to
challenge the students to use bright hues within their color theory sketchbook
studies.

Vocabulary: Primary, Secondary, Complementary, Tertiary, Analogous, Monochromatic,

Still-Life

Materials/Supplies:
- Color wheel handout
- Tints and shades handout
- Chosen object
- Sketchbooks
- Acrylic paint
- Paint brushes
- Paint palettes
- Rags and water cups

Lesson Sequence: The first week of this lesson will involve the students learning about
what color theory is and how it’s been used by artists like Andy Warhol and Yayoi
Kusama. They will also complete sketchbooks studies using primary and secondary
colors during this first week. The second week will focus on tertiary and complementary
colors with coinciding sketchbook studies. The third week will then focus on analogous
and monochromatic colors with sketchbook studies, and the artist Anna Valdez will be
introduced, which can segue into the final project. On the fourth week of this lesson we
will then start the final project which is to create a still life of a culturally/personally
significant object using their understanding of color theory.

Differentiation Strategies: One differentiation strategy could be providing a color

theory handout specifically for students who may be color blind. The handouts can also
be in multiple languages like English/Spanish to help with bilingual or English-learning
students. Another differentiation strategy could be for students with hand mobility issues
to participate in this lesson using a digital art-making format.

Handouts:
Lesson Handout:
Teaching Example:
Assessment:
- Formative- 4-part rubric, weekly sketchbook paint mixing studies
- Summative, Class Art Gallery with chosen object still-life project
- Rubric: 4 parts: Advanced, Proficient, Basic, Minimal