KS1 Art: Learn about a range of artists and link to work on stained glass artwork

Activity: Charles Rennie Mackintosh

Resources needed:

  • Coloured pencil crayons
  • Black felt tipped pens
  • Coloured tissue paper
  • Black paint
  • PVA glue
  • Acetate or thick plastic sheet
  • Information sources about both artists and their work.

 

 

 

  1. Look at some of the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Louis Comfort Tiffany, either online or in books. Let the children spend some time collecting their favourite pieces and thinking of good ways of describing the work they are exploring.
  2. Have a class discussion to allow as many opinions as possible. Guide this discussion through use of questions such as ‘What are the similarities and differences between the artists’ work?’, ‘which are your favourites and why?’, ‘what do you notice about the use of colour?’ and ‘what are the good and bad things about working with glass in this way?’
  3. Give the children the pencil crayons and let them create some designs based on the work they have seen by Tiffany and Mackintosh. They should begin by drawing a shape or simple picture and then colouring it in, using lots of different colours and gradients. They should then use the black felt tipped pen to create the ‘lead’ around each part of the ‘glass’ panels they have coloured.
  4. Give the children time to alter and improve their designs. Children who find this difficult could be given a template to use, although they should really be encouraged to produce their own ideas rather than just colouring in someone else’s.
  5. Once the children are happy with their designs, make a black and white photocopy of it and show the children how to cut out each part and use it as a template on the tissue paper. These replicated parts should then be stuck down onto acetate or thick plastic and allowed to dry. They can be moved slightly once they are stuck down, but gently as the tissue paper will be fragile.
  6. Once the tissue paper has dried, mix PVA glue with black paint and use this to create the ‘lead’ in between the tissue paper pieces. Show the children how to paint this on quite thickly. Leave to dry.
  7. The ‘stained glass’ can be displayed up against windows, especially those where good light is available.

 

Further Activities:

Visit a local church to see large stained glass windows. What are the similarities and differences between this type of glass, and that of the artists looked at for this project?

Watch online videos of stained glass being made or repaired.

Curriculum Areas covered:

KS1 art: learn about the work of a range of artists, craft makers and designers, describing the differences and similarities between different practices and disciplines, and making links to their own work.