Joan Mitchell is known for her large paintings, in which she layers colors. Her style may seem unplanned, but Mitchell carefully added to her paintings. She made sure that they appear balanced from up close and farther away. She paid close attention to the arrangement of different colors and shapes. Mitchell said she painted “from remembered landscapes that I carry with me — and remembered feelings of them.” When painting her memories, she made them abstract by transforming places and things into simplified colors and shapes.
Notice the different colors and shapes in “Close.” What type of memory do you think Mitchell painted? What do you see that makes you say that? Does it remind you of a place you’ve been?
Close your eyes and think of a place you’ve visited. Remember what you saw, smelled and heard when you were there. How did you feel? What colors are in your memory? What shapes?
For this activity you will need:
- Fine-grit sandpaper (you can also do this activity outside, on a sidewalk or driveway)
- Colored chalk
- A cup or glass of water
To make your memory drawing:
- Choose chalk in the colors from your memory.
- Start drawing the shapes and colors from your remembered landscape on your sandpaper or other rough surface. Where will you put the colors? How will they relate to each other?
- Try dipping your chalk in water to make the colors more vivid.
- Step back. Look at your overall composition. What colors and shapes can you add to show how the memory makes you feel?