OBJECTIVE:
Listen to musical genius of
MOZART, compare PORTRAIT
styles, discuss how LIGHT and
SHADOW and proper
PROPORTION create a
realistic portrait in
GAINSBOROUGH’s BLUE BOY.
Variations on "Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman"
“Neither a lofty degree of intelligence nor imagination nor both together go to the making of
genius. Love, love, love, that is the soul of genius.” —Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
(Place materials on desks before beginning the lesson. Arrange 3 portraits at the front of the classroom facing
backwards. Have Proportion Board and/or Felt Boards ready if using. See project outline for complete steps.)
INTRODUCTION
COMPOSER: Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart
(1756-1791)
 Created 12
Variations to
childhood French
song we know as
Twinkle Twinkle
Little Star
 Musical Genius
o
fame 3.4 • Thomas Gainsborough Blue Boy • Wolfgang Mozart
Composed
age 5
o
Toured at 6
o
Symphony
at 8
 Composed music in
his mind before
Welcome to our fourth FAME lesson this year. Today we will learn about two artists who were alive during the same period,
over 250 years ago. They were also both famous in their own lifetime and followed their hearts making art their profession.
Let’s start by listening to something that should sound familiar to you. The composer “fancied” these pieces up so listen
carefully to see if you can still hear the MELODY despite all the fancy notes. Play Mozart CD, beginning with the more
unfamiliar tracks. Did you recognize those songs? Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus [amah-DAY-oos] Mozart [MOTEzart] took the French song "Ah vous dirai-je, Maman" (see binder for translation) he knew as a child—what we know as
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Baa Baa Black Sheep and The Alphabet Song—and arranged it into twelve different sounding
pieces.
Mozart has been called “The most complete musical genius” because of his extraordinary ability in music. Although he was
a genius, he liked to have fun with music and “play around” with it. How old do you think Mozart was when he composed
this? Show Mozart Composition from binder. Here is the picture of the music he wrote by hand for one of the variations.
He was only FIVE years old! By the time he was six he was touring the courts of Europe with his father and sister singing and
performing. By the time he was eight he wrote his first symphony and by twelve he wrote his first opera. Whatever Mozart
was working on or learning he always gave his full attention. When he was learning arithmetic, he became so engrossed
that he covered the furniture and room with numbers and figures written in chalk. Unlike many great composers who
wrote, rewrote and erased Mozart did all the composing in his mind, working out everything in his imagination first. By the
time he wrote the music it was already completed and perfected.
writing
ARTIST: Thomas
Gainsborough (17271788)
 Loved creating
landscapes
 Famous for
PORTRAITS
While Mozart was busy creating musical masterpieces in Europe, over in England Thomas Gainsborough was wandering
about the countryside, sketching clouds, roads, trees or whatever he saw. Often missing school, he spent much of his time
drawing pictures for his classmates who paid for them by doing his lessons for him. He became a successful artist, who loved
above all else painting landscapes. His two daughters enjoyed their whimsical father as he often created miniature outdoor
scenes like those used for model trains. He used pieces of broccoli, sponges, bits of mirrors, pebbles, grass, sand and other
natural materials as models for his paintings of unspoiled nature.
Gainsborough was most famous for his PORTRAITS and patrons paid him well for them. Who remembers what a portrait is?
Have you had your portrait taken with a camera? Or taken a selfie? That’s really a self-portrait. We are going to look at three
different portraits of FAME artists each with dramatically different styles. Turn over FIFER. This is Manet’s Fifer (FAME
 Compare portraits
o
Manet: Fifer
o
Matisse: Purple
Robe
o
Gainsborough:
Blue Boy
o
Use of LINE and
COLOR
o
USE of LIGHT
and SHADOW
make Blue Boy
realistic
 Use of PROPORTION
o
Thumb to chin
and pinky to
forehead
o
Hand same
measurement
as arm and foot
o
Arm width
same as height
o
Seven heads
equal height
Art Project: Sculptures
wrapped in Foil

Pipe Cleaner
Armatures

Wrap in Foil

Position to show
motion

Create Shadow with
pencil

Glue sculpture on
shadow paper

1.4). Who remembers this painting or can tell me what the fifer does? The Fifer is the boy who with the drummer set the
RHYTHM and BEAT for soldiers as they march into battle. Next, who can tell me the artist and painting from our last lesson?
Matisse’s Purple Robe with Anenomes. Turn over painting. And last, this is Gainsborough’s most famous portrait: Blue Boy.
Turn painting over. Blue Boy is essentially life-sized, measuring nearly six feet high. Do you think this is how this boy would
have dressed every day? Why do you think he is dressed the way he is? He is dressed in the Cavalier style—think 3
Musketeers—popular among the wealthy during the Baroque period. His father was a middle class merchant and wanted a
show of wealth.
When we talk about our FAME paintings we always talk about ART ELEMENTS. What element do these have in common? LINE
Note sharpie-like line in Fifer and the lines that create patterns in Purple Robe. Invite students to make comparisons, pointing
out use of COLOR. What about LIGHT AND SHADOW? Gainsborough uses heavy light and shadow and Manet and Matisse
use almost none. Gainsborough loved to paint in soft, dim LIGHT. The satin fabric shimmers, the jeweled buttons, sparkle, and
the delicate lace is pronounced. When you show how light reflects from a three dimensional surface, it helps people
understand how that surface looks in real life. Gainsborough used LIGHT and SHADOW to make his painting to look as much
like the young boy as he could.
Another way Gainsborough makes Blue Boy look so real is through
PROPORTION. That means he has made his head the right size to go with his
body and his arms, legs and hands the right size too. Let’s try an experiment
that will help explain body proportions or sizes. Everyone spread your
fingers as wide as you can. Now put your thumb on your chin and see if you
can stretch your pinky to the top of your forehead. Can you believe your
hand is the same size as your head? Now use your hand to measure your
arm. Your thumb measures from the inside of the elbow, the pinky should
reach the inside of the wrist. You can also measure your foot this way. Last,
when you stretch your arms wide out like this, they are equal to how tall you
are. Depending on your class, you may ask for volunteers, using the white
board to mark the distance. You may also be interested to know that how tall
you are is equal to a little more than seven of your own head heights!
Additional PROPORTION Options:
For Lower Grades: Use the felt board to demonstrate
proportion. The yellow felt pieces are in correct proportion.
The red felt pieces are enlarged. For fun, mix them up and ask
the children if the head is way too big or the bootie oversized,
etc. There are also several hair styles and clothes to play
around with specific to the period. Select a few students to
correct/misplace the proportion pieces.
For Upper Grades: Use the pink poster board to review
proportions and support your discussion.
For our art project today we will be making sculptures that emphasize the
proportions of the human body. We will use pipe cleaner armatures and wrap them in tin foil. We will then show you how
you can position them to look like figures in motion. In addition, we will trace our foil figure sculptures to create a shadow
as if your figure were standing outside in the sun. We will then color in our shadow with a special pencil. When finished our
parent volunteers will help you attach your foil figures to your shadow image with hot glue.
When you go back to your table you will find a pipe cleaner armature, trays of foil, a white piece of heavy paper, a rectangle
piece of cardboard, a FAME label and black pencils. Please glue the FAME label onto the cardboard, sign your name and set
aside. Follow Process Outline and Process Poster for complete directions.
While we work we will be listening to two compositions by Mozart: Variations of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” and The
Sonata in C. As you listen, enjoy the changing of TEMPO or speed of the music and the “fancy” MELODY.