• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About
    • About Art Class Curator
    • Contact
    • Speaking
    • Media & Press
    • Programs for Schools
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Shop
  • Join
  • Member Login

Art Class Curator

Hands-on and Minds-curious Art Learning

  • Art & Artists
  • Art Connection Activities
  • Art Teacher Tips
  • Elements & Principles
  • Downloads & Resources
Home
  • About
    • About Art Class Curator
    • Contact
    • Speaking
    • Media & Press
    • Programs for Schools
  • Blog
    • Art & Artists
    • Elements & Principles
    • Art Connection Activities
    • Art Teacher Tips
    • Downloads & Resources
  • Book
  • Podcast
  • Shop
  • Join
  • Member Login

January 30, 2018 5 Comments

Easy and Fun Kandinsky Art Lesson for Kids

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email

Inside: Explore Sketch 160A by Wassily Kandinsky with your students and have them create an abstract art project in this Kandinsky art lesson!

Hello there! I am excited to announce that Amanda Koonlaba of Party in the Art Room is now a contributing writer here at Art Class Curator. Please enjoy her first post–a Kandinsky art lesson inspired by Kandinsky’s Sketch 160A! Thank you, Amanda, and I look forward to more art learning with you in the months to come! — Cindy

Kandinsky Art Lesson for Kids

Wassily Kandinsky wanted viewers of his work to react both emotionally and spiritually. He used carefully nuanced colors and quizzical lines to evoke this sort of response in the viewer’s soul. Eventually, Kandinsky would begin to work in pure abstraction, but here some elements of the natural world are evident.

This work of art lives at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. I was fortunate to make the ten-hour drive to Houston in the summer of 2017, before the devastating hurricane hit, to visit this wonderful art museum. Of the hundreds of works I was able to view there, this one really stuck with me.

Here is the image I took of the way the work hangs on the wall in the museum. It is relatively small. The dimensions are just 46 1/4 × 52 × 3 3/8 in.

Kandinsky Art Lesson for Kids
Wassily Kandinsky, Sketch 160A, 1912 (Photographed by Amanda Koonlaba | Party in the Art Room

Please note, this post includes Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Let’s Take a Look

Kandinsky Art Lesson
Wassily Kandinsky, Sketch 160A, 1912

Any good Kandinsky art lesson should begin with analysis. So, let’s dig in and take a deeper look at this work.

Kandinsky used nuanced colors. These colors are subtle, and if taken individually, perhaps a bit bland. Combined in the work, however, the colors perfectly capture the context of the image. The pastel colors help to illuminate the image while the darker colors provide a sense of depth. The pastel and darker colors work together to make the viewer feel a sense of dread. This work was created on the eve of WWI, a time when worldwide turbulence evoked fears of an apocalypse in the masses. While the lines of the work seem haphazard at first glance, Kandinsky has actually included imagery of the apocalypse here.

Here are some discussion questions to use with students:

  • Describe how this artist uses color.
  • Which colors illuminate the work?
  • Which specific colors are used to give the work depth?
  • Which colors create contrast?
  • How does Kandinsky use white and black in this work?
  • What images do you see?
    • Can you find the horse and rider?
    • Can you find the birds, mountains, and fish?
  • What is the mood/feeling of this artwork? What choices did the artist make to you feel this way?
  • What images of doom do you see?
  • Does any part of the work make you feel more doom than the other parts?
  • Which part of the artwork gives you hope?

Kandinsky Art Lesson

Now that the students have analyzed the work, it is time to create.

Materials:

  • Black oil pastels
  • White oil pastels or crayons
  • Tempera cakes
  • Paintbrushes
  • 12×18 off-white tagboard

Step 1: Have students draw 15-20 haphazard lines on their papers with a black oil pastel. Be sure to tell the students that while their lines should appear haphazard, they should be very intentional about what they are drawing. They can include abstracted natural forms as well (like Kandinksy’s bird and fish).

Check out this abstract art lesson for an easy way to talk to students about abstraction!

Kandinsky art lesson

Step 2: Have students add white oil pastels to about 5 areas of the work. They can hatch and crosshatch. The photo below is up close to show the haphazard, yet intentional, way the white was added to the work.

Kandinsky art lesson

Step 3: Have students paint in random sections wherever desired. They can paint loosely with the brush. The paint can go over the oil pastels. They should leave some sections of the off-white tagboard showing. They can use as many colors in as many places on the page as they’d like, but tell them to make some of the colors dark and some brighter.

Kandinsky art lesson

Wrapping Up

When my students finish their own creations, I like to have them analyze each other’s works in a similar manner to how they analyzed the master’s work.

Here are some questions they can ask each other:

  • Which specific colors are used in the work?
  • Why do you think the artist chose those colors?
  • Which colors contrast?
  • How did the artist use white and black in this work?
  • Where can you find symbolism in the work?
  • Which parts of the work make you feel doom or dread?
  • Which parts of the work give you hope?

Let’s Connect

Do you have other ideas for a Kandinsky art lesson? I’d love to hear them. Be sure to comment here with your thoughts. I’ll be checking in.

Also, check out Party in the Art Room where you can find related Kandinsky art lessons to teach other subjects:

  • Haiku with Kandinksy
  • Place Value with Kandinsky
  • Decimals with Kandinsky

Until next time!

Amanda

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email

Filed Under: Art and Artists
Tagged With: wassily kandinsky

 

You May Also Enjoy These Posts:

Artworks that Use ShapeThe Ultimate Collection of Color in Art: Examples and DefinitionsArt Theories-What Makes Art Good 700x1000What Makes Art Good? A Lesson and Explanation of Art Theories

Reader Interactions

5 Comments

  1. Daisy M Dy

    January 30, 2018 at 11:55 pm

    Thank very much for this. I have also worked on a Kandinsky project with my Montessori nursery students and we enjoyed it tremendously.
    This site will help me extend and link more Kandinsky process art to the lesson plans.
    All the best!

    Reply to this comment
    • Amanda Koonlaba

      January 31, 2018 at 10:13 pm

      Hey Daisy! I would love to hear more about that project. I have a little preschooler in Montessori right now! Thanks for the comment.

      Reply to this comment
  2. Wes Beard

    February 1, 2018 at 8:12 am

    Sketch 160A is in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. My students like when I show them art close to them.

    Reply to this comment
    • Cindy Ingram

      February 1, 2018 at 9:05 am

      Yes! It’s so cool to discuss something in class and then get to see it in person. Makes it more “real.” And, they get the experience of being able to compare the digital version versus the real life version.

      Reply to this comment
  3. Amanda Koonlaba

    February 1, 2018 at 6:26 pm

    That’s a great museum. I hope I get to go back one day.

    Reply to this comment

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Hi! I’m Cindy Ingram, the creator of Art Class Curator and The Curated Connections Library

I’m on a mission to revolutionize education with the power of life-changing art connections. Art is not “extra”. Art is essential. We are empowering teachers to bridge the gap between art making and art connection, kindling a passion for art that will transform generations.

More About Me

Free Resource!

82 Questions About Art

82 questions you can use to start and extend conversations about works of art with your classroom. Free download includes a list plus individual question cards perfect for laminating!

Download

Free Resource!

82 Questions About Art

82 questions you can use to start and extend conversations about works of art with your classroom. Free download includes a list plus individual question cards perfect for laminating!

Enrollment in Curated Connections Library is currently open. Click here to join. Join our list to get more information and to get a free lesson from the vault! If you are purchasing for a school or school district, head over here for more information.

Check Out What’s New In The Shop

Experience Art: Engaging Art Criticism Discussions and Activities for Teachers and Students of All Ages
Call to Art: An Un-Conference for Art Educators
Curated Connections Library Membership
Perspectives High School Curriculum

More Products

Have You Listened to the Latest Podcast Episode?

Falling for Naudline Pierre’s Evocative Art: A Conversation with Madalyn (Part 2)

More Episodes

Testimonials

I like how this program, unlike other art class resource membership programs, feels authentic. It's like art matters more here, and not fancy flash-in-the-pan trendiness. The goal of Art Class Curator seemed to be helping kids develop a lifelong love and art appreciation versus "Hey, look. I painted this fish."
Erin A.
Your questions are helping me to delve into much deeper learning, and my students are getting better at discussion-and then, making connections in their own work. Art Class Curator is awesome!
Denise W.
Interestingly, my lower performing classes really get engaged in these [lessons] and come away with some profound thoughts!
Melissa G.
I had the most amazing 6th grade class today. They were jumping out of their seats with hands raised just to respond and give input. It was as if I was waving candy in front of them! They saw more and more and the ideas and interpretations unfolded. So cool!!! This is what makes teaching art so wonderful – thank you!!
Caroline G.
I just wanted to thank you for the invaluable resource you have through Art Class Curator. Not only do you have thought provoking activities and discussion prompts, but it saves me so much time in preparing things for myself! I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface with your site.
Maryjane F.

Get Art Inspiration To Your Inbox!

Enter your email address to get regular art inspiration to your inbox
plus a BUNDLE OF 6 FREE WORKSHEETS!
We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe.
Download

Free Worksheets!

*Free Bundle of Art Appreciation Worksheets*

In this free bundle of art worksheets, you receive six ready-to-use art worksheets with looking activities designed to work with almost any work of art.

Copyright © 2025 Ignite Art, LLC DBA Art Class Curator •  All rights reserved  •  Privacy Policy  •  Terms of Service  •  Site Design by Emily White Designs