Eccentric Surrealism with Salvador Dali
Who was Salvador Dali?
Art Lesson:
First we looked at a few books from the library about Dali, discussing the general information about where he was born, his family and what styles of art he enjoyed.
Then we watched the three minute video “Art History for Kids” which gave a great and simple overview of Dali. I liked it because it showed his quirky paintings and his famous silly mustache (which my middle child later tried to mimic with pipe cleaners!)
Later we put on the tutorial video of melting clocks and went step by step with pencil (sketch lightly so it’s easier to erase, or just get some white out like she does in the video) and we slowly sketched. Took about 30 minutes from start to finish.
What is Surrealism? A short Art History clip for kids…
What You Need:
- Cardstock
- Easel to hold paper upright (to help with angles/dimensions)
- Pencil
- Video Below of Clocks Tutorial Here and Below
- Colored pencils or other materials to color in
- Optional: Add in wild surrealist shapes/animals/characters or cutouts/printouts in background
More Information and Inspirational Ideas Below:
10 Surrealist Salvador Dali Art Projects for Kids (artsycraftsymom.com)
Salvador Dali | Biography, Art, Paintings, Surrealism, & Facts | Britannica
A Fun Art Lesson Tutorial Video on Drawing the Melting Clock:
Not only does this art teacher have a great British accent, but she slows the steps down and makes the drawing fun and engaging. We followed along and paused a few times and by the end, we had a great result and learned a lot too!
A Great Result…
Age Variations for early elementary/ younger or older middle/high school students:
A fun story about wild adventures as if in the mind of Dali. Great for younger students ages 4-7 years.
Courtesy of Little Bins Little Hands – a fun early elementary age activity for Dali art.
Discovering Dali on MagellanTV – complex and has some strange scenes showing the wilder side of Dali. Best for older students 12 years and up. Develops more of his eccentric side and filmmaking.
This was one of my more favorite art lessons. Not only did it work for multiple ages and skill levels but it was also fun and engaging. The children’s reactions to the wild melted clocks and the way the perspectives formed on the page was just as fun as the drawing activity itself. My more serious firstborn (NT personality) could not seem to understand why the clocks weren’t “organized and straight” while the younger two found it funny and kept redrawing until it looked “silly”. Overall, a fun and organized lesson that took about 30 minutes.