Tree of Life

4th grade students learned about the artist Gustav Klimt.  I used images from the book "Klimt and his cat" as well as "The Tree of Life."  Students discussed the artist's message, symbolism and their own personal interests   After discussing and critiquing the artwork, students drew their own tree of life and used black and bronze paint to fill it in.

The next art day, students brainstormed symbols & designs to include in their own artwork.  I kept asking students, "What do you want your artwork to say? What is important in your life?" They used manila paper and markers to create their symbols.

The last day was just cutting & gluing to put the tree of life together! Check out trees below, some students made a "space tree", "angry birds tree", "my favorite things tree",  a "money tree" ect.