The Shape of Sound

‘Soundtrack your Story’ in February was one of our favourite sessions of the year, where our young artists were encouraged to follow their instincts and let music spark their imagination to create freely and draw what they felt. So, when World Music Day came around this summer, we were excited to let the tunes fill The Art Room once again to see what joyful discoveries could be made in one larger composition.  This week, to expand our understanding of abstract art, we explored the fascinating connection between music and painting, taking inspiration from the pioneering, early 20th century, abstract artist Wassily Kandinsky.

Kandinsky experienced a neurological phenomenon called synesthesia, which meant that he could hear colours and see sounds. He believed that music could be expressed visually and developed a unique artistic language using circles, geometric forms, intersecting lines and expressive colours to convey rhythm, movement and emotion to reveal his inner world. He also associated particular colours with different feelings and sounds, for example, yellow with energy and excitement, blue with calmness and spirituality, and red with strength and vitality making his paintings resonate with the same energy as music.

Inspired by these ideas, the children listened to a soundtrack of instrumental classical and jazz music throughout the session and responded intuitively to what they heard. Working with a choice of materials - pencil, black pen, oil pastels and watercolour – they experimented with shape, line and colour to record what they felt rather than drawing recognisable objects or scenes. Instead, they translated the changing moods, tempos and dynamics of the music into their own abstract compositions in the style of Kandinsky.

The result was a vibrant collection of unique artworks, each reflecting the children's individual interpretation of sound through colour, pattern and form. Bravo everyone! Encore!