POINTILLISM
(Also known as divisionism)

Pointillism is an original form of art created by George Seurat. Pointillism is a bunch of tiny dots formed together to make a picture. Why we use pointillism instead of using a paintbrush and just painting is because pointillism is brighter and the other kinds of paintings can be dull. When two colors are next to each other, your eye mixes them and that is called optical mixing. Using optical mixing instead of physically mixing can make a brighter picture.

Pointillism takes a long time. For example, Seurat’s “A Sunday in the Park” took him two years to complete, covers a wall (81 inches by 120 inches) and has about 3,456,000 dots! If you are ever in Chicago, go to the Art Institute and check out this painting. It’s awesome!

When artists paint a pointillism painting, it is mostly done in oil, but you don’t have to. You can do pointillism with almost
anything.
Oil paint is used because it’s thick and the color won’t run together. The idea of pointillism is not to physically mix colors.

Pointillism is a very interesting subject. I even think it would be neat to try and paint a picture this way. I enjoyed learning about it. I enjoyed even more going to the Art Institute to see the paintings up close. You could visit your library or go to the museum near you to learn more about this kind of painting.

Materials you need:

Drawing paper, pencils, watercolor, markers or crayons, small paint brushes

1. Place the objects you are going to paint and use as your model, (still life objects, a photograph, etc.), in an area close to you with good light.

2. Make an outline of your drawing noticing its shape.

3. Begin by showing areas of light and shadows in your model by making small dots in those areas first. For the shadows, use dark color dots mixed in with bright colors. To show off the light, use white dots mixed with bright colors. Use a color wheel to help you find the right colors for your piece. Our watercolor page, has a color wheel for you to use. Complementary colors on the wheel, which are the colors opposite each other on the wheel, add life and brightness to your painting.