2. Piet Mondrian was a Dutch painter, born
in 1872 and died in 1944.
Mondrian was an avant-garde (“New Art”)
painter, who evolved from naturalism and
symbolism to abstraction or non-
representational art.
Let’s discuss:
What is Naturalism?
What is Abstract or
Non-representational
Art?
15. Do you see how
Mondrian SIMPLIFIED
the Tree?
Does it still LOOK like
a tree??
16. Piet Mondrian began to create Non-
representational art.
What do you think NON-REPRESENTATIONAL
(ABSTRACT) art mean???
17. When the artist does not intend for it to
look like anything in particular.
18. Notice how his paintings
don’t look like something.
They are just squares and
rectangles that are only
colored Red, Blue, and
Yellow.
Why do you think he only
used red, yellow and blue?
19. Mondrian used only
the primary colors
because he felt that
they created the
strongest and purest
contrasts.
What is contrast?
RED YELLOW BLUE
The Primary
Colors
20. CONTRASTCONTRAST
Light colors Dark colors
Large shapes Small shapes
Contrast is a principle of design that refers to the
arrangement of opposite elements. This is so the
artist can create visual interest and drama.
What are some opposites in art?
Smooth texture Rough texture
22. In the 1940’s, Mondrian moved to New York City. This move had a big
influence on his painting.
How do you think NYC influenced him?
23.
24. Mondrian’s work has influenced many forms of art- not only
painting: design, sculpture, decoration and architecture.
25. You can see Piet
Mondrian’s
Influence
everywhere!
26.
27.
28. Mondrian Composition Cube
• Think, Write, Pair, Share!
• What is a Composition?
(Think of music. How is a
composition similar in
art?)
• What Elements of Art can
you use to create
different compositions?
(How can you arrange
them?)
