Fourth-graders Study Work of Kehinde Wiley

Fourth-graders in Lotspeich art teacher Jody Knoop’s class are studying the style of African-American portrait painter Kehinde Wiley. Wiley is known for his highly naturalistic portraits of black people, who are placed on backdrops of complex patterns and brilliant colors. His portraits of the Obamas are two of his most well-known pieces. In order to capture Wiley’s style in their work, students used a pattern-making application, Kaleidopaint, on their iPads. Students then took photos of themselves, and used Procreate’s digital manipulations to paste the photos of themselves onto the patterned background. “There are so many gifted contemporary artists of color,” said Knoop. “One of my goals this year is to explore the talent of people who reflect the faces of my students.”