Course Information
Age Group: Secondary, Tertiary, Adults
The premise of the course in abstract art is the freedom of expression and not necessarily a diametrically opposed to realism. Colours, strokes, and the Imagination will be part of the process. We will refer to the works of master artists Pierre Bonnard, Paul Cezanne, Roy Lichtenstein, and Pablo Picasso.
Creativity as it is in the production of an artwork is closely associated with identifying, internalizing, and transcending boundaries.
The “Art of seeing” as it was first expounded in Aldous Huxley’s Work will be a close companion as it speaks closely to the individual’s perceptions. This underscores the entire process in art making.
Through this beginner’s course, learners will appreciate the forms of abstract art, link with principles of Chinese art as well, and define their own abstract art style.
Participants will be guided by artist Chen Yi Quan, trained in Psychology at the National University of Singapore and a self-taught artist who has held several individual art exhibitions showing his abstract paintings.
Chen Yi Quan
Yi Quan began his journey as a self-taught artist in 2015 and has since taken part in 4 exhibitions In 2015, he was the lead organizer and a participating artist in the Tao of Lee Kuan Yew art exhibition.
Course Content
About the Artist and Course
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Artist Chen Yi Quan and his computer assistant Tom give an introduction about Abstract Art starting from the Impressionist Art movement till today.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 05M
A look at Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Art
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
A Quick Post-Impressionist Styled Painting
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Teacher Yi Quan demonstrates how to draw an imaginary landscape using Impressionist and Post-Impressionist strokes.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 05M
Abstract Painting
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
Morphing
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.In this video, Teacher Yi Quan demonstrates how he uses the earlier painting as the base to morph the painting into something else, which is one way of creating abstraction. He is using Surrealism Automatism where you get inspiration from looking at the base painting to transform into something else that you see.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 05M
Morph Painting
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
The Bull
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.In this video, our artist uses shapes to morph into an abstract bull. Inspired by Roy Lichtenstein bull series, Teacher Yi Quan paints various simple shapes and simple colours. He then uses Picasso’s and Lichtenstein’s techniques to make it into an abstract bull. Picasso’s cubism technique allows him to place body parts of the bull in different places of the object.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 05M
Shape Morph Painting
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
Exploration of Light
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.In this video, our artist played with light using dark and bright colours. Light is often used to create mood in paintings. It is an abstract painting which Teacher Yi Quan painted according to his mood and with a focal point for the light.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 05M
Painting Lights
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
Painting using Chinese Brush Strokes
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.In the remaining lessons, Teacher Yi Quan demonstrates abstraction inspired by Chinese art. Instead of painting with Chinese ink, he uses acrylic paints. He painted an abstract scene with mountains.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 10M
Painting using Chinese Brush Strokes
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
Painting an Abstract River
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.In this video, Teacher Yi Quan illustrates how he created an abstract scenery of a river with acrylic paints.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 10M
Painting an Abstract River
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
Painting with Negative Spaces
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.In this video, Teacher Yi Quan demonstrated how the shapes of houses can inspire an abstract painting. He referenced the art style of Chinese painter Wu Guanzhong, who is considered one of the founders of modern art in China. He used bold and simple dark strokes to create the shape of the buildings and then filled with bright colours, at the same time maintaining some negative spaces.
Chen Yi Quan
Visual Arts
0H 10M
Painting with Negative Spaces
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 30th March - 31st December (SGT)
Course Completion Survey
You need to complete previous lesson/activity before proceeding to this.Start Date: 16th June - 31st December (SGT)
Certificate
Get your certificate when you complete every activity in this course and have it checked by your instructor.