Paul Klee's
"Cat and Bird"

Paul Klee's "Cat and Bird"

Paul Klee was a Swiss-born artist. His highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included Expressionism, Cubism, and Surrealism. He painted reality in his own way. He was inspired by what he saw but he didn't always draw and paint objects exactly as he saw them. And he loved cats!

For this lesson, we'll be using Paul Klee's "Cat and Bird" artwork for inspiration - a simple, abstract drawing of a cat with lots of fun, bright color and pattern. Paul Klee loved color!

This is a simple directed draw but you can add plenty of creativity with the color and pattern of your cat - that's where your work can really shine!

After the lesson, scroll down for more about Paul Klee.

Create your own cat, inspired by Paul Klee's painting

For this project, you'll need paper and pencil, a black marker or crayon, and crayons to add color. Other media can be used for color - in class in 3rd grade, we use chalk pastels. You could also use oil pastels or marker, if you have them.

For a review of line, scroll to the bottom of this lesson.

This lesson should take about 60 minutes.

Alternate option for coloring...

This short video shows you a different technique for adding color to your cat.

For this, you'll need water-based/water-soluble markers. I used Crayola washable markers in the video but regular Crayola markers also work. Sharpies and other permanent markers will NOT work as they are not water-based. You should use a permanent marker for the black outlines.

My example uses abstract areas of different color with patterns added when the 'paint' is dry - being dry is very important.

"The Cat and The Bird"

This video is a read-aloud of "The Cat and The Bird". This book is inspired by Paul Klee's artwork - Cat and Bird. The book is written Geraldine Elscher and it has beautiful illustrations by Peggy Nile. The illustrations are inspired by Paul Klee's artistic styles.

Art with Mati and Dada
- Paul Klee

This short video tells us a little more about Paul Klee through the Mati and Dada characters. It talks about Paul Klee's style and inspiration and looks at the painting Cat and Bird, as well as other.

Line Review

If you would like a review on line, here's a fun video to watch.

Below are a couple of examples of different types of line

Paul Klee's "Cat and Bird"