Visual Rhythm

One of my favourite ways to teach students about visual rhythm is to have them look (and listen to) Romare Bearden’s The Block.

We discuss how pattern makes visual rhythm and students create a collage style block of their own.

One of the reasons I enjoy this so much is the integration of sound (music), art, and poetry - students write rhythmic, onomatopoeia poems describing their art. But a second reason is as an artist I am drawn to the organic patterns of landscapes as well as the geometric patterns of cityscapes.

So on this Alberta-Blue sky day, I headed downtown to find inspiration in the patterns of Calgary. Is Calgary remotely similar to Bearden’s Harlem? Not really. But if there is one thing I teach my students, it is that everyone's block is a little different, and that uniqueness is something to be valued. So here is some southern Alberta urban rhythm, beautiful in its own right...