Dialogue by Mark:

The drawing we're doing today uses the perspective of size to create depth. The crater crawler cars get smaller and smaller the further away it gets. The cars out in front are way bigger than the ones in the back.

In today's Masters' Gallery, you can see the same effect in this painting by the great Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh. He painted this picture in the last year of his life, 1890, and called it "Undergrowth with Two Figures."

Van Gogh became a painter when he was a young man, after he had tried and failed at several other jobs. He fought mental illness all of his life, and turned to art to try to express some of his thoughts and feelings. All of Van Gogh's 800 or more paintings were made in only 10 years, for he died whien he was still very young.

Van Gogh often worked day and night without stopping. He spent all of his money on paint, even forgetting to eat. His paintings are filled with bright colors, strong emotions and heavy textures. Just look at the flowers under these trees...close up they're wild smudges of yellow and white...but step back and they turn into a thick undergrowth of flowers.

The tree trunks give this picture it's mystery and feeling of depth. Up close, they're thick and grey. The tree in the center is the fattest, and appears to be the closest. Further back, the trunks get smaller and smaller, intil they blend into the shadown background as single brushstrokes. Thanks to Kim, our art history expert at KidsArt, and to the Cincinnati Art Museum for this Master's Gallery painting!