Among World War I’s innumerable tragedies was the loss of one of my favorite artists, Franz Marc. Marc was born on February 8, 1880, in Munich, Germany and was a pioneer in the birth of abstract art at the beginning of the twentieth-century. Along with Wassily Kandinsky and others he founded the group “Der Blaue Reiter“. This group of artists believed in a spontaneous, symbolic, colorful, and especially expressive art.
Marc had a spiritual view of animals, which is reflected in most of his paintings. These paintings draw me in with the respect and reverence he had for his subjects. His solid forms, beautiful lines, and wonderful use of color are aspects of his work that I have always loved.
I regularly used two of Marc’s paintings when I taught elementary art: The Large Red Horses and Red Dear II.
A shell splinter killed Franz Marc during the Battle of Verdun in 1916.
Retiring after thirty-two years as a K-12 visual arts teacher, Terri Gardner now devotes time to a long and early interest: fashion. With her blog, MeadowTree Style, Terri advocates for developing a personal and creative style. She encourages finding fashion in ethical ways such as shopping at consignment/thrift shops, creating it yourself, as well as supporting local designers.
Her second blog, Time for Poodles and Friends, advocates for rescued animals.
Her interests dating from childhood led to her sense of fashion, doing, and living. These interests include sewing, spinning yarn, knitting, design, and giving space for animals. She lives on a small Missouri farm with her husband, a large garden, and several animals including chickens and ducks, dogs and cats, and Shetland sheep and Alpacas. For her beloved rescued dogs, Terri created dog accessories and made them available under the label Sophia & Niko–Exclusive Design for the Distinctive Dog.
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