1. ART COMMENTARY
KALISHA MONTOYO

2. First Visit – Choosing
I came across Dubuffet’s piece during a fieldtrip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for my Painting course. Jean Dubuffet’s ‘Apartment Houses in France’ is located in the Modern and Contemporary Art gallery. What caught my attention was the amount of paint the artist used in the piece. Because there was a huge focus on the piling of the paint, it was something I could relate to in my personal work. I noticed the grainy texture as well. Dubuffet’s piece gives off a busy aroma and it does so because of the lack of breathing space in the piece. It is only hinted that there is a sky above the apartment buildings, however I don’t mind the tight space. The figures in the piece are very animated; I suppose the artist wanted to emphasize the architectural aspects of the piece verses the forms or figures in the space. the piece is exceptionally playful in every corner and the placement of the forms allows you to capture little moments in the apartment complexes.

3. Second Visit – Research on The Artist and Piece
Born: July 31, Le Havre, France
Died: May 12, Paris, France
Jean Dubuffet had worked at various careers. In 1918, he had enrolled at the Académie Julian in Paris, but left after only six months to work independently. After a year of military service as a meteorologist in Saint-Cyr and on the Eiffel Tower, he was employed as a technical draftsman in Buenos Aires. Dubuffet earned a living off and on as a wine merchant, first in his parents' business in Le Havre and then on his own in Paris.
When the art of the mentally ill was first considered to have aesthetic value, Dubuffet became interested in pictures made by those without formal training—the uninitiated, the alienated, and especially the insane. A few years later, he started a collection of these pictures, which he called "Art Brut". He wanted his subject matter to be accessible to simple people and to relate to their daily lives, and thus his first paintings were of Parisians riding the crowded metro.
This painting focuses on people in and out of apartment complexes in Paris. Inspired by the style of those without formal training, Dubuffet intentionally portrays the figures idealistic; only giving the notion of somethings that appear to be arms or legs, etc. The street, sidewalks, and houses are stacked in rows, making it clear that perspective is not the focus in this piece. “The overall effect evokes the backdrop of a puppet theater, which Dubuffet himself had built and decorated during his previous interlude as a painter.

7. The ‘I Learn Better When’ project

8. The ‘I Learn Better When’ Project
Dubuffet was interested in those who did not have formal training in the arts - specifically the mentally ill and children. Emphasizing in his work the indifference between what was considered beautiful or ugly, he promoted the art of children and dared to label it as art. As Dubuffet furthered his interest in children he later began creating pieces of marienettes or puppet-like figures, inspired by them. A child is after all a blank slate. The “I Learn Better When. . .” is a project I instructed with the 4th and 5th graders at my work place during afterschool program. Students learned how the idea of school first came about through the mind of Socrates and Plato. After doing some research students were asked to create a perfect school for their specific type of learning and/or others. The purpose of this activity was to see if our education system is satisfactory to the children of our day. How can we provide a positive education in a comfortable space for children and why may or may it not be comfortable to begin with? The students’ work was bounded and made into a hardcover book. Take a look.