The Widow鈥檚 Broom by Chris Van Allsburg
Activity Guide by Kate Kwasneski
Intern, 麻豆传媒 College Museum of Art
Learn and Look
The Widow鈥檚 Broom is a book by Chris Van Allsburg. It tells the story of a witch鈥檚 broom that loses its ability to fly. A kind widow helps the witch, and she leaves her broom behind when she leaves. The broom has magic, even if it can鈥檛 fly. The widow wakes up one day to find the broom sweeping her house by itself! She then finds out that she can teach her broom to do lots of different chores.
Here are some pages from the book. Look at the way the broom is moving! Can wood bend like that in real life? Think about the story and emotions present in these pages. What do you think is happening in the story? What do you think about the use of black and white?
These images have so much detail. Van Allsburg draws with a lot of attention to shadows, light, and texture. Look at how many individual branches there are. Look at the detail in the individual leaves on the ground.
There are a few more examples of drawings done with so much detail and attention in the Museum of Art鈥檚 collection, and they are shown below.
The first image here was done using only colored pencils on paper! You can almost see the individual blades of grass and leaves on the trees. The other image is hazier, but just as incredibly detailed. What do you think of these images? Look very closely at them. What details can you discover?
Create
If you had a magic broom, what would you teach it to do?
Where would you go if you could ride on a magic broom to get there?
Think about your answers to these questions, and then try to draw it! These pictures are black and white, but you can use color! Pay attention to the details. Think about the artwork we have seen so far: there is so much detail and texture in it. Work for quality, not quickness.
Think about not just what the broom is doing, but where it is doing it. Draw the details of the place. Are you there? Is anyone else?
In my example, I drew the broom cooking dinner in a kitchen. I added jars and a plant on the shelves above the broom. Think about what details you can add!
Write
Write about what you would do with a magic broom. What adventures would you have together? Will it be an adventure with just you and your broom, or will you invite others along? If so, who? Tell the story!