Native American Inspired Mixed Media: Following a lesson on Native American Art, students chose a pattern to integrate into an original pencil drawing. The patterns were sewn onto the paper using embroidery techniques, a craft traditionally practiced by some native tribes. We discussed the concept of inspiration rather than copying art or stealing ideas. This project was inspired by the artwork of Izziyana Suhaimi.
Clay Relief Tiles w/ Cold Glaze: After learning about the Column of Trajan in Ancient Roman History, students created their own story telling relief tile. We made several sketches before finalizing the design. Students were encouraged use different levels of relief sculpture and focus on creating innovative textures in clay. In addition, I challenged students to take their relief off of at least two edges of the clay tile in order to add interest to their composition. We finished the tiles with a cold glaze of black paint, lightly sponged white paint and colored pencil.
Mixed Media, Monochromatic, Collage using Handmade Paper: In my History of Crafts class, students learned about the history of paper making. After a fun and messy day of making our own paper, we chose one color to focus a mixed media collage. I showed students several videos of mixed media artists to use as inspiration. Creating layers and complexity can be challenging for these young students. Several students immediatly gravitated towards polk-a-dotting their canvas with "about me" cutouts. With some guidance and examples, several works turned out extremely well.
Creative Self Portraits:
Crazy Coil Pots: This is the second clay project in our ceramics unit. The first is a guided project of a pinch pot owl. The Crazy Coil Pot project requires more skill and knowledge of the material. I require the students to use coils and shapes to create a unique piece. I don't require planning or pre sketches because I like for the pieces to evolve naturally. I show some slides to use for inspiration and give a demonstration on how to build a simple coil vessel and the kids are up and running. The projects are as unique as they are beautiful.
Watercolor Triptych- Realistic, Abstract, Nonrepresentational: This project not only teaches watercolor but also the important art categories: Realistic, Abstract and Non-Representational. After showing examples and taking notes on the definitions, students choose a color photograph to work from. After taping off their watercolor paper, they will recreate the image as close to reality as possible. Before the projects, we practice creating layers and value changes in our watercolor. They will then exaggerate, simplify or other means of modification to create an abstract work in the second panel. The third panel, nonrepresentational, is the most challenging. Many students want to "make a random picture." This is where person by person explanation is very important. I often use the explanation, "take the important colors, textures, and shapes from the photograph, put them in a blender and then paint them on the paper to create an interesting and meaningful composition."
Ceramic Lanterns: This is the third clay project in the ceramics unit. It is the most challenging and requires the most expertise. Building a firm, crisp cube out of mushy clay is no easy task. To most, this is their first time create a ceramic clay piece so I do provide the templates for the walls. The instructions are very involved and I also provide the students with detailed written instructions and pictures. From there, they design and carve their own cutouts. When lit, they glow with purpose and individuality.