Tape and Cakes

 4th and 5th grade students have started their African masks. We watched a video of the Dogon tribe in West Africa doing a ceremonial weather dance to gain inspiration for our artwork. After doing some sketching, we started putting recycled materials together to create the skeleton for our masks. Since American's use about 52 million tons of trash a year, and only recycle about 34 percent of that trash, we thought it would be a great idea to reuse some items from home! 

Tape, tape, and more tape...

Wayne Thiebaud, Cakes, 1963



In second and third grade, we were looking at artists Wayne Thiebaud and Claus Oldenburg for inspiration. We talked about the difference between a painting and a sculpture, 2D and 3D art, and how Pop Art was all about using everyday objects and making them really "POP" in art!
The kids got to use model magic clay to form their own designed cake. They loved this process, and the cakes turned out awesome!
We will be adding a few final touches once the clay sets.

First graders have been working on a collaborative project. First, we read 'The Dot' by Peter Reynolds. Then, each student created a Kandinsky circle with oil pastels, and we combined them to create one awesome classwork! (ps. You might just see these later in the year at our annual PTA Art Auction!)

Paper Making, Calligraphy, Printing Galore!

Our students have started a sculpture unit this semester. 

The first project we started was handmade paper. The kids really enjoyed getting messy and hands-on with this! 

We started by collecting recycled fibers such as discarded pieces of paper, scraps of lint, cardboard, anything fibrous! We added some pieces of colored scrap paper to the mix, and blended it together in the blender. Students helped me throw the scraps in and watched in wonder as it turned to a gooey pulp. See the video below for the full process! 

I handed out chunks of pulp and allowed students to manipulate it into a flat sheet of wet paper like they do in the factories (we watched a video to see how the professionals do it!) We had to let the paper dry for about a week. 

First grade painted some beautiful Chinese calligraphy on their paper. We talked about how paper making and calligraphy is an art form in this culture. We also talked about how each character is symbolic. Students could chose to paint either "Peace", "Love", or "Happy". 

Peyton, 1st grade

Gissele, 1st grade

Peyton, 1st grade

2nd through 5th grade used the printmaking process to create a stamp from foam printing plates. We used pens and pencils to make groves in the foam plates.  Wherever they pressed with the pen or pencil, the ink would print.

 The students learned about symmetry and asymmetry, radial lines, use of pattern, and what tools are used in printmaking. We used a brayer to roll the ink onto our printing plates. The printing plates became like a stamp (once you put it on your paper, you can't move it!) 

These prints turned out great!