Mrs. Schueler's fourth grade class learned about the Polish art, "Wycinanki" (vee-chee-nan-kee). They focused on creating a symmetrically balanced picture that incorporated the subjects of a lot of Wycinanki - trees and birds! I used this wonderful blog post to help me with my planning for this project. The hand out that the author of the post provided was quite helpful! I told students to not copy her drawing, but to use it as a visual reference as they created their own.
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I have wanted to introduce the contemporary artist, BANKSY, to my students for a long time. I have hesitated because I wasn't sure how to present an artist who is controversial in this nature (law-breaking vandalism). In the worst case scenario, students might see this as my personal consent to vandalize "in the name of art". That was the main reason why I kept putting this idea on the back burner. It was when I found out that the theme for Anna McDonald's school year was "stomp out bullying", that I decided to make this work. He was a prime example of an artist who stands up to social injustice, and uses his art to spread a positive message for change. I used some of his lighter, funnier pieces to start discussion. From his paintings' content, the process he goes through to make his art, to the question of morality, students have never had more to say about a particular artist. We watched a couple short clips, as well. This one is about an elementary school that receieved an original BANKSY. This one is about another street artist, Moose, who creates "reverse graffiti". The image above led most of our discussion on street art and graffiti. So this is what we did. We first made the brick background by sponge painting brown tempera on red construction paper. We used white paint to add the grout lines. In the next class, we talked about typography and stylizing letters. Students then used chalk to add color to their words. They cut them out and glued them to their backgrounds. These kids had some great messages. My daughters and I tried out this fun art project at the DuPage Children's Museum over the summer. It was so fun, I had my Anna McDonald ACCESS friends try it with me. We talked about how lines can criss-cross and make enclosed spaces (SHAPES). We taped yarn to the back of a small piece of cardboard. The students then carefully wrapped the yarn around the cardboard in any way they wanted, and then taped the other end of it to the back. They wrapped them up in tinfoil, used their fingers to press down on the front, and then carefully colored in their cubist-looking creations with Neon Sharpies! :)
We practiced so many fun ways to play with paper! We read a great book about Henri Matisse called "Henri's Scissors". This is a great story to promote inclusion and perseverance in the art room. As Matisse became ill and was no longer able to make art as he once did, he found ways around his disabilities to continue creating. His assistants painted large pieces of paper and he was able to "draw with scissors" as he lay in bed.
Students cut geometric and organic shapes and arranged them in really neat compositions. We also practiced techniques such as pleating, fringe, spirals, etc. They look great! |
AuthorI am a K - 5th grade art teacher at Wilson Creek Elementary and Anna McDonald School in Manhattan, IL. I am also a mother of two little girls (who share my love of art)! Archives
February 2019
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