Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Ray and Charles Eames

The fourth grade has been studying design, architecture and modernist designers. They have been learning about the Ray and Charles Eames and the important contributions this husband and wife team made to the fields of architecture, film , photography, furniture design and toys. The Eames said "toys are not as innocent as they look. Toys and games are preludes to serious ideas".
Here is an example of one of their "toys".



Ray and Charles Eames

The fourth grade artists have created their own Eames cards. The student used the same elements as the artists; clean edges, colorful designs, repetition and whimsy.
Once all the cards are complete, we will finish with a collaborative sculpture as we will be putting the "house" together. Look for the work around the school.





Monday, February 22, 2010

Art is for the birds

The third grade artists spent some time studying the artist John James Audubon. The artists learned about Audubon's discoveries including the important discovery of where birds go during the winter. If you have a third grader, ask him what some of the other scientists' theories were about where the birds went. Then the artists choose a bird, made several sketches of the bird and then made a painting.








Friday, February 12, 2010

Kindergarten Archi"texture"

The Kindergarten artists worked really hard on these pieces of art. There were many skills and materials involved in this project; folding paper, texture rubbing, cutting rectangles, gluing, drawing with pastels and sharpies, also water colors. We discussed neighborhoods, architecture, texture and color. The student artists were really into their artwork.




Wednesday, February 10, 2010

First Grade textiles

The first grade artists studied textiles of Africa. They read books by Maya Angelou that showed children from Western Africa. We discussed the uses of textiles and used various methods to create our own.
"Adire" Cloth



"Kente" Cloth

"Adinkra" Cloth