Nature Photography

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I’m glad that so many young artists are getting outside and finding the beauty in nature. Our forests and mountains will help us through this! Please keep sharing your creative work!

A post shared by Nora (@artclass_allday) on Mar 25, 2020 at 7:00am PDT

Texture Collages

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Texture #collage shared by a @waitsfieldschool student. Keep up the good work!

A post shared by Nora (@artclass_allday) on Mar 25, 2020 at 6:56am PDT

Outdoor Art

Fifth and sixth grade artists took advantage of some fine fall weather to enjoy the outdoor spaces created with our Artists-in-Residence.

Kindergarten Nature Names Paintings

One of the most memorable parts of being in Kindergarten at WES is having a "Nature Name." Each child has a native Vermont animal that he or she identifies with for the year.  In art class, we used tempera paint and really large paper to make paintings of these animals in their natural habitat.  

Trees inspired by Rebecca Rebouche and Gustav Klimt

When I discovered the contemporary artist Rebecca Rebouche, I knew I would have to teach a lesson based on her work.  Her "Tree Series" paintings drew me in because of the balance of simplicity and detail and the obvious playfulness she enjoys in the process.

My art students love drawing trees and some even believe that they know How To Draw a Tree, as if there is just one right way to do it.  Here is where I introduce another favorite artist, Gustav Klimt, with his painting "Tree of Life."  In looking at this intricate, swirly, gold-tinted tree, we see that the possibilities are endless. 

Although Rebecca Rebouche and Gustav Klimt lived 100 years apart, when we compare their work we can see some similarities. 

Third and fourth graders looked at Rebouche's "Tree Series" paintings and Klimt's "Tree of Life" painting.  In addition to the symbolic meaning of the trees themselves, both artists included other objects in the branches of their trees to represent things that are important to them. Click here to learn more about the symbols in Klimt's "Tree of Life."

We often start the year by drawing or painting self-portrait.  This year we breezed through this with our Monochromatic Self Portraits.  In planning the self-portrait process, I wanted students to focus on what truly makes them special and unique.  Rather than trying to, once again, help students show this in a traditional head and shoulders self-portrait, I decided to take a more abstract approach.  These tree drawings by grades three and four are a type of self portrait. 

Can you guess the students who created them based on what they chose to include in the branches?

Watch these beautiful videos to see Rebecca Rebouche at work and see how she draws inspiration from the natural world.

Nature Mandalas, Mindfulness and Process vs. Product

Our fifth and sixth grade Morning Mindfulness group took advantage of this beautiful late-fall weather and took our practice outside.  We took a 5 Senses walk around the school, trying to notice at least one thing for each sense.  We didn't think we would find anything for taste, but we came across some parsley left over in the garden.

Before heading outside, we looked at the work of Andy Goldsworthy.  We talked about how he creates art using entirely natural materials, then watches as nature takes its course. Goldsworthy spends hours creating meticulous works in nature, then watches as the tide comes in to wash away his work, or the sun melts the ice, or wind blows the leaves.  Focus on the process of creating, rather than the product, is an important part of mindfulness.  Mindfulness helps us be 'in the moment' as we work, rather than focused exclusively on the outcome. Here are some of Andy Goldsworthy's creations:

Click here to learn more about Andy Goldworthy and see more of his artwork.
Click here to see more student work inspired by Andy Goldsworthy.

Here is our Morning Mindfulness group's Nature Mandala: