Club Creativity!

Katie Babic and I worked with a small group of students who were interested in having more art and creativity opportunities.  We met once a week after school to explore a variety of arts media and creative processes.  After attending such an inspiring Learning and the Brain Conference, this group became our test case for some of the ideas we learned about fostering creativity and curiosity and supporting kids' passions. 

A new session of Club Creativity will start after spring break!  Sign up to join us!

Here are some of the activities we explored: 

Egg carton flower wreath

Clay creatures

Egg carton flowers

Making buttons! 

Collage inspired by Van Gogh's Sunflowers

Blind Contour Drawing

 

Blind Contour Drawing is an exercise where the artist does not look at the paper while drawing the contour or outline of an object or person.

Fifth and sixth grade artists created Blind Contour Portraits. Some students chose to add color.

Inspired by... The Scream!

First and second grade artists created their own versions of the famous painting and pastel drawing "The Scream," by Edvard Munch. Find out what makes each student want to scream!

Op Art

And another #artteachermoment at #mfamontreal. I was excited to see this painting by #vasarely since #waitsfieldschool #gradesfiveandsix are studying #opart !

A photo posted by Nora (@artclass_allday) on Mar 25, 2016 at 6:31am PDT

What are the key characteristics of Op Art?

• First and foremost, Op Art exists to fool the eye. Op compositions create a sort of visual tension, in the viewer's mind, that gives works the illusion of movement. For example, concentrate on Bridget Riley's Dominance Portfolio, Blue (1977) - for even a few seconds - and it begins to dance and wave in front of one's eyes. Realistically, you know any Op Art piece is flat, static and two-dimensional. Your eye, however, begins sending your brain the message that what it's seeing has begun to oscillate, flicker, throb and any other verb one can employ to mean: "Yikes! This painting is moving!"
• Because of its geometrically-based nature, Op Art is, almost without exception, non-representational.
• The elements employed (color, line and shape) are carefully chosen to achieve maximum effect.
• The critical techniques used in Op Art are perspective and careful juxtaposition of color (whether chromatic [identifiable hues] or achromatic [black, white or gray]).
• In Op Art, as in perhaps no other artistic school, positive and negative spaces in a composition are of equal importance. Op Art could not be created without both.

Read more at arthistory.about.com

 

Fauvism... The Wild Beasts!

What does THIS:

Have to do with THIS?

Watch these two videos about Les Fauves to find out!

Fauvism Notes

• Fauvism was a style of painting developed in France at the beginning of the 20th century by Henri Matisse and André Derain.

• The artists who painted in this style were known as 'Les Fauves'.

• The title 'Les Fauves' (the wild beasts) came from a sarcastic remark by the art critic Louis Vauxcelles.

• Les Fauves believed that colour should be used to express the artist's feelings about a subject, rather than simply to describe what it looks like.

Fauvist paintings have two main characteristics: simplified drawing and exaggerated colour.

Click here to read more about Les Fauves