A continuation of our study of famous glass artist Dale Chihuly involved a collaborative project across the entire fifth grade. We created two functioning light fixtures, inspired by his glass chandeliers. The artists used plastic cups and colored them with Sharpies. Then they manipulated the form of the cups by cutting and twisting the plastic. Off hours I melted the plastic to contort the shape of the plastic. Then the artists glued the plastic to halloween candy pails! Their holes in the rims made for simple wiring and LED lights generate the perfect amount of light, without the heat! A spectacle in and of themselves, these artists took the inspiration and FLEW!

Fifth graders began the unit on Dale Chihuly taking a studio tour via a report done on CBS. They were instantly mesmerized by his grandiosity and ingenuity in each design. It spoke to them because it was at once playful, but “cool”; mind-blowing and technical. We dove into the study of his work creating charcoal and watercolor renderings of original light fixtures and then created this 6’4″ balloon sculpture.

Here is a sampling of KindergARTen art. Eric Carle inspired our beautiful cloud illustrations. They have been learning about color, shape and texture with the fabulous texture pumpkins and Piet Mondrian inspired the abstract collages. Up next, clay & Monet!

At just nine and ten years of age, these artists were able to create such striking and compelling compositions in their photography. Someone reminded me today of the beautiful images so I thought I’d share a few here. Our show at Confectionique struck a chord with Channel 3000 and they featured them in this article.

Third graders learn about perspective with this fun and funky self-portrait. From the drawing glossary on about.com, ‘foreshortening occurs when an object appears compressed when seen from a particular viewpoint, and the effect of perspective causes distortion. Foreshortening is a particularly effective artistic device, used to give the impression of three-dimensional volume and create drama in a picture.’ After drawing the hands and feet as the objects closer to the viewer, the artists had to draw the rest of their bodies, create backgrounds and design the soles of their shoes. We added photographs of their faces for the heads of their bodies. Thanks to this awesome art teacher for the idea!

Third grade artists studied Picasso in PTA-sponsored ART IN THE CLASSROOM this fall so we followed up their intro with a review. We dove further into his life and work, looking at the different phases (periods) that characterize eras of his life. Finally, we studied how with Cubism he used lines and geometric shapes to create abstract portraits. There are so many amazing resources out there that we were able to use on our Smartboard, namely the awesome powerpoint from the Art Heritage Program and images from Mrs. Brown’s art lesson!

After reading Rebecca and Ed Emberley’s sweet version of Chicken Little Northside first graders put a serious dent in our scrap accumulation making these bird collages! The artists have been discussing illustration of text in their classrooms and in the art room, having just completed a project illustrating the alphabet. Here they use the Emberley’s poppy, colorful illustrations as inspiration to create paper collage birds of their own. Now, watch out for falling acorns. . .!

First grade artists first experience printmaking with this project oriented to the season. After printing leaves using block printing ink and brayers, the artists created line designs and explored patterns in their frames.

Man, light bulbs have a way of adding just the right ZING to anything! A light fixture, sure– a second grader’s art- oh YeaH! These light bulb bugs came to LIFE when our artists sketched them and then formed them. The wings are made from twisted wire and are covered in tissue paper, glazed and adhered to the wire with Mod Podge. The artists made legs and antennae from electrical wire and used googly eyes and beads for detailing. They also wrote about their bugs so they could introduce them to the class. “Paris” to “Bluebell” to “Love Bug” — we met the most interesting and deLIGHTful creatures!

Third grade artists learned about Matisse’s life in a unit that blends visual art and music. A painter pressing the limits as a Fauvist, his contribution to modern art was profound. At the end of his career he could no longer paint with the passion and verve he once did, and began to create art with simple materials: paper and scissors. He’d cut shapes and pin them around his studio. From organic, nature type shapes to abstract representation of human forms, Matisse did it all. In 1947 he published a book of his paper cut outs inspired by Jazz and created the work like a musician creates compositions. “Like the musical genre they celebrate, the works are at once spontaneous and unified, improvisational yet clearly orchestrated.” - from a description of Jazz, the book.

Our artists went on virtual tours of his studio, looked a number of his pieces, and created their own paper cut outs listening to Coltrane. Their work truly reflects and honors Matisse’s style!