![]() In our unit of study with Vincent Van Gogh students looked at his painting of Starry Night for inspiration for our woven stars. Our classed watched a video and they learned that Vincent Van Gogh used balls of yarn to experiment with color. Instead of using paint he used yarn which he could reuse each time he started a new painting. In our woven starry stars students used a variety of yellows, whites, oranges, and greys. These weavings will be displayed near our Starry Night inspired landscapes.
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My work is currently displayed at the Menomonie Public Library for the Month of January 2023. From Left to right; Victorian Painted Lady inspired Ripsmatta woven rug, Kept embroidered handkerchiefs, Princess and the Pea II, assemblage.
Always a favorite lesson of mine. When we return from break I need a go-to lesson. Christmas vacation is less vacation and all about the traditions. The food, the presents, the games, the memories.. There is very little relaxing and that is ok. We come back to school and thankful every year I have a lesson I can depend on. Who doesn't get excited over the idea of decorating a cake? The years I love this lesson best is when it is tied to the King Cake tradition of New Orleans and Epiphany.
Weaving is such an amazing thing to teach students. It has so much value and so many connections to the world we live in and to our past. We wear clothes, we are surrounded by cloth (the majority is knit), but to understand where fabric comes from, how it is made, how much and how many steps goes into things that surround us, we become enriched and more grateful for them. In the past few weeks I have been mustering the courage to attempt weaving on looms with my students in K-8. It is definitely a massive undertaking. After a very challenging school year in 2021, taking on "not your ordinary art room" projects seems daunting. That being said, with the promise of space to accomplish the task, I decided it was best to share my gift. I know the students will enjoy learning this skill and craft. I know that it will be memorable and I know that they will continue to ask, "when can we weave again?" Prayers that I survive, "Mrs. Buss it's tangled!!!" in chorus seconds after they are handed the shuttle. I am setting up seven looms for my K-8 students. My largest class is 14 and best hopes, with help, have them work in pairs. I had a hard time deciding what the end product would be. I want a collaborative woven piece for school. So I went with the safe bet of rainbow. Each loom will be one color. This is the space in which I need in addition to my art room to set the looms up. This was my art room two years ago. At that time I taught K-8, although we had forty less students. I was also teaching 2nd grade. This year I teach in addition to art, social studies to grades K-3. I also teach art to grades K-8. This tiny room sees a lot of educational traffic. Not pictured is the addition of all the social studies materials and all the extras I acquired to make our art program glimmer. Stay tuned for the weaving. I think most students are going to love this special lesson.
In First, Second and Third grade we started our study of Paddle to the Sea, written by Holling Clancy Holling. After reading the first two chapters students started planning for carving a canoe out of soap. In our second lesson students took their plans and experimented with how soap carves. Our Principal Mr. Buss joined us for the first grader’s carving lesson on Friday afternoon. The students were eager to show their work to him and he shared his work with them. Mr. Buss Carving with First graders. Mr. Buss' creation.
In Fourth grade, students were requested to create an ornament for the State Capitol Tree in Madison. Our fourth grade class will proudly represent St Paul’s at the Wisconsin Capitol with fish woven ornaments. These ornaments utilized a recycled map to represent the vast waterways of Wisconsin. These woven fish echo the Swedish woven hearts seen at Christmastime. Woven fish are a part of Pacific Polynesian culture. Students are also learning about the many cultures that are a part of our state and their immigrant ancestors. We read Matthew 15:32-38 and talked about how the Greeks offered safe harbor to Christians. The fish was a symbol to let them know they could be kept safe from the Romans. These fish tie together tradition and culture and represent Wisconsin and our abundant waterways. This week students in all grades have a fresh start and a new “perspective” in drawing. Continuing our technical skills and studies K-4th graders learned how to draw a one point perspective drawing. In grade 5-8 students learned to draw a two point perspective. Perspective is “a representation of solid objects on a two-dimensional surface so as to give the right impression of their height, width, depth, and position in relation to each other when viewed from a particular point.” And that's a lot of words! I explained that we are making magic because we are making a 2D piece of paper “look” 3D. Armed with pencils and rulers, students created 3 dimensional drawings. In order to create these spaces we needed to define horizon line or skyline, which is the line that divided the land from the sky.
Students created hue family self portraits. We looked to the artist Frida Kahlo and her many self portraits. They were limited to two color and a variety of them; red/orange, orange/yellow, yellow/green, green/blue, or purple/violet. The project consisted of two weeks of lessons and three hours of taping. The end result was spectacular!
Students looked to the artist Marc Chagall and we discussed the America Windows at the Chicago Art Institute. In the lower grades K-2 we made contact paper "stained glass". In grades 2-8 students are using picture frames to create a "stained glass".
This past school 2021-22 year was intense! I continued to teach art 1-8th grades but in tandem with a full 2nd grade classroom. This year my hope is share more as I will be focusing on teaching art full time, so thankful for a classroom experience and embracing the switch back to art.
Our first lesson in art was based on the book The Dot, By Peter Reynolds. Older students got the “cliff notes” version. In the book, a girl is encouraged to make art by her teacher and the girl passes that encouragement and kindness on to a little boy giving him courage to create with the God-given creative use of their hands. Students in K-8 art, teachers, and staff created “Fiber Dots” for a collaborative artwork. A collaboration is the action of working with someone to produce or create something. This collection of “Fiber Dots”represents the uniqueness of each student, teacher, or staff member, working together (collaboration), and hope and promise for this new 2022-23 school year. I am tying the dots to rug hooking mesh to compile the collection. It represents the uniqueness of each student, teacher, or staff member, working together (collaboration), and hope for this new school year. Three key Bible verses came to mind in reference to the book. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing." 1 Corinthians 16:13 "Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong." Psalm 90:17 "May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us-- yes, establish the work of our hands." |
AuthorI have a passion for the visual arts and love sharing it with others. I have enjoyed teaching all ages and love to incorporate art history and traditional disciplines as well as innovative ideas. Art is vital to who I am as a creator and educator. Archives
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