![]() Andy Goldsworthy, Rowan Leaves and Hole, 1987. One of my favorite artists that I first learned about from my early college years is Andy Goldsworthy, a born in 1956 in England. I love his impressive use of nature within nature. He uses the brilliance of nature to create a new experience. In many of his works he uses a circular placement of sticks, stones, leaves. In combination with the concept of a mandala we can all embrace what nature has to offer. In gathering things that surround us and rearranging them gives us a sense of beauty and importance. Mandalas have long since been a part of the human experience. From the ancient Minoan labyrinths, navajo mandalas, Tibetan monks, rosette windows of medieval cathedrals, and many other cultures, the placement and design in the round is as old as humankind.
A lot has been written on the subject of mandalas. Search for yourself! These are a few links I found informative:
https://www.invaluable.com/blog/what-is-a-mandala/ http://www.mandalaproject.org/What/Main.html https://artfulparent.com/mandalas-in-nature-mandala-art/
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This week we revisit the artist Elizabeth Catlett. She was known for her sculpture as well as her printmaking. We are going to create out own prints with our images we make on a styrofoam tray. First practice drawing in your sketchbook with a picture of your choice. We practice in our sketchbook because we want to try first, and get it even better the next time. So once we are confident that we know and have tried our pictures we can make our styrofoam print. (avoid writing/words, if you do it will have to be backward. So if you want to try go for it!) Using a blunt end of a paint brush and using pressure on the styrofoam create your picture. Make sure your dents are deep but you don't break or rip the tray. Once you have completed your "drawing" for your print, have your paper ready you are printing on, brush a layer of paint on your print (careful not to fill the grooves with too much paint), and press onto the paper, gently lift the paper from the styrofoam. Voila! MATERIALS
![]() INSPIRATION Elizabeth Catlett (April 15, 1915 – April 2, 2012) Catlett was an American and Mexican graphic artist and sculptor best known for her images of the African-American experience in the 20th century, which often focused on the female experience. She was born and raised in Washington, D.C. to parents working in education, and was the grandchild of freed slaves. It was difficult for a black woman in this time to pursue a career as a working artist. Catlett devoted much of her career to teaching. However, a fellowship awarded to her in 1946 allowed her to travel to Mexico City, where she worked with the Taller de Gráfica Popular for twenty years and became head of the sculpture department for the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas. In the 1950s, her main means of artistic expression shifted from print to sculpture, though she never gave up printing. The weaving of baskets is as old as the history of man. Traces of baskets have been found in the Egyptian pyramids, and woven basket liners have left their impressions inside the fragments of ancient pottery.As soon as humans were able to plait fibers together, they began to experiment with structures for woven containers. Baskets were needed as containers for everything imaginable- food, clothing, seeds, storage and transport. So how did baskets travel from one part of the world to another? With the explorers, of course. And this is how the various techniques of baskets also traveled to other parts of the world. As the explorers arrived in new lands, they traded goods. The goods were contained in baskets- thus, as the recipient of the goods looked over the basket, he/she then applied that technique to the materials of their own land. This explains how so many Asian techniques are found in European baskets, and how European techniques were then carried over to the Americas. How then may we take and make this craft our own? First we must learn the technique, the basics of vessel construction. Then with that knowledge we need to apply our creative mind. Materials Clothesline Yarn Scissors Darning needle Inspiration
Learn the technique. Once that has been mastered try to make a freeform basket or structure using the technique. What can you make a basket look like that it is not? Or choose a theme, color, texture.. |
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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