Month: April 2022

Material Research

Project 1: Creating abstract line drawings in response to sounds

For this first assignment, in order to familiarize students with abstract line work, they will be given a song to listen to and be asked to create a drawing in response to it. Students will be given pencil for this activity as well as construction paper to add other abstract shapes to their drawings.

Students work: the class listened to Great Gig in the Sky by Pink Floyd

Project 2: Abstract watercolor painting in response to a contemporary issue

Students will be asked to create an abstract work in response to a contemporary issue they feel passionate about. The paintings should not be representational, but rather emulate the feelings/ thoughts they have about the particular issue.

Student work: Anxiety and depression

Student work: Over consumption and living in excess

Student work: Greed, consumerism

Student work: Water pollution

Project 3: Collage using old magazines based on a chosen quote/song lyrics

Students will be asked to choose a particular quote or song lyrics that speak to them, then create a collage with represents that quote to them. They will also be able to incorporate paint into their collages if they choose to.

Student work: Chose the lyrics “living is easy with eyes closed”

Project 4: Sculpture in response to our digital world, and more specifically social media

Students will be asked to create a sculpture using corrugated cardboard. They can draw on the cardboard, paint on it, and even incorporate collage if they want to.

Student work: used triangles as building blocks for their sculpture. The sharp angles represent the difficulty our generation has with communication.

Project 5: Creating their own dream world

Students will use a combination of a landscape photo (nature or cityscape) and creating a sort of utopia through drawing and painting. The photo chosen will be replicated with a drawing, then later the dream world or utopia will be created as a foreground. Using a photo of reality in combination with a drawn/painted fantasy world will emulate the duality between the two. Corrugated cardboard may also be used in this project to combine 2D and 3D.

 

Extra Credit Talk – Perez and Crespo

This talk was extremely helpful in really understanding teaching from educator’s perspectives and experiences. What we need to know about post pandemic art classrooms is that things are constantly changing. Hearing what students really need, trying to meet those needs as teachers, and accommodating/adjusting our curriculum based on those needs is essential. Teaching should really be catered towards learners, which may seem obvious to us, but I feel that many teachers have a disconnect in this way at times. Really listening to students and valuing their thoughts and feelings is key. Crespo discussed how making students feel heard also applies to understanding cultural/ethnic holidays, practices, that are not our own.
I think Crespo’s example of cultural appropriation when it came to sugar skulls was brilliant. Students can learn about art from various cultures, which is an important thing to teach, but it doesn’t mean they have to go and make the same art in the same way. Crespo also gave a great example of how to make accommodations to lessons so discouraged learners find their place in the art classroom. Understanding their interests and allowing students to interpret assignments in ways they feel driven to is a great idea. Perez spoke about how she constantly reminds her students that their art is developing, and I think this is a brilliant way to get through to students. They shouldn’t feel ashamed that their work isn’t as “good” as the person next to them because everyone has their own way of creating and everyone is at their own level as well.
I really really enjoyed listening to this talk and I hope we can hear from other educators again! Hearing from their first hand experiences was extremely eye opening and I’m so happy I was able to join!

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