Advanced Art T-shirts

Advanced Art students are silk-screening superman-themed NRMS t-shirts at lunch! Students created logos and made the silk screen. Money raised will be used to buy special art supplies and fund art field trips.

silk screen: designed and created by Arden

silk screening

Art 1 Sgraffito Bowls

The sgraffito bowls have come out of the kiln! Art 1 students learned how to throw slabs and decorate with sgraffito. We studied Greek, Native American, and Central American clay pieces and learned about the narrative purpose these pieces served. Students then created bowls that tell stories from their lives; for example; their first trip to Starbucks, sneaking down to the kitchen for midnight ice cream, or learning to play the violin. The bowls will be in the showcase until Winter Break. Many will be going home to be holiday gifts!

NorthPrize 2013

We are in the middle of NorthPrize voting! Each Advanced Art student submitted a proposal for their project, created a unique project, and wrote an artist statement. Students, teachers, and parents are voting at lunch and conferences through this Friday.

The pieces are currently anonymous to keep the voting fair.

The winner will be announced Monday (10/28).

 Artist biographies will be posted next to pieces as well.

 The winning artist will receive a large delivery pizza of their choosing at lunch!

Come check out NorthPrize and cast your vote!

Art One Wire Sculptures

Art 1 students took contour lines and made them 3D! Students used one continuous piece of wire to sculpt something meaningful to them. They quickly learned that wire looks deceptively simple. These one line sculptures were quite challenging to create! Students learned about artist statements and wrote one about their finished sculpture, telling the viewer why and how they made their sculpture.

Cat and Dog by Hailey

Lizard by Matt

Elephants by Mia

Contour Self Portraits

The Advanced Art self-portraits are finished and on display (well, most are finished...) in the athletic foyer. Students started these with a sharpie on the end of a yardstick and a paper taped to the floor! (See post from 9/26) They are finished with collaged tissue paper and journaling. Come and check out these beautiful portraits!

Avery

Mallory

Megan

Advanced Art(Prize) Field Trip

We had a fantastic day for our trip to ArtPrize last Wednesday! The weather was beautiful, we saw a lot of great art, and the Advanced Art students from NRMS and ERMS had a chance to meet each other.

We were able to see all of the top 10. We also enjoyed a docent-led tour of the GRAM before it opened and visited the Harris Building and Calvin College's 106 Gallery. At the Harris Building, we were fortunate enough to meet the artist of a large 3D painting. He talked to us and showed us a video of his process.

Back in the classroom, we had wonderful discussions about what was in the top 10 and what should (and shouldn't!) have been in the top 10. We used this field trip to launch NorthPrize - an ArtPrize style competition that will be appearing in the front showcase next week!

 Ryan Petersen talking to the students. His artwork, Oasis, is below

Art 1 Shoes

Art 1 students are also using contour - they are drawing their shoes! Check out the beautiful results. Students drew shoes as part of their first day sketchbook assignment - they were all really surprised by how much their drawing has improved in 4 weeks!

 Collin

 Nikki

Connor

Advanced Art Self-Portraits

The Advanced Art students are creating self-portraits! But, not the kind of self-portrait they are used to creating! Using modified contour (a skill they learned in Art 1), they are drawing themselves with a marker taped to the end of a yardstick! This was quite frustrating for this group of perfectionists, but the results are wonderful!

Students will go on to collage tissue paper over the portraits and write information about themselves on them - more pictures coming soon!

Well, the new school year is underway, and we are off to a great start!

The art 1 students have created paper boxes decorated in the style of Japanese Notan designs and are now beginning contour drawing. A contour line defines the edges and details of an object. Today, students learned that they already know how to draw - they have to learn how to see! Ask them about it!

Advanced Art students have tiles waiting for the kiln. The tiles will be hung on the wall of the art department - they will be a permanent part of this space! They have begun creating the digital portfolio which will show off their amazing work and prove that they are ready for Design 2 next year. They are also working with contour - hands right now, and some very personal self-portraits next week! Check back for pictures!

Also, the Advanced Art students will be heading to ArtPrize on October 2nd. Make sure permission slips are in by October 1st! We will see the top 10 and possibly my entry (assuming it doesn't make top 10;).

Grid Self-Portraits

The Art 2 students created these self-portraits using grid enlargement. They started with an 8x10 photo of themselves and blew it up on a 24x30 piece of cardboard. They used mixed media to complete the portraits and incorporated items that represent them in some way. Come and check them out in the front lobby showcase!

Advanced Art Field Trip!

Last Wednesday, the Advanced Art students took a field trip to downtown Rockford to create plein aire watercolor paintings. We had a great day - the weather was beautiful, and the students created some great paintings. What a wonderful way to celebrate their time in the NRMS art department. I sure will miss these young artists next year!

Mixed Media Still Life

The Art 1 still lifes are finished! Students were required to use a minimum of 3 different media to complete their still life. The negative space was cut away, and the remaining positive space was glued to construction paper. These still lifes will soon be on display in the gym lobby!

Secret Portraits

Art 2 students completed 15 tiny portraits over the course of a week. They were able to capture classmates, friends, teachers, and even a few celebrities. Come and check them out in the showcase outside the art room - you might even find yourself!

Art 1 Still Life

Art 1 students are creating mixed media still lifes of children's toys (shhh! Don't tell my son where his sand toys went!) We are focusing on composition (the way you fill the space) with this assignment. Students are expected to choose a focal point and eyepath and be conscious of their negative space.