Art 1 Slab Boxes

The boxes are out of the kiln! It's always so exciting to see them shiny and finished! The students are excited to bring them home, but I am going to display them until winter break. :)

NorthPrize Piece finds new home!

Thanks to Caitlyn, Marleigh, and Haley for letting their NorthPrize piece become part of the art room!

I had the same quote in this location a few years ago, but it disappeared one summer. Now, I'm glad it disappeared because this one looks even better!

Advanced Art Clay

The Advanced Art students are creating Japanese style lanterns that reveal their inner and outer self. They are constructing these using the soft slab technique. Students are also working on the potter's wheel! Check back for more pictures!

Art 1 Clay!

Art 1 students are halfway through the clay unit. They are finishing sgraffito story bowls and preparing clay for slab boxes with lids. Students learned the technique of sgraffito - scratching away the top layer to reveal a contrasting layer - and are using it illustrate a story from their lives on a slab bowl. I will post pictures of the finished bowls when they come out of the kiln!

11/12/14 - Here is a picture of some completed sgraffito bowls!

Peace Posters

Advanced Art students are working on entries for the Lions International Peace Poster Contest - no this doesn't count as a contest entry because it is an assignment. :) Students are creating posters based on this year's theme - peace, love, and understanding - using no words, letters or numbers as the poster needs to be understood by the entire world. Check out the contest and past winners here - http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/our-work/youth-programs/peace-poster-contest/index.php?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=august2012newswire 

Entries are due Monday (11/3) and will be judged by the Rockford chapter of the Lions Club. The winning poster will go on to the regional contest and possibly state, national, and world!

Here are some pictures of the students hard at work on their posters!

11/3/14

Here are some of the completed posters! They headed out to the local competition today! Good luck!

Mixed Media Still Life

After learning how to shade basic forms, the Art 1 students were challenged to apply their shading and composition skills on a more complicated still life. Students created viewfinders to help them choose an interesting composition. Here are some pictures of their works in progress.

NorthPrize 2014

The entries for NorthPrize are up in the front lobby showcase! Advanced Art students were required to write an artist proposal and conference with me about their intended project before they began working on it. They each created their piece of artwork and wrote an artist statement to accompany it. The pieces will remain anonymous during the voting period. Voting will take place at lunch and during conferences October 14-23. The winner will be announced on Friday, October 25th. After the winner has been announced, artist biographies will be posted to show who made each piece.

Advanced Art at ArtPrize 2014!

We had a great time at ArtPrize yesterday - the rain held off for us! We were able to see 17 of the top 20 pieces and a lot of other art. Today in class we had a great discussion about what's in the top 20, what shouldn't be in the top 20, what should have been in the top 20, and who should win ArtPrize. It was really great to hear the thoughts of these smart young artists.

Here are a few pictures from our field trip!

Art 1 Contour

The Art 1 class has been working on contour line. A contour line defines the edges and details of an object. We started with blind and modified contour drawings where the students cannot look at the paper while drawing - they focus on the object they are drawing instead. This taught students how to draw what they see, not what they think they see. As a final contour line project, students drew their shoes. The shoes are on display in the athletic foyer right now.

shoes drawn by Jessica, Sawyer, Elise, and Raven

Next, students took their contour lines and made them 3D! Students created contour wire sculptures of objects that are meaningful to them. Students will also write artist statements about their wire sculptures. The sculptures and statements will be on display during conferences.

Grace G.

Advanced Art Contour Self Portraits

Advanced Art students are pushing the limits of contour! For their self-portraits, students started by taping paper to the floor and and a sharpie to a yardstick. They observed their faces in a mirror and drew using contour technique on the floor! Here are some pictures!

 Next, students traced their self-portraits onto vellum and collaged tissue paper onto them. They were not allowed to use scissors for this part. Finally, students retraced their drawing or flipped the vellum over and wrote about themselves on their portraits. Here are some pictures of students finishing their portraits. They wind up being much more expressive and personal than many of their more traditional self-portraits.

These self-portraits will be on display in the athletic foyer soon!