8th grade students requested to complete a papier mache project. I was hesitant at first because during this time of the school year, the classrooms can get quite humid and that is not helpful for papier mache to dry properly. I was nervous they would work so hard on their project, only to have it ruined from molding. We took a chance anyway and I am sure glad we did! These are the best papier mache projects I have seen my students produce! Great job 8th grade!
7th Grade students studied mandalas. Mandalas are pieces of artwork that display radial symmetry. Mandalas come to us from Buddhist and Hindu culture and created by monks. We looked at several examples and discussed a brief history of mandalas. Students then put their radial symmetry skills to the test and created their own mandala.
6th grade students explored the popular art form of zentangle. Zentangles are everywhere these days, now that adult coloring books are becoming so popular. 6th grade students were given the task of creating their own zentangles in the form of hair on a face selected from our large collage magazine collection. Upon completion, students had the choice of coloring their project or leaving it as is. Some students had such extremely detailed zentangles that it was nearly impossible to color them without taking away all of the detail!
7th grade students were given the task of improving upon a current state license plate. The state they chose was entirely up to them. Once they had their state picked out, they could change the plate entirely based upon their prefrence or they could keep it the same but perhaps personalize it to say something of importance to them. Students also wrote a short summary of the choices they made for this project.
6th grade students revisited the art and characteristics of Pop Art. Our first look at Pop Art focused on a project inspired by Roy Lichtenstein. This time around, we focused on the artwork of Andy Warhol. Warhol is famous for his colorful Campbell's soup can paintings, among others. 6th grade artists were given the task of creating their own soup. We discussed marketing and why is it important to create a product that catches the public's eye. Students first drew a detailed sketch of their new product and then created a 3-dimensional prototype.
7th grade students studied the artist John James Audobon. Audobon is known world wide for his detailed, life-size drawings of the Birds of America. Since Audobon studied birds, 7th grade students picked an animal of their choice to use for this project. Once they had decided on their animal, they used the technique of zentangle to fill them in! Zentangle is becoming very popular with the increase in interest of adult coloring books!
7th grade students studied artist/architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Frank Lloyd Wright is a relatively famous name in the architecture world and even has homes in our area. The students were surprised to learn of houses in Peoria, IL that were designed by him. He is known for organic architecture, or having his homes connect/blend with nature. 7th grade students took this term and applied it to a tree house. They were the architect and the details/design were strictly up to them. We concentrated and emphasized using VALUE with this project! The media used was colored pencils.
6th graders explored the art form of pointillism. We looked at artist Georges Seurat, who is famous for his pointillism technique. Students then created a depiction of an animal using pointillism. They chose to use a variety of media to finish their projects! They all turned out great!
A calligram is a picture made completely out of words! 7th grade tried their hand at this technique and they turned out awesome! Check them out!
7th grade students briefly studied Aboriginal artwork. We looked at the characteristics of Aboriginal artwork: dots, lines, animals. Students then created their own version of Aboriginal artwork using tempera paint.
|