5th grade Pop Art

The 5th graders learned about the artist Andy Warhol and the style of art called "Pop Art.". Students looked at an everyday object - something unexpected as the subject of an art piece - and drew it realistically. I made 4 copies of their drawing. One copy had to be colored to look like the real object whereas the other 3 copies were to be completely abstract in color and design. Pop Art was about repetition of an object, bright unexpected colors and making everyday objects the subject of art.

3rd grade Molas

The third graders learned about a kind of art from Panama called Molas. Molas are layers of fabric sewn together as an appliqué for a shirt. Molas are made by the Kuna Indians in the San Blas islands off the coast of Panama. Usually Molas are animal designs sewn in layers of different colors.
We created our Molas by drawing an animal on colored paper,cutting it out and then glueing it on another color. When cut out again a border was left around the animal to see both colors. This was repeated until there was 5 layers. We glued the animal on black paper and decorated it with cut paper and hole punches.
**This project had a special meaning to me this year as my parents spent 2012 living in Panama. They brought me back a real mola which I shared with my 3rd graders.

1st grade elves!!

The first graders painted these elves right before winter break. They turned out great! I think these could be framed and hung year round!

4th grade clay tiles

The 4th graders learned about the life and work of the Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh. We drew both Sunflowers and Starry Night, two of his most famous works of art. Van Gogh used a lot of paint which created rich colors and immense texture. To recreate this kind of texture, the students worked with clay. Clay is an easy medium to use when teaching about how to create texture. The students rolled out slabs if clay and used a paper square template to cut out a square. Using the painting as well as their drawing, they drew either Starry Night or Sunflowers into the clay When fired we glazed them and then they were fired again. The results were fantastic and the kids learned how clay can be used to recreate Van Gogh's use if texture.

3rd grade clay leaves

The third graders rolled out a slab of clay and then used a leaf template to carve out their leaf. They drew details on to the clay leaf using a pencil, then placed the leaf in a styrofoam bowl lined with a damp paper towel. We let the leaf dry for a few days and then I took them out of the bowl to fire in the kiln. The clay leaf took on the shape of the styrofoam bowl as they dried. Once fired we glazed them, applied clear glaze and fired them again.
A special thanks goes out to our principal Mr. Hoffman who fixed the kiln. It broke in the middle of this project leaving some half fired leaves. Thank goodness he is Mr.Fix- it!! These leaves are gorgeous!

1st grade Matisse paintings

The First graders are learning about the artist Henri Matisse. We learned about still life paintings and the use of pattern in his work. The students drew a vase with a pattern on it sitting on a table. They added a bowl of fruit and then added a striped background. We discussed how to draw the stripes so it looks like they are behind the vase and bowl.
The entire drawing was outlined in black Sharpie marker and then we used watercolors to paint our picture. We discussed the proper way to use watercolors in small and large spaces. We also used patterns with colors. They turned out great!!!

1st grade Mondrian

The first graders learned about the artist Piet Mondrian. We glued black strips of paper down on white paper to make vertical and horizontal lines. These overlapping lines created squares and rectangles. Like Mondrian, we used the primary colors to color in some if the squares. This project was a review on line direction and an introduction to Primary Colors.