Day One (week 2): The Field

Onto week 2... we have gained a few new artists! Week 1 focused on The Body (hands, personalities, form...). Week 2 is about The Field. The space around us, journeys and paths, and our environments.

Beginning with the idea of a journey and landmarks, the children focused in yoga and creative writing to spur on their adventures.  Using local maps, the artists created collages that served as as the base for their journey paintings. After using watercolors, found objects were given meaning as they each represented landmarks of their imagined journey.

Story Quilts

First graders spent time talking about the different purposes of quilt-making. After creating a symmetric foundation of fabric, each quilter embellished his/her fabric with ribbons and buttons. During the subsequent classes, students discussed symbolism found in colors and shapes in the quilts. We looked as some examples from the Freedom Quilts of the underground railroad. After the quilt was finished, each student wrote a short story based on the symbols of his/her quilt.

If I was a tree...

Inspired by the work of Tony Demura, students finished the statement: "If I was a tree...". Each student illustrated his/her idea using the media of his/her choice. The students were encouraged to take the perspective of how he/she would feel and see as a tree. Focus was planed on using their imagination and creating a unique image. (This was a project that I saw on http://newcityarts.blogspot.com/)

Not a Square!

After reading Perfect Square by Michael Hall (Author, Illustrator), each Kindergartener had to choose a colored square of previously painted paper. The assignment was to cut and/or rip up the square to create a new image. As the images developed, I went around and asked each artist to talk about his/her art and finish the sentence "I picked [chosen color] because..." . Although the dictation was spoken and then typed by me, I feel strongly that it is an important exercise for the students to begin early to reflect and talk about their artwork. This is a first step in later having the ability to reflect and to write about the process of art-making.