Middle School Art

Paperclay and Paper Textures
The class used air dry clay to make different creatures.  When they were dry, the idea was to create texture through paper.  Cutting, ripping, rolling and dicing created the textures that were needed to bring their creations to life!!

Toilet paper Food.
In making these - we found that it worked best to spray down the TP, rather than dunk it.  This allowed the structure of the TP to stain tact as we sculpted it into different forms.

Great project, the kids loved it!!!!





Introduction to Charcoal.

 I led the kids through a drawing of a dragon eye:

 

-and asked that they use charcoal.  The, "I could never draw that!!" gave way to, "Oh my gosh, this looks so goood!!  This is the best drawing I have ever done!!!"  Ssssh, don't tell them they learned how to use charcoal through the process!!! 

Artists are Designers
Middle school students + clay+assignment - "make a container "= genius

Artists are Designers
We started the class with a drawing lesson- they each took a knife, fork, or spoon and drew it- paying attention to value, size relationships.  They were then asked to design new flatware- taht incorporated design and function.  There were a host of materials for them to use, tin foil, ribbons, sticks, stickers, glue, etc.  They always amaze with with their ingenuity!

Artists Are Fashion Designers!!
Last week we started a fashion unit- in our first assignment, I taught the kids about the human form and we practiced drawing.  In order for the students to concentrate fully on design, and not about drawing- I gave each of them a silhouette of a female form to trace.
The assignment was fun...I asked them top pour through nature books....on animals.. flowers, reptiles and mammals - all provided for them--- and design outfits based on the designs found in nature.  The students seemed to enjoy the creative process.

The following week, I had them make 3 dimensional paper dolls out of old cardboard and design clothes from scraps that I provided.

Draw Your Shoes!
In our first Unit, we looked at artists as storytellers....through a visual picture, the kids were asked to draw their shoes, that would tell a story...who are they?  What do they like to do?  I am always amazed by their compositions, by their color and by their efforts!

Value and 3-Dimension
My middle-schoolers had a Unit on value and 3-dimensions.  With , an ever hopeful eye towards snowfall, we broke down a snowman into its essential parts, and then made a collage...

First, we constructed the snowman, using the blue paper as the middle value....

Then we focused in on small parts of the snowman, magnifying it, paying attention to composition and intriguing placement on the small squares.  The colored paper, also, became the middle value for their magnified images...

Altered shoes

Before Christmas Break - we finished up our unit on 3-dimensions with altered shoes.  The idea was that they were to bring in things that reflect who they are, in this moment.  Sort of capturing a snapshot of this moment in time.  For me, as a mom, it was significant that they were embellishing adult shoes - these young ladies would carry their middle school hearts, experiences and loves into their young adulthood and - eventually, into their adulthood.