February 26, 2009

Streams of colored india ink, watercolor, and tempera littered the tables of the art room this afternoon as students began their last piece, the Profile Project. Actually, Ms. Sapelly allowed them to trace either their facial profiles, or their shoes (or both).

As usual, Ms. Sapelly set up some guidelines, but once she showed her examples, the creative juices flew...about a year ago, she experimented with ink washes, acrylic, and acrylic mediums and textures. The students loved the pieces, and rather than simply cut out and use her colorful watercolor papers, they opted to make their own!

Violets, pinks, blacks...ink everywhere...others did use Ms. Sapelly's 'samples,' and made beautiful sihlouttes with their own painted backgrounds....

A fast furious fun and intense class...

February 24, 2009

Today, we wrapped up the Admiring Hands project! Like the Postcard Project, we all sat around the long rectangular tables while discussing individual works. Some students volunteered to 'be first,' while others refused to participate...but in the end, all was fine, and the uncomfortable students shared with all their unique, sensitive mixed-media pieces...

Overall, everyone really liked the freedom of choosing what and who to include in their 'hands.' One student wanted more variety of materials, and I agreed. Also, all agreed that a better brand of glue stick would help in their collage efforts.

Inspiration came from parents, siblings, other Gilmore teachers (including yours truly), friends, and boyfriends or crushes. The sheer variety and style of work astounds me. And the amount, too. "A perfect project," the students quipped.

I wish all classes could be so satisfying to both student and teacher. :)

February (Friday the) 13,2009

An eerily quiet class. Even Mr. Fontinha's 'countdown to vacation' timer, displayed on the large classroom screen, failed to deter students from the task at hand...Knitters, crocheters, and those sitting at computers-purportedly searching for images but really playing solitaire-felt unfazed by the impending week off.

And then, in a blink, they disappeared, dispersed for seven days....

February 11, 2009

Creative and energetic bedlam reigned in the classroom, help by the presence of three eighth grade males. Spring paid us a brief but welcomed visit, so we all took full advantage of it, and opened windows for the first time in months. Blue, red, and pink felted hands adorned endless sheets of white watercolor paper. Beads were glued and tossed around the room. Some singing could be heard. Intense students, with heads bent over their first knitted or crocheted piece, worked quietly...one of them male....

A spectacular hour.

February 9,2009

Ms. Conely warned me that, because of the full moon, the students were 'extra energetic.' They certainly were, but more hand projects/drawings were finished fast and furious, complete with images of Freddy Kreuger, strands of pink thread, more beads, and pink felted stars...despite the bedlam, intense work invaded the room.

In art, I find energy can be harnessed in creative, rather than destructive ways...today, the level was "off of the charts," but in the exuberant positive direction.

February 5, 2009

Today, Ms. Sapelly observed a natural rhythm of the class, which included more gluing of beads, sparkling yarn, and marled variegated chenille onto sheets of white watercolor paper. A discussion about the differences between the games of pool and billiards began while one student finished his project, devoted to pool, adding a pencil wrapped in a neutral fabric that acted as a pool stick. A few students sat at the computers, intently looking for evidence of any differences between the two terms.

Hands projects are completed, new ones begun as Ms. Sapelly is constantly asked, "Can I have another sheet of paper?"...Thank you to Ms. Lobo for letting us use some of her enormous stash of colored felt...

A student composed a group of hands around the edges of the paper, colored in the 'negative' space surrounding them, revealing a 'star' shape in the center. A beautiful, powerful graphic image in its purity, its simplicity..

February 3, 2009

A long thin narrow string of knitting becomes a streamer. A white quilted sample piece Ms. Sapelly did for a project last year becomes the a cover of a sketch pad...filled with pink letters, wrapped with spakling yarn.

We run out of supplies, and Ms. Sapelly writes a shopping list: glue sticks, solvey, rhinestones....Class was well worth the treacherous drive through the snow storm.

January 30, 2009

Mr. Brewster's Documentary Film class was in evidence, taking some pretty amazing shots of students working, focusing on their hand movements. I sat with a group of male students who spoke passionately of Freddy Kreuger (one of their projects is beginning to resemble that notorious character's hands...in black and deep red wool yarn!) and Heath Ledger in the Dark Knight, a movie they urged me to see.

Hands included colors of the Irish flag, a pair of magnificent representational hands illustrated in pencil, and psychedelically colored hands that looked right out of Cream Disraeli Gears...or the Dukes of Stratosphere...depending on your music 'era.'