Cumberland University: 3-D Design

Here are the pieces created in my 3-D Design class at Cumberland University. It was a cardboard 3-D Relief project.  The students were to focus on PEOPLE, PLACE, THING, EVENT that was meaningful in their life. The variety of subject & style makes my heart incredibly happy.  My students come from extremely different "art" backgrounds...and two of them are actually English majors.  I am really looking forward to our future projects!!

Tweaking An Old Project...

We all have projects that we do every year.  Sometimes it is because that is what's in our curriculum...and sometimes it is because the skill is needed & the project is good!  However, after you've been teaching for almost 20 yrs...some project begin getting a bit stale.  Thank goodness for Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and blogs....RIGHT!!!  I do like to be an innovator though & not just rely on the internet.  I like re-imagine a project based on the needs of my students & the skills I'm really wanting to make sure they have before leaving me to go to middle school.  

In 4th grade we've had Clay Facades as part of our curriculum...pretty much forever.  It is a great lesson that can go in so many different directions according to students interests & units being taught.  However...I was bored with them.  If I'm bored...than my students are not going to be super excited either.  So what exactly was I trying to get across with this lesson?  

Structure.  Purpose.  Attaching.

  Addition.  Subtraction.  Craftsmanship.  

So what/how could I teach those ideas in a re-imagined way.  I thought about interior/exterior structures.  I thought about my students need for more art history.  I thought about units that would carry over ideas for painting, clay, collage, and drawing.  

Put that in the blender and set it on high!

The past two years my students have studied an artist as part of a unit, and created multiple projects based off of that inspiration.  For the clay lesson this year...they were to use Egyptian Curtain by Matisse as inspiration.  We looked at different types of curtains, discussed what would go on a table, and talked about what could be outside the window.  We looked at the structure of windows and how they are put together.  Then they created their wall hangings in 3-D Relief form...having to add, subtract, and draw in the clay to create their image.  I love them!  

Last Year We Were Inspired By Monet

Experimenting With New Projects: Teacher Examples

I love to try out new ideas...new projects!  I get bored doing the same ol' same ol' !!!!  Having student teachers allows me the chance to experiment....either because my student teacher is bringing new ideas that I'd like to try, during our time ideas get sparked for new projects or new ways to try old projects, or I see something on blogs/Pinterest that I want to see if they'd work in my room.  Here are my latest experiments in the laboratory of Mr. E!!

This was a Pinterest find.  I used acrylic..and then a tempera varnish over top of it to help the paint from getting scratched off.  I warn you...this project is extremely labor intensive!  If you were working with middle/high school...they could do the cutting, but I do not feel that the earlier elementary ages would do the best at cutting the milk jug down.  We're doing this with 2nd grade...and are excited about the end result.  Hopefully worth all the work. The students started this week...so pictures of their work coming soon.

My third graders are creating collagraphs.  As I was observing my student teacher...I started cutting some of the left over cereal boxes.  I thought..."Wonder what it would be like to paint it black(tempera) & then use oil pastels on top?!?!"  Here is the answer.  I really like the look.  We're going to try it...stay tuned.

Our 4th graders have been working on an architecture unit this nine weeks. We went from 2 point perspective...to the clay facades...and now this.  We used St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow as our inspiration.  This project has many components.  If you venture to try this...give yourself two class times.  (TIP: You'll need to have them start the class with their watercolor sky to allow it time to dry.)

In cutting the milk jugs for the mask project...I've been contemplating what I could use the rest of the jug for?!?!  After cutting the back half off...I threw it down on the table on top of a book I was looking at.  I noticed I could easily see through the milk jug , and thought..."hmm...monoprinting?"  I found a section that was flat and cut that out.  After drawing a Koi in Sharpie...I placed the milk jug on top & used water soluble oil pastels to color it..finishing it off with black to define the shape.  I sprayed the paper with water..and then pressed the milk jug onto the surface.   In the picture...bottom left is drawing in sharpie...top middle is the piece of milk jug with oil pastel ...bottom right is the monoprint.  

(TIP: Wash off the milk jug piece when you are finished & you can use it again and again!)

Louise Nevelson Inspired: Day 2

Here are some of the Nevelson projects after they were painting.  Pink is a horrible color to photograph!!!! 

If I get them displayed together...I'll post a picture.  Still working out the details on that one.  

Louise Nevelson Inspired: 4th Grade

A sneak peek at day 1 of our Louise Nevelson inspired project! 

Stay tuned! 

Bottle Cap Mural: COMPLETE!!!!!!

I arrived at school before 7 this morning so I could "install" the mural before the Mayor came.  My amazing friend who cut & base coated the wood also drilled holes along the sides of each board.  I was able to wire the panels together once I leveled them out in the mulch.  The response to the project was AMAZING & IMMEDIATE !!  As I was wiring it together.... people slowed down & yelled out their car windows telling me how awesome it looked.  I had students & parents coming to take pictures before I was even finished! Our school secretary snap a picture with her iPhone and uploaded it to Facebook before she stepped foot in the school.   I hope that it can stand up to the weather & children(I have a fear of kids picking the lids off!).  I have plans for bottle cap murals inside the school too....but it is going to be awhile before I can replenish the supply!

Spring Collage Go 3-D

This is day one of our 3-D Relief Collage flowers!  I think they are turning out pretty amazing.  The kids LOVE poppin' the flowers up & learning new techniques to create the reliefs.  The challenge of this be a 2 day project is that the students tend to overwork the picture on day 2.  That being said, it is a good challenge for students to face...don't all artists have to find that line of when a piece is "done". 

1st Grade Art Show Work

I did a couple different lessons with first grade. The flowers are an attempt to have my students understand the difference between 2-d & 3-d. We looked at different examples of 3-d reliefs. I feel they did a bang up job on the flower pieces!! The other is based off of Egyptian Curtain by Henri Matisse. The students used a piece of textile print paper & construction paper crayons on black construction paper. Some are truly amazing!!