Rain Drops Are Falling On Our Heads

The Kindergarteners have been creating art about weather. 

This week they drew self-portraits of themselves in the rain.  Then they used bingo dotters to add brightly colored rain drops.

Picasso Masks

I finally finished firing all the clay masks from 4th grade, so today the students were able to complete them.  They added hair and other embellishments to their clay pieces, which were inspired by Picasso's mixed up portraits. 

Below are some images I forgot to post earlier from when the 2nd graders were creating artwork about families.  They made story quilts after reading the book Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold.  Each of their story quilts tells about an event that happened with their families.

 Today the second graders in Mrs. Carter's class made sketches in preparation for next week's clay project.  We will be creating imaginary space bugs from clay, so today they sketched ideas for their pieces.  These are just simple drawings from their sketchbooks, but they very filled with imaginative ideas.

 The Kindergartners created some beautiful faux stained glass for our library windows.  We looked at the work of Henri Matisse and the way he uses organic leaf shapes in his work.  Students chose to use either warm or cool colors for their stained glass. (This idea was adapted from an article in the Arts and Activities magazine).

Drip, Drop, Splat!

Raindrops are falling into our artwork in Kindergarten.  We've been creating artwork related to weather.  This week students are creating abstract raindrop collages using chalk and paper.  I love the free lines they drew in the background before gluing the drops on top and the way the bright colors create a cheerful mood.  Plus this was a perfect opportunity for the kinders to keep practicing their cutting skills.  I love the results!  (Can I please have one to hang in my house?!) 

The fifth graders have started a unit on Op Art.  We are looking at the ways artists create optical illusions through repetition of lines, shapes, and colors.  They created animals and their habitats using paper printed with optical illusions.  Take a look at their great work, but don't stare too long or your eyes will start to hurt!

3rd and 4th Grade Artwork

The 3rd graders have been learning about the artwork of Romare Bearden, a collage artist.  The students created their own self portrait collages using magazines. 

In 4th grade we've just finished a unit on Picasso.  We learned about Cubism and the Blue Period.  Students created several Picasso inspired pieces, including some crazy clay masks inspired by Picasso's mixed up faces.  Our clay pieces are in the kiln or on the way to be fired.  Today we started a new unit on circles.  We looked at various ways that circles are used in artwork.  Then we started making our own circles that show radial symmetry.  They are inspired by round stained glass windows.  And the best part is that we're using shrink plastic!  The students started coloring their circles today.  Next week the circles will be ready for the oven.  Once they bake, they reduce in size by 50%!  Stay tuned for the finished product. 

Our shrink art circles with radial symmetry

Here are some of our cubist animals.  Can you identify our complimentary color schemes in each one?