Something New

I am not going to sugar-coat it; this first week back from break has been rough. Each morning has been a little harder than the one before to get out of bed and be energized for school. Luckily I have some of the best students out there to help me bear with the transition back to limited bathroom breaks and the rush that occurs as we tie things up before the end of the term. 

Because we only have two more weeks before exams, it is important to finish up loose ends and get one last project in there before we say our final goodbyes. Here is what we have been working on this week and some thoughts on the eve before the announcement of West Central Michigan Scholastic Awards:

Empty Bowls

I used Holiday Break as a perfect opportunity to catch up on firing our bowls that were glazed in preparation for our annual Empty Bowls event. This year will mark the 9th year of the event and we are planning to try some new things in hopes to keep it fresh and the community involved. What stays the same is how much students love the fact we use clay on the first day of class to make these pieces and how impressed I am with their ability to see the connection art can have to impacting others in a positive way. Several students already brought in donations so they could claim their bowl!

Here are a few of the finished bowls and thoughts from my students on the experience. You can see the full gallery here. 

Clara: Empty Bowls is a very nice project that is helping our community. In empty bowls, people donate canned foods to receive a bowl and the food is later donated. Not only does this give people pieces of art made by students it also gives the hungry food.

Mwansa: his was a good experience making the bowls because it made me think about how some people don't know when their next meal will come, and It makes me want to do something nice for the community. One way we are helping with empty bowls is, by doing this people donate money to the foundation, and they community enjoys a good time with the food and music.

Alexis: In my art piece, I made a bowl that says be happy on the inside, and has a rainbow city on the outside of the bowl. This art piece is more than just a bowl. This bowl will be one of many that will be used for the less fortunate and people who don't know where their next meal will come from. These bowls will help our community by bringing everyone together in a community and to help the needy. This is the reason we make the bowls. Its to help our community.

Porter: This empty bowls brings the community together because the bowls are given away if you bring a thing of canned food. Then after all of the canned food is collected they donate them to a food bank. The bowls that the students created give other kids in need that aren't fortunate. We are helping our community and bringing our society by giving to kids that aren't as fortunate. Empty bowls is a create way to donate goods, and bring our community together

Something Old

Toby started sketching out ideas on how to reimagine his landscape from earlier this year before beginning his final project.

For our final project of the semester, students have been given the theme "Something Old, Something New." This theme challenges them to look through their Artsonia portfolio (some students could go back to works from 1st grade) and select a work to reimagine. 

Students were asked to think about how they might use a different media to interpret the previous work, or switch up the composition, or even use a similar media, but focus on showing new skills and growth in the way it is used. 

Before getting to work on their sketches, students also viewed the work by Takashi Murakami. He is influenced by the past and present and discusses this merging of ideas in this video, which students viewed. 

Students then worked in their sketchbooks, conferenced with each other, and then presented ideas to me before finally diving into their final works. We will be finishing up this project next week before we move onto Final Exam prep, but here are some snapshots of work in progress so far: 

​Scholastic Thoughts

Tomorrow Kendall College of Art and Design will post the outcome of this year's West Central Michigan Regional Scholastic Awards. Regardless of what happens, this is the most excited I have been for a result since I started entering student work in 2008. I am super proud of our kids either way and look forward to sharing the news of the results tomorrow. If you are antsy, like me, and do not want to wait for a post, you can always go here at noon tomorrow and see for yourself! 

I want to wish all of my Art Teacher friends much luck as they await their students' results, too! If your students are recognized this year, please do share the results!