Week 8

LE continued their study of the elements of design by focusing on “form” this week.  With the help of Middle School, they formed the solar system out of yarn.  They wrapped yarn around a balloon to form a planet, then soaked the yarn covered balloon in glue.  When the glue completely dried we popped the balloon and saw how the yarn kept the form of the planet. This beautiful collaboration piece will be displayed in their classroom.

ME & UE participated in their second TPAC study unit with Steve West.  This week they created drum patterns for the song they wrote during their first lesson with Steve. 

ME & UE visited the Frist to see the exhibition of Carrie Mae Weems: Three Decades of Photography & Video.  “Carrie Mae Weems is a socially motivated artist whose works invite contemplation on issues surrounding race, gender and class. Increasingly, she has broadened her view to include global struggles for equality and justice.” MS will have the opportunity to see this exhibition at the end of the month. 

UE also had the exciting opportunity to make paper this week as they continue their study of the timeline of civilization.   They learned how the Chinese invented paper out of rags, hemp, China grass, etc in 105 AD.  Then in the mid 1700s in France, a man discovered wasps making paper out of wood.  Below is paper UE made 100% from a recycled wasp’s nest.   

 

Week 7

This week LE started their study of the 4th element of design, texture.  To align this texture study with their classroom study of the development of earth, they created multimedia art of volcanoes using paint, sand, construction paper, and tissue paper.

Volcano art by Anabel

ME practiced contour drawing with soft pastels using a fall inspired still life of gourds.

Gourds by Natalie

UE went  to see the Nashville Children Theatre’s performance of Sherlock Holmes.  This production is based on the original 1899 play  by William Gillette and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

MS expanded their study of blind contour drawing with a still life of their choice.

Still life by Rebecca

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Aftercare Art has been doing a study of portraits. This week they created  personality portraits out of collage.

 

Digital Art has been learning photo editing with  Adobe Photoshop Elements.  They have learned exposure correcting, color adjusting, as well as how to remove an unwanted object from the photograph.  Believe it or not, there was a light pole in the photograph below.

Photo by Brooks

Week 6

To continue their study of the elements of design, LE focused on shapes this week.  With the influence of the modern artist Reggie Laurent, they started with black paper and created beautiful multicolor art that explored shapes and reviewed their study of lines and color.

Shape art by Max

ME & UE will have the opportunity at the end of October to see the TPAC performance, Beyond the Bog Road. This multimedia concert’s sound and images portray  the desperate and daring tales of Irish immigrants’ journeys to and in America.  TPAC teaching artist, Steve West, has collaborated with the guides to come up with a study unit to help the students understand the music’s historical references and other world influences.  This week the students kicked off this study by writing verses of a song influenced by images of Ireland. 

UE also had the opportunity to see the Symphony performance, A Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra,  at the Schermerhorn this week. This performance is one of the best-known orchestral works ever written for students. The engaging and educational piece by Britten explored the tones, colors and dynamics of the full orchestra and individual instruments.  It was truly a wonderful experience for the students and the guides! 

MS filled the room with a breathtaking  smelly feet aroma as they created contour drawings of their shoes! This exercise helps the students see what they are drawing instead of instinctually labeling objects and drawing them accordingly.  It teaches them to look at the lines, shapes, and patterns of objects and how they combine to form what we see.  The cognitive skills developed in contour drawing include eye/hand coordination, concentration, observation, and risk-taking. 

Week 5

One of the first aspects of art in Early Childhood is understanding and exploring color.  Below is a student learning the primary colors by painting them on a color wheel. Beginning skills used in creating art include cutting, painting with a brush, and gluing. Practicing these skills also strengthens the hand for writing.

The students of EC took advantage of this beautiful fall weather by creating art outside with nature.

LE continued their study of the elements of design. This week they focused on lines.

Line art by Ruthie

Upper school finished their recycled fish project for the Harpeth River Watershed fundraiser.  Below is a collaborative origami fish by UE made out of over 800 pieces of recycled National Geographic paper.

Origami fish by UE

  

UE kicks off their study of Mayan Civilization by learning about their art and culture.  To create Mayan glyphs, they carved clay slabs and then finished them with a stone textured paint.

Mayan glyph by UE student

Week 4

Art is integrated in many works EC practice daily.  For example, below  a student is working with the Light Box.  The Light Box helps friends work on tracing a picture, name, or shape.  The three finger grip is strengthened as well as the hand eye coordination while following the line with a pencil.

 

In LE, we are studying the elements of design: color, line, texture, shape, space, and form.   We focused on color and collage this week. The students created collages of primary colors and secondary colors they found in recycled magazines into a color wheel. 

Color Wheel Collage by Arthur

 
Upper School continue their recycled fish project for the Harpeth River Watershed fundraiser.  Be sure to stop by Friday night for the wine and cheese to see their creations!

Recycle fish by Jonas

Week 3

Upper School has been working on a recycled art project for the Harpeth River Watershed Association’s annual fund raiser on Oct. 27th.    Proceeds will go to supporting their mission: The Harpeth River Watershed Association in middle Tennessee is dedicated to preserving and restoring the ecological health of the Harpeth River and its Watershed. 

Join us for wine and cheese next Friday to see all the beautiful fish the students have made out of recycled products!

Photo by Oriana

Week 2

Last week ME, UE, & MS had a docent guided tour of the Frist exhibition Creation Story: Gee’s Bend Quilts and the Art of Thornton Dial.  For information about this exhibit visit http://fristcenter.org/calendar-exhibitions/detail/creation-story-gees-bend-quilts-and-the-art-of-thornton-dial.