GEMS Art Night 2015!

On April 11th, the Georgia Elementary and Middle school celebrated the accomplishments our students have made in art class this year.  The school wide art show featured art work from all students in kindergarten through 6th grade and students from the 7th and 8th grade choice art classes.  The entire middle school gym was filled with inspiring and creative work. 

The art show ended with a community art night where students and community members shared and created art together.  We are very fortunate to have such talented artists and craftspeople in our local community!

Wood Working

Watercolor Painting

IPad Art

Screen Printing

Marbling

Bubble Art

Rangoli Designs

Book Making

Beading

Needle Felting

Clay Play

Tissue Paper Flowers

Origami, Digital Art, Drawing, and Phantom of the Opera!

We give a big thanks to all our parent volunteers!  We could not have such a vibrant arts community without our volunteers!

Learning About Camouflage and the Art of Liu Bolin

The first grade classes studied animals in winter in their classrooms. They learned that animals can survive in the wild by camouflaging with their environments
We looked at artwork by Chinese artist Liu Bolin where he blends in with his surroundings.
We talked about how color, pattern, and texture all work together to help animals, or artists, blend in.

Can you find Liu Bolin in these photographs?

Beijing Magazine Rack  Liu Bolin 

Hiding in the City- Sunflower Liu Bolin

Fork Lifts  Liu Bolin 

The First graders camouflaged themselves into their own paintings.

1 Matas

1 Nye

1 MacKenzie

1 Dattilio

Artist Residency with the 2nd- 4th grades
This week's post features artist Gowri Savoor and the work she did with our 2nd - 4th graders during a 4 day residency.

She taught us about the ephemeral art of rangoli from India.  Large circular designs are created in colored sand or chalk outside of homes to celebrate a variety of festivals and celebrations.  The art is temporary and washes or blows away over time.  The creative expression is through the bright colors and the process of laying out the shapes and sharing the experience with family and friends.  

She worked with the 2nd through 4th graders to create large rangoli designs.  The 2nd graders dyed rice with food coloring to be used in place of sand or chalk.  When we are done, the extra rice will be used in the pre-K sensory tables and then in the end composted.   

The second graders glued the colorful rice onto tiles, together their tiles will make one large rangoli design.  The group rangoli will be displayed at the Vermont statehouse in March for Youth Art Month.

The 3rd and 4th graders worked together to create 3 temporary rangolis that were each swept away.  The students experienced working together in a mindful and respectful way to lay down the loose rice.  They learned that the beauty and significance of art doesn't always have to be permanent.  

Sweeping off the rice to make room for the next project.  

Gowri's personal art focuses on geometry and the environment.  She shared with the Georgia students her own work with natural materials and shapes in nature.  She taught the students about focus and being mindful through art making.  

In addition to participating in the rangoli project, each student had the opportunity to create their own symmetrical designs and explore mindful doodling.  

We give a big thanks to Gowri for an awesome residency!  The work we did with Gowri will be greatly enjoyed by many in our school and community this year!  

4th Grade Ceramic Mugs

This week's featured unit is by the 4th grade.
The month of December was devoted to learning about constructing with slabs and creating textures in our clay.  Joining clay together is a tricky process that takes patience and skill.

The students learned to use a variety of tools and every student constructed a mug that survived the drying and firing process! Students were encouraged to explore different ways to create textures and patterns on their mugs.

The students finished their mugs with colorful gloss glazes.

Not an example of slab construction, but a fun piece made during free clay time!