My Talent Show Project

When I was told I was going to be participating in a talent show at the end of my art class this semester I was terrified. I had no idea what I was talented at other than writing, something I wasn't about to share because I can't read my own writing out loud to anybody; I get too self-conscious. Therefore, for about half of the semester I did a lot of soul searching to try and find something that I could do to show my classmates I was talented.

I don't know how I came up with the idea to make a miniaturized model of a library in the turret of a house, other than the fact that I've always kind of wanted one, but once I got that thought in my head I was a goner.

I knew it was going to be difficult, really difficult and incredibly time consuming. I had months though, so I started off slow, getting my bearings and laying out the structure. Two and a half months, two emptied gallon containers of white vinegar, a slew of cardboard boxes, I couldn't even tell you how many sticks of hot glue, and about eighty hand cramps later I have this, a still unfinished library:

"The Greatest Arsenal"

Every piece of it that isn't hot glue or duck tape is recycled. The books are handmade, two tiny pieces of cardboard glued together and painted, and the outside has individual cardboard "bricks" that are going to get a coat of mortar between them.

The piece is titled "The Greatest Arsenal" because of a Doctor Who quote:
      "You want weapons? We're in a library! Books! The best weapons in the world!"
                - The Tenth Doctor, "Tooth And Claw"

Books are the best weapons in the world, so it stands to reason that a library would be the greatest arsenal.

The roof is currently missing, as are the lights to actually read the titles and the ladder to reach the books and the reading loft. They will be added and this post will be updated as soon as it's finished.

I'm a very detail-oriented person, as well as a perfectionist, both of which make doing something like this a lot easier and a lot harder at the same time. I'm patient enough to actually complete this huge time-waster, but now that it's almost finished all I see are the tiny mistakes. I tried to make everything as close to on scale as I could, but I know that this type of room wouldn't actually be practical in a real home.

In the end though, I really, really love how it's turning out, and I feel like it was the perfect culminating project for this semester.

I don't really know exactly how I'd use this skill in my classroom, other than to show students that all it really takes is one tiny step at a time to make something huge and incredible. Also, I know that I can bring the attention to detail and the passion I have for this project into my teaching and I think that's going to mean a lot for me.

For examples of amazing art using recycled items that kids can create in the classroom, visit Education.com.

Multimedia Art

"Shield"

This celtic knot carving was my final art project and I'm very proud of the effort I put into it. I've always loved celtic symbols and very much wanted to learn more about them and their meanings.

I chose this knot design because it is a shield knot in celtic culture and I really liked the intricate pattern.

It is imperative that teachers celebrate the cultures of their students, and teach students about other cultures throughout the world. Although it's inadvisable to suggest using dangerous carving tools with young children, allowing students to have hands-on experiences with the art of other cultures is a great way to engage them in social studies lessons.

Pop Art

I have always loved pop art, mainly because of the bright colors and seemingly endless possibilities for subject matter. However, when I started researching pop art for my third project I realized just how versatile it could be.

My memories of pop art were mostly from a childhood being told about Andy Warhol and his soup cans (The Warhol has a great lesson on them), as well as a love for Roy Lichtenstein. However, I found that I enjoy the general idea behind pop art so much more than the limited view of it I'd received.

Pop art is actually much more inclusive that I first considered it to be. In creating pop art, an artist takes something commonplace, or something seen in popular culture and mass media, removes it from its context, and uses it to make a statement.

So it can be a can of Campbell's soup painted over and over, but it can also be Heath Ledger's Joker, Beyonce and Pepsi, President Obama, or Mr. Clean.

I think pop art is a great way to get students to think about the images they see around them, especially when they are taken out of context. It grabs people's attention because of its bright colors, but students can learn to look deeper and think critically about the world around them.

"Caskett"

This is my finished pop art project. At first glance, all of these images mean nothing to each other. However, they mean something very specific to me as a group; they represent different references to the tv show Castle, but only mean anything to someone who has an extensive knowledge of the show.

I really loved painting this piece and I now have a new perspective on an art form that I've always loved.

Unusual Art

Unusual art was never something that I even heard about before starting this project. Honestly I only chose to create an unusual art piece because it sounded like a challenge, and I had a ton of empty pop cans lying around just waiting to be recycled.

I personally believe that unusual art is perfect for the classroom because, although I don't advise cutting up pop cans with children, it's a great way to get students to think about the materials around them in a different way than before. So many children get caught up in having to use the right paint or clay or paper to make their art be exactly perfect; I really like the idea of challenging students to use what they have around them to create something new and unique.

"No Exit"

My unusual art project turned out to be a house, specifically a haunted house because I couldn't get all of the hot glue off the aluminum, but the cans could have been used in many different ways, such as classic trucks and Mario. Also, there are endless ways to create unusual art. It really is just taking something that isn't usually used as art, and making art with it, for example feather paintings, cracker clocks, and leaf hedgehogs.

TARDIS

My first art project this semester was sculpture. I have always loved sculpture, and my father spent years doing wood carvings when I was a child. Therefore, I chose to try my hand at it.

I immediately decided to combine my love for sculpture with my love for the tv show Doctor Who. After brief consideration, I realized that, with the time I had available to me, my best chance of finishing lied in my carving a model TARDIS.

I was very worried that I wouldn't have the time or talent to carve a TARDIS of which I could actually be proud. I chose to push on anyway, and was pleasantly surprised with the end result.

What I learned from this project was the importance of having faith in myself and my ability. Even if it hadn't turned out as well as it did (if I do say so myself), I truly feel that it is the effort that really matters. That is what's so important, as well as the decision to try. The ambition to attempt something that seems impossible is, in my opinion, what really stops most people from starting at all.

Teaching Through Art

One of the things that really struck me in the first few classes this semester was the idea of teaching through art. It's not something I think I've ever really thought about because my experiences have always involved only using art as an addition to learning. I had never considered that students could actually learn something through the actual process of creating art.

This is my watercolor painting depicting the different parts of a flower. When I was painting it I, quit frankly, felt that the whole thing was kind of a waste of time. I didn't see any connection between what I was doing and how to use it in the classroom. However, since then I have realized how truly valuable an activity such as this one can be for a student who is struggling.

I've always been an advocate of giving students more than one way to express their knowledge; this is an excellent example of that principle. In a world where the use of worksheets and the assigning of research papers to who are still struggling to read fluently has become more and more prevalent, it is vital that students feel that have another way to demonstrate their understanding.

I think that this is a creative and, more importantly, meaningful way to integrate the arts into the classroom.

A great resource on the subject of integrating the arts is the blog Teaching Through The Arts. Check it out for more information and ideas.