Knitting together diverse strands of thought

I stumbled upon this video of Rachel John's Extreme Knitting project, (via Leslie Gates' blog) and realized it was a perfect springboard for a post on preparing for a new school year. August is the month when all those ideas culminate into a plan. The different yet connected threads form a unified and textured fabric--an analogy for our process of preparing for and launching our respective art classrooms and studios for the year ahead.
In these long, hot, dog-days of summer, it is pleasant to have time to participate in and reflect on a variety of experiences outside of the art classroom. I just came back from an intensive and immersive (I could add, incredible) week with Art:21, for the Art:21 Educator Institute launching my participation in the Contemporary Art for Contemporary Classrooms program. This year-long experience with a cohort of brilliant educators will be challenging and process-changing. I see how the depth of learning in the Fine Arts Studio will be further explored, how I and my students will be challenged to think in new ways about our individual approaches to art making and thinking about art. Our method thus far has touched on themes, exploring big ideas, essential questions and the like, but I realize we didn't travel far enough down these roads of "meaning-making" to fully grasp these ideas. We dabbled. We explored the elements and principles of design. We created, we reflected, and then we moved on. We have so much more to explore within each art experience, and with each one, contemporary artists via Art:21 and from the community will provide real-life context. I am looking forward to exploring how these experiences will impact our way of looking at and thinking about art. I will share the journey. In the meantime, check out these amazing resources via Art:21.
What are some ways you weave a richer art curriculum for your students?

What is Art Ed?

As I gear up for my Art21 Educators Institute, I was asked to reflect on what the current trends are in art education and how I see this impacting how and what I teach. I used Wordle as a prompt for my analysis. What would you add?

Inspired...

We all learn from one another. We are inspired, fueled, and pushed by our observations of others' work, their aesthetic, and their techniques. At CEDFA's Summit XII, I was learning from the participants while I was sharing my approach to the work I do in and out of the art classroom.
I will be sharing more of what Nancy and I presented, but I want to take a side-step and share a blog that always catches my eye:
New City Arts is an incredible K-6 art program in St. Louis. I wish I could go to school there!
Take a look at her architectural projects with various grades. Check out the wonderful birds her students created from working pinch pots of clay. And the snails... The creative connections that New City Arts makes inspires her students to explore ideas and approaches. She gathers inspiration from her community, from Art21 and the multiple intelligences. Each work is celebrated. Each work is special. Thanks New City Arts for sharing your great work!

Sharing=Learning

Two or three years ago, as I embarked on a "technology infusion" for my teaching, I became a member of Art Ed 2.0 and became virtual friends with amazing educators. From that virtual connection, came real friendships with two amazing teachers, Theresa McGee and Tricia Fuglestad. I was fortunate to be able to schedule a visit to their classrooms (who gets to do that when we teach full-time?) It was a great visit. Since then we have collaborated with each other on many projects. We get to do so again as we prepare for our presentation at NAEA's Seattle convention. Dynamic Collaborations II is the name of our session. I do believe that any opportunity we have to showcase our teaching and lessons causes us to think about other perspectives. It also causes us to re-evaluate our systems in order to make them more efficient--which we should be doing for our students in the first place.
Something I learned from Tricia which I just applied for an upcoming project is the use of Keynote and instant alpha--what magic!
If you use a Mac--the Keynote program has a special button that allows you to apply "green screen" technology to an image with 1 color around the object --the alpha button allows one to erase that color (by dragging the cursor over the area) and make it transparent. That allows the image beneath to be revealed... just like this one inspired by R. Magritte.

Strokes of Genius

I take a lot of photographs. I have created slide shows for my students to share with them the wonder of color, line and form. It is to teach them to see. It is not a simple task, as many of them have never taken the time to explore up close what is around them. I had taken a series of photos of vegetables at the Portland Farmers Market. My own children saw the variety of colors and forms before them and were in awe. My students were blown away by the richness of color and the cornucopia seen as images on a screen. I have taken flowers for still-life projects, and encouraged students to go eye to stamen to really see the details. Besides the touch of pollen on their noses, they were engaged by the details. This photo of a resident bluebonnet reminds me of the beauty in the details. The simple wonder of what lies just beyond our doorstep, and when we really look, the wonder of that stroke of genius.

Broadening Horizons...

When I think of my learning, I picture myself climbing up a hill and making it to the top to find more on the other side. As I make my way, I discover new things, or new "thinks" as Dr. Seuss might have said, and realize that the path is just a stepping stone, the hill offers a view of what else is possible.

I am headed to the NAEA convention in a few days. I'll be presenting which will be fun. I will also be connecting with incredible people--some I have met already, and have started to get to know, then there will be others who will be new acquaintances. They are all part of that journey, leading to new "thinks" and broadening not just my horizons but those of my students. I cannot wait for that view.