A FEW THINGS I'M THANKFUL FOR

Exactly as I find them at the door of the Ed Lab each Saturday.

Having just finished both of my Fall ART BRAINS camps and my 2011 Art After School program at Comet Ping Pong, I'm looking forward to finally posting pictures of all of the projects we've done over the last couple months. Also, in the spirit of T-gives, I'd like to say I'm feeling very grateful to people like my fantastic volunteers (ART BRAINS volunteers pictured above!). Having had the experience of doing some classes solo as well as with not-so-top-notch helpers in the past, it's very clear to me what a huge difference it makes to have quality assistance during class sessions. It's the difference between having a class where things happen and having a class I feel great about because I was able to focus my energy on the kids and helping them get a lot out of the project at hand. My ART BRAINS volunteers are so thoughtful. Some even email me during the week outside of class with helpful ideas, and they generously donate their time on Saturdays when they could be doing anything else. Jamie, Dan, and Harriet - you are the best, and I am thankful for you! 

Also at the top of my list: Artisphere's beautiful, clean, well-stocked Ed Lab, its friendly and helpful staff, and Ms. Lisa Marie Thalhammer, Artisphere's Director of Educational Programs who facilitates all programs like ART BRAINS and more while also maintaining her practice as an artist. AND Comet Ping Pong, where great things have started happening with Art After School. I'm so happy to be working with them on this program. Not to mention the incredible, creative kids I've had the chance to work with so far, and their supportive, enthusiastic families.

Oh, and p.s. This just in: the DCCAH Arts Education Program grant I was awarded to hold an Art After School program at the dynamic BloomBars space in Columbia Heights...!!!  I've wanted to work with BloomBars on an Art After School program for little while now, and this grant will make it possible in early 2012. I'm so thrilled - thanks, DC Commission!!

Now for a little down time - relaxing and. . . writing 24 lesson plans. Happy Thanksgiving!

MASK-ARADE

On the Saturday before Halloween, both ART BRAINS groups spent class-time making masks from paper, foam sheets, and various craft materials. This was the first art-making session I've ever led that was not based on a conceptual prompt, and I wanted it to be a relaxed, open session. In some ways, it was really liberating not to have a specific agenda, and in others, it was sometimes hard not to want to push things a bit further. I at first kept the materials hidden to encourage kids to come up with ideas they were excited about, rather than just wanting to get their hands on feathers and sparkly stuff. Of course the instant it was revealed, there was no turning back from the frenzied storm of gratuitous glitter that ensued (actually, more so with the older group). Of course, a little glitter for glitter's sake every once in a while never hurt anyone, depending on how troubled you are by finding glitter on your person, furniture, and cat for weeks afterwards! Here are some pictures from the day:

 

Amariah's golden girl:

Olie with mask and a mask by Andrew:

Damon is a Godzilla/lizard beast/dinosaur expert:

Mask by Andrew, pre eye and mouth cut-outs:

Elle, Phoenix, Lauren, and Nicole:

 Natalie:

 
















Hands down the scariest thing I saw all day, by Simon:

 

I absentmindedly held my camera vertically while taking video, so if you want to see video of Arthur and Andrew telling the stories behind some of their masks, tilt your head to the left 90 degrees:

 

I love the involved narratives behind kids' artwork. I have a vivid memory of writing a story in second grade about the lives of a mother and baby dragon. In my mind, it was an epic tale - my magnum opus, rife with descriptive detail and character development. I later re-discovered this piece as an adult, and the entire story unfolds in about 5 sentences.

kindergARTen BRAINS MURAL

Mural:  Each youth will be given one square of paper containing an apparently abstract arrangement of lines and shapes that they will color and decorate in any way they choose. When they have finished, the individual squares will be combined to form a collaborative mural illustrating a single image colored in many different styles. 


The mural was composed of creatures the campers drew during the previous "Animal Planet" class. We did a colored pencil/crayon version, and a painted version as well.

Beautiful!

ANIMAL PLANET

kindergARTen BRAINS - Animal Planet:  Youth will spend this art-making session illustrating never-before-seen animals and other creatures they imagine to exist on an undiscovered planet far away from our own. Drawings will be combined to form a field guide to their envisioned planet.

"Weirdo Creature" by Natalie
This creature has a green body, and plants growing around him for protection. He also carries a blanket around with him to keep him warm and for additional protection. He lives on a Mars-like planet that is red and bouncy. The Weirdo Creature eats the plants that grow around him, as well as cake and ice cream. Even though he doesn't look like it, he can extend his legs very high and can even touch the moon while keeping his feet on the ground. He can splash a puddle just by looking at it.

"Tarantasaurus" by Damon

The Tarantasaurus lives in the humungous Charisaury Land, where he is the biggest guy around.  He eats bugs, meat, and hammers. He is extremely dangerous, with many limbs acting as weapons, including a hammer hand, an axe hand, axe tail, sword tail, and a horn with lasers. Also, a rocket comes out of his horn.

"Vampire Human Bat and Ant Bee" by Phoenix

The Vampire Human Bat lives in an underwater cave and can breathe underwater. It eats anything and everything. It hunts at night and on Halloween, and sleeps during the day. He knows when Halloween is coming and can see people with his eyes closed.

The Ant Bee flies, crawls, and lays eggs. Beware of this creature, as it also stings. It eats grains of rice with peaches.

"Unicorn" by Lauren

This friendly unicorn eats ice cream and birthday cakes. She's so happy to eat these things that she almost cries every time. She is a friend to humans and likes taking people for rides to catch shooting stars.

 

 Unnamed Creatures by Nicole

These creatures are tiny, furry, and very friendly. They live in small houses and travel around by sliding. If you see them, feed them candy. 

"Funny Weirdo Guy" by Natalie

This creature lives in Funny Land. He eats funny berries with smiley faces, which are what make him so funny. His favorite thing to do is make people laugh. The Funny Weirdo Guy is very small, but looks bigger than he is because of the squiggles that surround him.

"Lizard Hunter" by Damon

This creature has an orange lizard body and head, a blue lion head, and another black snake head. The lizard head has laser beam eyes and the lion and snake heads both breathe fire. Though he is very dangerous, he is kind to humans and protects people in cities and also has saved the Earth. He lives in a cave outside of the city and swims underwater. Normally, he fights, then takes a water break, then eats, then attacks monsters.

"Fluffy Unicorn and SuperRabbit Fluffbunny" by Lauren

Fluffy Unicorns have a golden body, legs like a dog, eyes like an owl, a unicorn horn, bird wings, and a zebra tail. They sparkle when they fly, and like to fly in the shape of a heart to draw giant sparkle hearts in the sky. They eat giant donuts.

Like the Fluffy Unicorn, the SuperRabbit Fluffbunny also eats giant donuts and lives in Rainbow Land. It loves golden things, and because of this, it follows around the Fluffy Unicorn. It can hop into rainbows and slide on them.