The Sssslithering Ssssssnake
I want to express my gratitude to Ms
Lewis and the Old Town Academy for offering the 4th
graders a unique opportunity to participate in a group recycled art
project this year.
The art projects were centered around
the City
of San Diego Environmental Services Department's Dare to Reuse Art
Contest.
The contest involved making “any
piece of art work (in our case, a sculpture, sconce or
chandelier) from found objects.”
Additionally, the students were invited to explore the possibility
of incorporating an element of light into the artwork as they have
been studying electricity, energy and light this year with Mr. Major.
A variety of challenges were met by individuals and groups throughout
their creative process. As the projects evolved, obstacles and
difficulties continued to offer the students opportunities to make
adjustments and discover new possibilities within their groups and
with the artwork.
This expression of creativity paired with problem solving is a rare
opportunity for students studying the creative arts. Most of the art
offered in schools now is guided or limited to the theme of a
particular art element – great for the study of technique, but most
of the time this is done at the great expense of the individual's
creativity.
This was an exciting opportunity for the students to explore,
experiment, discover and expand upon their original ideas. Their
finished art pieces were a great surprise to all of them.
After the projects were finished, each group was excited to show their piece and describe their experiences to the class. Then the students were offered an
opportunity to photograph their pieces from different perspectives
using the school's iPads (below). These photographs are available to the
students to post on their individual school blogs.
In addition, each filled out a self assessment sheet in regards to their
experiences throughout the project and rated their own success. The
class voted for three of the finished pieces to be entered into the
city's contest – The Solar System, Robot Breaking Building and the
Guitar, respectfully. I wish them the best of luck!
...offering the pieces up for auction during the school's gala/fundraiser provided a fun
way to decide who would get to take the artwork home!
* Some of the student's photographs include a few that show the professional photographer Paul M Bowers documenting the students projects.
~
The
Mysterious Shape ~ “The original idea was
totally different, there were too many limitations – this
evolved. Nailing it together was the biggest challenge. We added
color to make it pop!”
Mixed Media Sculpture - Recycled materials, paint, nails, wood,
decisions and great gobs of kindness.
Approx. 8” x 4” x 9”
~
The Guitar ~ “It took us a very long time... we got a lot of help in the end!”
Entered into the City of San Diego Environmental Services Department's Dare to Reuse Art Contest 2012
Mixed Media Sculpture - Recycled materials,glue, wood, wire, duct tape, glue, screws, paper clips,
glue, old pens/ pencils and the help of a village... and glue.
Approx. 33” x 12”
~
Friends Holding Onto The Sun, Earth, and Moon ~ “It's a piece of the world...how much light is from the sun... we added the people to make it fun!”
Mixed Media Mobile Light - Recycled materials, grape vine, aluminum foil, gerbil ball, straws, paint, wire, electrical cord / socket and a lot of excitement. *Only use LED light bulbs (1 included).
Approx. 17” x 17” x 21”
~
The Colorful Peace ~ “We had four different ideas before this – it is very creative! We just started nailing...”
Mixed Media Hanging Sculpture - Recycled materials, wood, nails, paper clips, twinkle lights and perseverance.
Approx. 11” x 9” x 10”
~
The Sssslithering Ssssssnake ~ “...it can move – you can hang it from the ceiling or on a wall...”
Mixed Media Sculpture (Can Also be Hung) - Recycled materials, TP rolls, paint, light bulbs, string, metal clips and lots of personality.
Approx. 17” x 3” x 4”
~
Robot Destroying Building ~ “It was hard to get it to stand up...but we worked it out... made the building out of light to attract the viewers eye and to have it's reflection in the robots chest (the CDs).”
Entered into the City of San Diego Environmental Services Department's Dare to Reuse ArtContest 2012
A Pair of Mixed Media Sculptures - Recycled materials, cardboard, CDs and jewel cases, electrical boards, light sockets, telephone phone cable and wires, plastic water bottles, duct tape, glue, twinkle lights and team work.
Robot - Approx. 14” x 6” x 27”
Building – Approx. 9” x 9” x 14”
~
The New R2D2 ~ “It's a mini-lantern...looks so cool in the dark! We went through a lot of ideas!”
Mixed Media Sculpture - Recycled materials, metal, wood, nails, LED lights and considerable amounts of consideration.
Approx. 13” x 10” x 15”
~
Candy Lane ~ “It's a never ending place – the sweet and the goodness of things that have happened to you.”
Mixed Media Sculpture - Recycled materials, paint, hangers, particle board, nails and friendship.
Approx. 18” x 20” x 11”
~
The Special Chandelier ~ “My favorite part is the star on top...We didn't really know what we were making after a while, it just kinda happened. In the end we all worked together – we just brought it all together and made it work.”
Mixed Media Wall Sculpture - Recycled materials, hanger,
paper clips, duct tape, bottle caps, paint, wood, nails, glue, paper
plate, communication wires, willingness and openness.
Approx. 14” x 2” x 27”
~
Every
child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he
grows up.
–
Pablo
Picasso
