6th grade Greek Masks

Sixth grade is learning paper mache techniques through making Greek Masks. We talked about the Greek Theatre, and the difficulty of reaching out to thousands of people in a performance. Without speakers and microphones, how does the audience know what is going on? The answer is in the masks. The mouths form tiny megaphones that amplify the sound. On the front of the masks, symbols tell the audience who the character is, so they never need to worry about heros vrs. evil-doers.

After studying the proportions of the face, students worked on created exaggerated expressions on their masks. They used paper pulp and paper mache strips to form cheek bones, chins and forheads that stick out. They looked at the lines muscles made when people frowned and the swinty eyes that form when cheeks push up into the eye socket space.

After designing their masks, they decorated them with tissue paper and paint for skin color and an assortment of feathers, beads, cloth and yarn for hair and additional decorations.

Subtractive Sculpture

Our last big project of the year is plaster carving. Plaster is our form of imitation rock. Rock is hard to carve and takes a long time. Plaster is a little easier, but still takes a great deal of patience before you can see the image your imagined.

Students begin by making a solid plaster form. Some have decided to go organic, and have poured plaster into a baggie and allowed it to dry into an amorphic shape. Others have poured plaster into cups, creating blocks of plaster similar to blocks of stone that would be bought from quarries

Student are using plastic knives to carve the plaster. But in order to do this, they must keep the plaster somewhat wet. We spritz the plaster with water to make the carving easier, and keep them in sealed plastic bags so the moisture doesn't escape.

They must design their carvings carefully. If a part is too thin, it will break off. Arms must be connected to the bodies and thin legs cannot hold a heavy sculpture. They need to think of how they can compact a sculpture so that it can be carved easily from one solid form. For example, making a sleeping cat curled up is much easier than trying to carve a cat standing on four legs.

Sculptures can be polished to a high shine with butchers wax, or made shiny by rubbing layers of milk into the plaster with a rag.

Guest Bloggers : Zach F. and Ray C.

In art last year I made a really cool clay sculpture. It was a picture of Jason I got off the computer and I traced it onto a piece of clay. After that I cut it out with clay tools and I formed texture on how it would feel in real life. It was a really fun project and I would like to do it again. After all, the project turned out great and it went to the art show.--Zach

This year I drew an abstract art in class. I was very proud of it. It got put in the art show. I don't know how I got the idea of it but I did. It was a picture of a flat landscape and a really cool abstract moutain range. The sky, ground, mountain and sun all blended in making it look good. I was very proud.

Check this out: Sculpture faces out of Toilet Rolls

www.loudreams.com/2009/04/06/toilet-paper-roll-sculptures

Greek Pots: Black Figure and Red Figure drawing

The sixth grade students are looking at Greek art and natural figures. They have looked at how pots are made in an earlier unit. Now they are seeing how glazes made a big difference in the art world. With only one color glaze, Greeks made black figure and red figure pottery, and were able to create epic stories on the contours of their pottery. 

Students experimented with working with these methods by creating an oil pastel pot, and drawing over it with another oil pastel, as if it were the glaze. Black figure drawings started with silhouettes of figures drawn in "glaze". They scratched through the glaze with scratchboard tools to create details in their black figure designs.

Red figure designs created details by drawing into their figures with the glaze, and filling in the negative space on their pot compositions with glaze.

Sculpture: George Segal and plaster wrap bandages

We are all familiar with the plaster wrap bandages that are used when someone breaks an arm or a leg. George Segal uses this material to capture the human form exactly.  

George Segal made his first artwork from plaster soaked bandages in 1960.  His work began by covering parts of a body, then plastering the body parts together until they formed an entire person. His work is displayed as unpainted plaster forms, monochromatically painted forms and cast in bronze. 

Sculpture students at Parker have used George Segal's style to make plaster hands. Their assignment was to create a message with the hand, by painting and/or adding other media to that sculpture. 

Some have become hands of friendship or peace, others have transformed into animals, flags and robots. All have found personal statements can be made with the small gestures of a hand.

Donate to Food Banks by making Computer Art

You can donate $1 to Feeding America by making computer art.

Go to breadartproject.com and you will find a museum of toasted bread art. Go to the workshop and make your own art for display in their gallery. For every piece of art you make, they will give $1 to Feeding America. Then go to the galleries and look at what other artists have done with their toasted masterpieces.