Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Happy New Year!



Welcome to the Art Room for the 2017-18 school year.  We are deep into our first art challenge of creating artbooks that tells an aspect of our own STORY--the 6th grade making Chinese Puzzle books, and the 7th grade making tunnel books.  These books allow for a lot of freedom in media choice and in going in student driven directions.  I am excited to see where the students take them.

Why start there?!  The theme for this year, as in every year, is story and how to tell our own story visually.  In 6th grade we discuss and explore the idea that although there are multiple narratives throughout history and cultures in the art world, oftentimes these multiple narratives get overlooked in favor of the traditional Western European Art narrative.  We spend 6th grade trying to explore every narrative but that one in order to see other "stories."  In 7th grade we start to interact more with the idea of how these stories build and inform other stories.

And, of course, this idea of story is mostly explored through MAKING and the Artist's Process. We make art, we discuss art, we plan, practice, create, refine... and then present.  I work hard to display student work, and also they keep EVERY FINISHED PIECE in a portfolio in their google drives.  Ask to see their portfolio some time.

I'm excited to start telling this year's STORY with the students.  Questions, comments, trials or tribulations?!  Feel free to contact me, Carin Lilly, clilly@cvsdvt.org