Art in the 21st Century
2/15/2020
What does “Art in the 21st Century” mean? How has art changed in the real world? The utilization of artist skills and creativity by companies has always been a important to innovation and marketing. While some basic knowledge remains timeless, many of the modern art skills involve integrations with science, technology, engineering, and math. You may recognize those words, since they are the basis for the acronym STEM. Art is a key area to integrate STEM.
What are some of the art aspects that remain timeless? I mentioned above that some aspects of art remain timeless. We focused on developing these skills through much of last semester, including developing a basic understanding of the elements of design and the principles of design. What are some art aspects that are new or receive greater emphasis in the 21st century? We are applying the knowledge we gained in first semester to a couple of graphic design projects. These days, graphic design skills are useful in a variety of professions. How many of us have had to use photoshop at one time or another? At this point, having at least basic graphic design competency can be a helpful skill in a variety of career paths. What are some other examples of STEM inspired art projects? Engineering has a lot of connections to art. We are considering involving the middle school students to plan and build a greenhouse for the school. We will involve science, technology, engineering, and math. This project is still in the works, so stay tuned! Saints and Sinners
2/10/2020
I’m in San Diego, hanging out with friends and family. I asked advice about this blog, and my husband suggested the title. Why? He pointed out that I’m enjoying seeing all the place names and hearing random conversations in Spanish. They happen to have fallen into exactly those two categories! Why is it important to learn languages? There are so many reasons, but the pure pleasure that I get from being where I see and hear a lot of Spanish is one that I hope our students grow into. It has happened a lot in Alaska for me with my main language (Russian), and now that I’m working on acquiring Chinese, it is happening with that language too. I feel powerful when I can suddenly understand a few words that people are speaking near me, or know how to make a comment in a restaurant where folks speak Mandarin. Spanish is so common here in San Diego that it’s not unusual, but it’s lovely to hear the lisp of speakers from Spain, the jjj of the “ll” from Argentinians, and the range of accents from those of other countries. My family always gets a little worried when I approach people to ask where they’re from, but I always feel it’s fair to alert others that I know the language they’re speaking, especially when topics are a bit … salty. And after that introduction, we typically get into an interesting conversation or I find that I can help in some way. The little video that is attached to this blog is from a few seconds in second grade when I offered students the chance to hear and respond to language that they understand in a fun way. They are acting out lines of a story that they wrote about one of the students’ stuffies. (Everyone has a favorite, and each animal is getting a personal story.) This particular story is about a germ (el microbio) who has no mouth and therefore can’t do some fun things: eat, drink, or speak Spanish. He steals one student’s mouth, and another student gives him one, but then he’s still unhappy, because they can’t talk with him! If I do my job well, students will eventually not only understand me, but they’ll be able to understand random bits of conversations they happen to overhear. It’s my hope that they will have the same pleasure that I gain. Instead of ignoring a blur of incomprehensible syllables, they’ll feel a kinship with people of another culture, able to share a moment or offer help as needed. Early Childhood and Lower School Art
2/7/2020
In January, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Annual Show was hung. I would like to thank Rachel Botson for her help mattting, labelling, and hanging the exhibition. An artist herself, in the fields of painting and sculpture, she has been an invaluable assistant for the Art Program. Thank you very much, Rachel!
This semester, we have continued our art discussions, critiques, and the creation of new work. Teachnology is included in the context of the lesson, especially when discussing art history. This year many more images have come onto the public domain and are available for download. Some of the museums that offer lessons and art history resources are the National Gallery of Art, the Met and the MOMA. I enjoy going to NYC every year and visiting the museums. More specifically, the Early Childhoood has been working on drawing and painting Arctic animals. The Kindergarten has been maskmaking, and are studying the Polynesian cultures, with a focus on the Maori of New Zealand, Soon we will carve our Maori designs in soap. After that, paper-mache' sculpture is in line. The First Grade have been working intensively on their paintings interpreting Mil Memorias. We have discussed theatre, movement/dance, and music as part of our understanding the song. I worked with them on my techniques for developing work from literature and music. We are collaborating with Senora Whaley who provided the song. In Art class we have constructed paintings using calligraphy, and 1960's/70's hard edge techniques, with a mention of Minimalism and Color Field movements in art. The Second and Third Grades are working in paper-mache'. The Second are constructing hanging sculptures, and the Third are making masks. The Fourth and Fiifth Grades are taking thwir woodburnings home. Thanks to Steve and Chris Nyman, we have wood for this, cut from cottonwood and birch. The Fifth Garde finished their paintings inspired by Guernica, a wonderful collaboration with Senora Whaley. Beginners through Fifth Grades are working toward the Annual Spring Show, held the first week of May. Art Notes from Brenda Jaeger: Presently the Georgia Blue Gallery has my painting "Forest Wind" in a group show at Jens Restaurant. I also participated in the LEWK silent auction and show at the Georgia Blue Gallery, where the proceeds are used for gynecological cancer research. I have a show at Advanced Physical Therapy in Wasilla; and will have work in the Robert Service-themed show at Humdinger's Artisan Pizza in Palmer. I'm continuing teaching private lessons in my art studio, which is still under construction. Recently I sold and shipped artwork to buyers in Washington state and Missouri. |
Specialist & Enrichment Teachers Archives
February 2021
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