Our Latest Art Projects November 13th, 2018
11/13/2018
As you know, 821 postcards were delivered to the VA October 25th. We received a thank-you letter, a total of three pages, acknowledging the gift of postcards by the 3rd through 8th Grades. We were invited to continue collaborating with the VA in the future.
The Eighth Grade is painting a 4' x 5' wide canvas to give to the VA Children's Gallery. We are hoping completion by January 31. The Art classes have been working on their Martin Luther King, Jr. images, in anticipation of the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Convocation/Assembly. All the students make a preliminary drawing, to work out his or her compositions. Each student creates an interpretation of Martin Luther King, Jr. Our 6th/7th Grades graciously took down the last exhibit, the Harvest Festival. Our students know how to design, create, execute an original idea, and then how to do the practical aspects of hanging and taking down a show. Soon the Middle School will work on his or her Artist Statements and Bios, in preparation for the Annual Spring Show, held in May. In Art class, the Second Grade is creating handheld mixed-media animal masks for our collaboration with Michelle Whaley, Spanish teacher. Have a wonderful week! Latest in my Art endeavors: CIRQUE, A Literary Journal for the North Pacific Rim, Volume 9, No. 2, contains images of two of my paintings: Box Canyon, and Portrait of Gladys. Humdinger's Artisan Pizza Co., Palmer, has a painting of mine, Valley of Guitars, in a group show of Valley artists. This show will be hanging from November 6 to January 2, 2019. My painting depicts a valley where guitars come and play music together. Every school year (since I've been here) PNA produces 5 major productions. Each one teaches students about a different performance style and the behaviors associated with it.
This style will always have a conductor keeping the flow of the concert going. And it's always great for the audience to clap along! Ceremony. PNA does 2 of these every year! Ceremonies are either in memory or in celebration of someone or something. Our first is the Martin Luther King Jr. Assembly. (This is actually one of my favorites!) The second is Graduation! A Play or Musical takes the audience to another place or time and allows them to follow along to a story. PNA produces 2 of these each year with the Beginner - 2nd Grade Musical and the 3rd - 8th Grade Musical. You will not see a conductor as much in this style. Students are responsible for their own entrances and exits. This Thursday, November 8th is PNA's Fall Concert called PNA Jukebox! With the help of the Parent Association, PNA will have it's first ever dinner and a show (ie dinner theatre)! What an amazing way to build community! Students will be joined on stage by some of Anchorage's finest musicians! In the style of internet sensation, Scott Bradlee and Postmodern Jukebox, PNA students will be performing pop songs in different genres. You will hear Avicii's "Wake Me Up" performed in a mariachi style...and in spanish! Our littlest performers are singing Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds" as a lullaby. So what is a musical genre? A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. When you hear a banjo, maybe you think bluegrass or country or Americana. Soaring violins? Maybe you think about the classical sounds of Vivaldi! But these are the categories we assign to music. My favorite thing about music is when these categories or conventions overlap and something new is created. And what is art, be it visual or performing, if not the creation of something new and impactful! When students leave PNA, they will have the confidence to perform in any capacity. From concert to musical to most likely, a ceremony. I always hear stories about how the performing arts at PNA help prepare them for occasions outside of school. From speaking on a debate team to addressing an audience on an important matter facing our community. What are you doing this weekend?" I thought is was going to all romantic, but it was actually very funny! I really liked all the costumes. At intermission I looked in the pit and saw a member of the orchestra that taught at my string camp!"
HMS Pinafore is the first show of Anchorage Opera's 2018-2019 season Through the Eyes of Women. It runs Nov. 2, 3 and 4. Call Centertix! It's a great way to introduce your student to opera! I have been performing with the local Opera company for 5 years now! Everytime I do a show, I learn something new. I like to bring that back into the classroom. |
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