3rd grade students just finished a project involving art from Australia. We studied artwork from the Aboriginal people and learned about many kinds of Australian animals. Each student chose a native animal to draw in the "x-ray style," which is somewhat typical of aboriginal artwork. The background of the works is made entirely of dots. This was a fun and extremely successful project!
5th graders recently finished a project based on the work of Keith Haring. Haring is famous for his use of simplistic shapes and bold colors. Haring's work often dealt with important social causes or topics. Each 5th grade student completed a painting in the style of Keith Haring. Students picked a social cause that was important to them and based their work on their chosen topic. Recycling was a popular topic, but work was based on everything from anti-smoking and anti-war to one poster that encourages viewers to eat healthy food. The project was finished with a short writing project that each student completed in order to explain their artwork. These paintings are currently hanging in the art room hallway and will be up for the next couple of weeks.
4th grade students started out the year by learning about totem poles made by Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest. Students learned about stylization- a way of drawing an object in which an artist adds his or her own style to what is being drawn. Each student painted a specific animal and worked together with other people at their table in order to create a two dimensional totem pole. The finished totem poles are now on display in the commons. Most are at least six feet tall!
