Therese Brady Donohue, Director of Picture Book Theater and founder of The Amherst Ballet is leading an exciting workshop called Paint, Shape, Create! for ages 9 through adult here in the Studio on April 20th from 1-4.
Inspired by works in our last exhibition Beyond Books: The Independent Art of Eric Carle, participants in this upcoming workshop will channel Eric Carle and their own inner artists as they paint on aluminum foil and then experiment with shaping it in strips and composing the strips on a painted canvas.
Therese, well known for costume and mask design and construction as founder of Amherst Ballet, told me “For eight years I have worked with reproducing Eric Carle’s picture book images, adapting them into puppets and costumes. I am always interested in taking a technique and creatively using it in different ways. When I saw what Eric had done as an independent artist taking his signature textures and applying them to foil and creating dimension, it spoke to me as a fun technique to introduce to artists of all ages. It is not complicated and does not require in-depth talent to experiment with this technique. This is also a good technique for educators to use in the classroom up through high school.”
With that in mind, Therese and I thought that this creative process would be a great opportunity for an intergenerational class experience in which young artists, parents, grandparents, artists, and educators could work side by side and learn from each other.
The Carle has offered parent/child and family programs before, but with this workshop the elementary-aged artists can participate with or without their parent present. By age 9 some young artists are clear in their creative passions and are ready for an opportunity like this.
Therese and I are both excited about the creative expression and layered learning that will happen this workshop. If you or someone you know in our area might be interested in this workshop learn about how to register (carlemuseum.org/register ) today! We’ll need to have at least 5 participants registered by April 12, and space is limited, so don’t wait!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Don’t forget to enter The Carle’s Call for Caterpillars Contest for the chance to win an original doodle by Eric Carle! Visit www.carlemusuem.org/call_for_caterpillars for contest details.
Hey! We just realized we’ve shared 100 posts since we started this blog last June. To celebrate, I’d like to share some a small percentage of the many beautiful things made in the Studio since then . These images represent ideas, problems solved and not-yet-solved, imagination, experimentation, conversations shared, and yet more work which wasn’t kept by the creator but was still worthy of creation nonetheless. For those of you who have started or are about to start a new school year next week, I hope these images help you begin the year on a happy note. Enjoy the weekend and here’s to the next 100 posts!
As we wrap up a fun month of tissue paper collage in the studio, I’m reminded of an experience I had with J and B (brothers), couple of young guests, when we did tissue collages last November.
The materials on the tables were: colored tissue papers, oil pastels, liquid starch, glue brushes, and scissors. Each guest also received two different size pieces of watercolor paper. Maybe you remember my post On Limitations explaining why we offer only certain materials or limit quantities for a given project?
I think it was B who first requested some tape. I asked him, “what is it you’re trying to do?” Whenever someone in the studio asks for a material that’s not being offered this is my reply. I’ve found that it’s a great way to find out whether they need my help in solving a problem or if they need a material for another purpose, like a temporary eyeglasses fix.
As we looked at his work, B explained that he wanted to put his tissue paper collage of a baby bird breaking through its shell on top of a larger piece of paper that he filled in with oil pastel.
I could easily have provided tape, but instead asked B, “Do you think there is anything here on the table you can use to connect your pictures?” Sometimes, just getting a child to re-notice what’s in front of him sparks the idea he needs to continue.
Sometimes he needs more questioning to help him see potential solutions. We talked about why tape works to connect things (it’s sticky) and I asked him if any of the materials on the table were sticky. We talked about how the liquid starch glue is sticky, but also thin, so maybe not strong enough to hold two thick papers together on its own. I also pointed out that tape is basically just sticky paper.
Now, I can’t remember if he figured it out on his own, or I wondered aloud, “could we use the tissue paper and starch to make our own tape?,” but it was something B was willing to try. He was excited to have worked out an aesthetically pleasing solution for his picture.
Later, when his brother J wanted to try it too, I asked B to explain to his brother how to use tissue paper like tape. Whenever possible, I try to get children to help each other problem solve. There’s another level of learning added to an art-making experience when the creator verbally shares the process or idea.
Sometimes, children come up with artistic solutions and test them only to discover they don’t work. Those are great moments of learning too! In those moments its important that I’m there to make non-judgmental observations encourage them to risk another solution. In those moments I learn too. That’s what making art with children is all about!
We’re busy making Tissue Paper Collages in the Art Studio again! This is probably the most popular project we do all year. Below are a couple fun facts about the materials we use during a typical Summer Public Art Project.
· Museum guests create over 3,000 tissue paper collages in the Art Studio during the 6-week program.
· We go through nearly 9 gallons of liquid starch glue for making collages (the average collage requires less than 1-ounce to stick together!).
· If we lined all of the collages up side by side, they would stretch for 2/3 of a mile!
On Monday and Tuesday of last week, Sarah and I got to work with all of the kindergarteners and 1st graders at Florence Roche School in Groton, MA. I just wanted to share some fun photos from working with my new friends!
First, they took turns stamping with a variety of textures and colors.
Then, they cut their textured papers into Eric Carle inspired collages.
I wish I could remember the stories that went along with each picture they created! I have memories of alligators, airplanes, rocks, snakes and birds. What do you see when you look at each of their beautiful collages? So many creative solutions working with the same materials!
Our studio space is blessed with an entire wall of windows on our South side. That means, in the months of short days, the sun’s glorious rays stream right in…to our eyes. That kind of direct light is great for feeling like a cat- relaxed and drowsy, but sometimes tricky for working.
As you can see, we’ve turned the slight architectural inconvenience into opportunity! Every November we break out the tension curtain rods and dream up aesthetically pleasing ways to shade our worktables. I’ve been a little obsessed with rainbows and the spectrum lately so with lots of help from our volunteer, Cindy, and more help from other volunteers we put this together.
The papers might remind you of Eric Carle’s pictures. Most of them were made in one of my Eric Carle Tissue Paper Workshops. The workshop goes over the nitty gritty of adapting Eric Carle’s processes and techniques to create unique collage papers with students or just yourself. Learn more about my workshop here.
You could make similar papers yourself or with kids using with paint, tools like our Silly Brushes, and tracing paper. We put the papers in plastic document sleeves and then used a 3-hole-puncher to make holes for the 1″ binder rings that connect the sleeves together. We’ve used this display method before and have noticed teachers and parents taking pictures and talking about how they would use the idea in their class or at home.
Is this idea inspiring to you? Tell us about how you might or have used tension rods, document sleeves, and binder rings in your home or classroom.
Here’s the video from my appearance on WWLP’s Mass Appeal yesterday. I hope it inspires artmaking in your home or classroom! You can find the Valentine Card templates I reference in my segment here.
Many thanks to Seth Stutman for hosting the segment and to the rest of the staff at Mass Appeal for having The Carle on the show. It was lots of fun!
In The Art Studio Latin Landscapes April 10 - May 21, 2013 Free with Museum Admission Capture the beauty of the landscapes from Latino Folk Tales: Cuentos Populares–Art by Latino Artists and create a picturesque panorama adapting the textured drawing style of illustrator Raul Colón.
