The Ratner Montessori School Art Program

We finished several projects this week, despite missing one day of instruction. New work is displayed throughout the school, I hope you have the opportunity to view the work in the building. I am looking forward to having several uninterrupted weeks of class and hope to begin our clay unit as soon as the kiln can be installed. Work continues on the loom in the art room and I have introduced various weaving projects across the levels in the school. I am still not sure what the final weaving on the large floor loom will be used for, but I am excited to take the work off the loom and see what all the students have woven. 

 

Kindergarten Art

We had a very productive class last week. The study of Marc Chagall continued and the students applied oil pastels to their drawings, using their fingers to blend the colors together. Watercolor paint was then added over the oil pastel to create the resist technique. The work is full of color, energy and created a dream like mood, similar to Chagall's work. The students were so engaged and proud of their work. The new pieces are displayed in the 1st floor hallway outside of their classrooms. We are beginning a printmaking project today, but will not be printing until next week. 

Elementary I (1st, 2nd and 3rd Grade)

We had a printing festival on our one day of art this week! The 1st and 2nd grade students printed a test radial print on a 16" x 16" white paper. They learned how to ink their printing plate with the brayer and black ink, how to apply adequate pressure and how to line up the center point of each section of their print to create the radial design. The final print was applied to the watercolor concentric paintings they created last week. The work is beautiful and is currently hanging in the 2nd floor hallways by their classroom.  The 3rd grade students began their printing project this week as well. They are creating a strip printing plate that will be joined together to create a frame for their art. The zentangle stands will be finished soon, I just need to cut the wood so the students can assemble the pieces. 

Elementary II (4th, 5th and 6th Grade)

Work continued on the tesselations this week and all the students in grade 4 and 5 have begun coloring their designs. We revisited the color theory learned in the grid project and they had the choice of several different materials to apply to their work. Many students chose markers and quite a few decided to use watercolor paint. They decided if they wanted a pattern or repetition with their color work and the results are visually interesting. We should be able to complete the work next week. The 6th grade students learned how to drill pilot holes and use a hand held drill to screw their bird houses together. Next week will be the final work to finish the project. The students will have the option of wood burning designs on their bird houses or adding a natural shingle to the roof. I am excited to see the final results. 

7th and 8th Grade Art

The students had one day of art this week and I decided that they could finish the Op-Art shading work in their time. Most students really focused and were determined to complete the project. They chose a background color to mount their work on and I have displayed the work in the upstairs hallways. The work is visually appealing and the students gained stronger shading techniques with the completion of this work. 

The Ratner Montessori School Art Program

We are at the wonderful time of the year when each class is working on different processes. We have painting, printmaking, drawing, Maker Space and mixed media work rolling in the classes. This work keeps me busy and I love it! I am working on rotating out a lot of work in the school, so look for art coming home next week. Thank you all for your compliments on the new work hanging in the school, I pass along all the comments to the students. They light up when they hear that you enjoy their art.

Kindergarten Art

We studied the art of Marc Chagall last week in class. Each student had an example of his paintings and we talked about his subject matter, the colors he used and how his art made us feel. We talked about the quote from Chagall- "Great art pick up where nature ends." They had wonderful comments about the quote and his art. The work we are creating uses the quote and several images that the student drew to create a dream-like painting of their life. They drew their house or apartment building, their family and pets, a tree, the moon and stars and any other detail to add to the narrative. Oil pastels and watercolor will be added today to complete the work. They are all gaining good control over their materials and have improved so much this year with their creative process. I love teaching this age!

Elementary I ( 1st, 2nd and 3rd Grade)

The 1st and 2nd grade students have completed their zentangle work, so I started them on a printmaking unit. I am trying a new project that loosely ties into the pattern work of the zentangle techniques they have learned. The students created a section of a 4 part design that will visually connect to create a large radial design. To design a section that will be printed to connect, we had to do several steps to measure out the design. The students worked diligently to transfer their designs to the soft printing plate and painted a concentric background to print on top of next week. I am excited to see the results of their work and am looking forward to printing next class.  The 3rd grade class is still working on their zentangle cubes, creating a base to hang the sculpture from in the Maker Space. We should be able to finish the work Monday.

Elementary II (4th, 5th and 6th Grade)

The 4th and 5th grade classes finished their Maker Space projects last week. The 4th grade students had a critique on their work where we talked about the dowel constructions they created, if the craftsmanship was acceptable and if the forms were well balanced and visual from all angles. The work is displayed in the upstairs black boxes. The students enjoyed the process and used the power tools safely. The 5th grade students created their wooden napkin holders. I hope you are all enjoying using the napkin holders in your home, each student was proud of their work.  I started the 4th and 5th grade students on a tessellation project this week. The work is a math based visual exploration of a simple repeated shape. They seem to really enjoy learning about the work of M.C. Escher and creating their own tessellation.   The 6th grade class is still constructing their birdhouse and I anticipate the project to be completed next week.  

7th and 8th Grade Art

I am beginning a series of shorter term processes with the Middle School students. I am going to run a set of "review" techniques to assess their skills and techniques. This past week the students were introduced to a series of Op-Art pieces. They viewed several examples and we talked about the intent and process of creating the work. The project they began started with a series of lines that repeated to create a simple illusion of depth. They practiced shading techniques with colored pencils, reviewed basic color theory and began to create the illusion of depth with their shading of each section created. Their technique improved by sheer time spent shading each section. The end result is very dramatic. We will finish this project next week.