Portraits arrive in Ethiopia

It seems like yesterday we were creating portraits for the children in Ethiopia!  And now we can see our artwork in their hands-fantastic!! Congratulations to all the students that took the time to make someone smile across the world! Check out those smiles, after reading this wonderful letter from Ben Schumaker. 

Dear Ms. Kaiser and Artists,

I’m very happy to let you know that the kids in Ethiopia have received the portraits, and they absolutely loved them!

In total my two team members delivered portraits to kids at five different locations.  They took video footage of the kids receiving the portraits at three of those locations, and here you will see just how excited the kids were to receive their special gifts:

Video of Delivery in Ethiopia

At the other two locations they took photos of the kids individually holding their portraits.  I matched you with kids at one of those two locations so that you would have these individual delivery photos.

I think you will also be pleased to know that we were able to make a collective financial donation of $3,550 to help support the kids' education, thanks to the participation fees you contributed.  So please be proud that you helped to provide that gift along with the portraits.

Thanks so much to all of you for being part of the Memory Project.  You have given these children meaningful keepsakes to last a lifetime.  I hope you’ll be involved again!  

Most Gratefully,

Ben Schumaker
Founder & Director
The Memory Project

Inspiration from an "Iconic" Work of Art Final Exam Project

Your next piece will be a creation of your choice that is inspire by a great work of art, architecture, design...etc.  You will decide on the piece after doing some research.  There are many styles of drawing and paintings with a range of subject matter that you can draw upon. The  MOMA and Yale University Art Gallery have an amazing array of work.  If you choose an artist that is on exhibit at either one of these museums you should try to view their work in person.  You could also base your piece on an iconic sculpture, building, poster…etc. The Eiffel Tower, Statue of Liberty, Taj Mahal are all memorable because of their design.  All artists are influenced by the work of previous artists. We will look at some examples of this in class.  We have already viewed Las Meninas by Picassso which was influenced by Velazquez's piece with the same name. He used the same composition but represented everything in a less realistic way. How will you represent the piece you have chosen in your work?  YOU should create a unique work of art using paint, pencil, ink or all of the above.   CREATE something meaningful to you!  View the document below to get all of the information you need to begin...

Final Exam Document

ICONIC WORKS OF ART

Final Exam Project Activist Art

                                                                                  

                                                                    

You can  decide to make a work of art that is related to a cause you feel passionate about. Or you could make a whimsical piece that reflects an interest or subject. A cause could be related to something close to home, in your own community, or it could be an issue that affects the entire world.  When you create this work of art it should be something you feel personally invested in.

In your sketchbook:

·         Describe why you are interested in this cause or subject.

Make a list of words or symbols that could or do represent your cause or subject.   For instance if you were going to make a work of art about families or people being homeless your list might look like this:  $$, people, children,  empty boxes, broken homes??,  sad, pain, loss, bad economy, mental illness,…etc.   If you were  creating a work of art about birds decide what you want to include in the piece.

·         List some colors you think will help you portray the mood you want to relate to the viewer.

·         After you have your list start drawing thumbnail sketches of ideas of any overall composition.  We will be mixing-media to create this work of art, but it is a good idea to start with some kind of composition.  

Outside of class look for articles or written words about your cause or subject.  You could also type something up yourself and pick and interesting font that supports or reflects your cause or subject.  Maybe there are lyrics to a song that are suitable.  You need to have writing or words somewhere in your work (they do not have to be legible). Contemplate what texture paper you might want to add to your work. Finally, draw an image you want to repeat in your work of art.  This could be a symbol or an actual object, person, animal…etc.   You will repeat this image either by replicating it smaller or larger or cutting it out of paper. 

Putting it all together 

 Now that you gathered all the materials and ideas for your work start composing.   How can repetition of an image have an impact on the movement and interest in your piece?  What are you going to emphasize?  Is there a focal point?   How are you going to place colors, textures, lines, and shapes to create a visually balanced piece?