Summer!

Schools been out for a while now and I have been enjoying the warm days of summer.  Last week was the first time I taught in a while and it was a lot of fun!!  Take a look at some of the highlights!

How is "MOVEMENT" created in ART?

Movement is a principle of design that helps guide the viewer eyes around a work of art.   When  describing how movement is created in a work of art we often talk about rhythm, repetition, and pattern because all of these principles of design help create movement.  

One "stellar" example of a painting that has a lot of movement is Van Gogh's, Starry Night.  Take a look at the painting. How is visual movement created?

All of these works of art have movement.  Take a look and decide how repeating visual elements create rhythm and pattern which ultimately creates movement.

I have been reading a lot about movement in art and have found some great blogs that describe the principle. If you want to learn more about movement. rhythm and pattern in art check out the following blogs:

About Rhythm, by Stephen Bradley

Design in Art, Sophia

Relay for Life!!

What an awesome event!! 

Thanks to all the teachers and students that came out and participated in the event!  Branford "Hornets for Health" team had a very busy tent with face painters, hair braiders, & henna painters!

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