1st Grade Cut-outs and Collages

1st graders practiced their cutting skills while creating unique, beautiful collages. We read the children’s book, Henri Matisse: Drawing with Scissors, and they understood that the artist had created his famous cut-outs by drawing shapes using his scissors.

Students cut and arranged simple shapes to create animals, people and abstract compositions. After cutting paper snowflakes for the winter concert, they used the skills and understanding they gained through that activity to create cut-outs and collages by folding construction paper, cutting out shapes, and then opening the paper to see what they had created.

Mosaics, City Block Collages, and Artwork for the Winter Concert

4th Grade Mosaics

4th graders learned about mosaic art, observing and discussing images of different types and uses of mosaic art. Students realized that they see mosaic art all over the city, especially in the subway. Students learned that mosaic art can be created with traditional mosaic tiles as well as an array of found objects - broken ceramics, mirrors, bottle caps, shells, etc.

Students first created collages using small pieces of different types of paper to practice creating a visual composition from arranging small pieces together. Then they created mosaics with tiles and different found materials, gluing each piece in place. Students were asked to make their mosaic represent peace, either through imagery or mood. Once they had finished this process, I grouted the mosaics to ensure the pieces stayed in place.

Grade 4 National Core Arts Standards Addressed in this Unit:

Grade 4

VA:Cr2.1.4

Explore and invent art-making techniques and approaches.

VA:Re7.2.4

Analyze components in visual imagery that convey messages.

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2nd Grade Collages of a City Block

These collages are inspired by artist Romare Bearden’s 1971 collage “The Block” (below),

as well as the illustrations of Ezra Jack Keats. Students observed and discussed large images of Bearden’s “The Block” on the smartboard. They also observed Ezra Jack Keats’ use of collage in his representations of urban environments in his books such as Whistle for Willie (shown below) and The Snowy Day.

Students also viewed and discussed a video of archival footage of Romare Bearden working on his collages of New York City street scenes and explaining and showing his artistic inspirations and process. https://www.sfmoma.org/watch/trains-snakes-and-guitars-the-collages-of-romare-bearden/

Students first created pencil sketches of a city block after brainstorming as a group what different things you might see on a city block - different types of buildings, parks, people, trees, cars, animals, etc. Then they created small collages of one building that might be on a city block - a store, a barber shop, a school, an apartment or office building, a church, etc. Finally they created long collages of an entire city block.

While their drawings strive for realism, the students’ collages are more in the style of Bearden’s collages, mixing various different materials and playing with scale and abstraction. Some students were inspired to portray things other than a city block; for example, one student created a large ship while another student portrayed the Manhattan bridge with cars on it. Veering off on a different creative path found during the process is more than okay; it is an essential part of art, creative investigation and innovative thinking. Habits of mind such as this, developed through art-making and art education, are absolutely crucial to being innovative and effective at any intellectual or creative pursuit.

In this unit, students learned about an important figure in art history, that artists speak about their inspirations, process, and the meaning in their artwork, how to create a sketch in preparation for a project, and how to think outside of the box by arranging and putting together various materials in unusual ways to create a unique work of art.

Grade 2 National Core Arts Standards Addressed in this Unit:

VA:Cr1.1.2

Brainstorm collaboratively multiple approaches to an art or design problem.

VA:Cr2.1.2

Experiment with various materials and tools to explore personal interests in a work of art or design.

VA:Cr2.3.2

Repurpose objects to make something new.

VA:Re7.1.2

Perceive and describe aesthetic characteristics of one’s natural world and constructed environments.

VA:Cn10.1.2

Create works of art about events in home, school, or community life.

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Creating Artwork for the Winter Concert

PreK created these snowpeople - snow princesses, snow rock stars, snow cowboys, snow daddies, etc. to decorate the auditorium and get everyone in a wintery mood. 1st graders created the music sheet paper snowflakes below the snow people.

Class K-100 collaboratively knocked out a gorgeous banner for the concert with tempera paint and glitter in one class period. The painted craft stick snowflakes and other painted craft sticks creations hanging on either side of the banner were made by K-100, PK 132 and PK 136. 

More Recent Work from PS 307 Artists

Paintings of a Special Place by K-108

K-108 shared stories about places that were special to them and then made paintings of these places. Some children included themselves in the painting. 

1-222's Paintings of Someone in their Community

PreK Wet on Wet and Wet on Dry Watercolor Explorations

PreK students explored how painting with watercolors is different on wet paper than it is on dry paper. They folded their paper in half and brushed water onto one side and left the other side dry. Then they painted with watercolors on both sides. They observed how the paint did different things on the different sides. Some children experimented with refolding their paper after they had painted on it and then unfolding it again to see what happened. In the future, they can choose to employ wet on wet and/or wet on dry watercolor techniques depending on their specific expressive and representational intentions. 

Pre K Oil Pastel and Watercolor Explorations

Look at these gorgeous compositions of vibrant color, line and imagery.

Recent work by the artists at PS 307

2nd Grade

2nd graders looked at Romare Bearden's collage, "The Block" and the collage illustrations of Ezra Jack Keats which portray city scenes. Students first sketched a city block, thinking of all the different things they might see of a city block. Then they began creating collages of city blocks (these collages are still in progress). Students are learning about art history and how to closely observe art and illustrations, noticing details and thinking about what techniques artists use. Through sketching a city block, they are developing drawing skills while learning the process of sketching as a tool for getting their ideas on paper and planning for a project. Students combined personal imagery from their own experiences with city blocks and imagined imagery. As they begin to use mixed papers to create their city block collage, they are learning to make matches between materials and their ideas, and how a new idea can be inspired by a material. They are developing cutting and gluing skills and thinking about layering and overlap. 

above: detail of The Block by Romare Bearden and a page from The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

Kindergarten

Kindergarteners created oil pastel and watercolor resists of a place that is special to them. We had a class brainstorm discussion, listing special places, what you would see at those places, and how we could draw them with oil pastels. Then we saw what happens when you paint with watercolors over oil pastel drawings. Students learned that oil and water do not mix and therefore oil pastels and watercolor don't mix so the oil pastels push away or resist the watercolors. Students also noticed that the watercolor paint made the oil pastels look like "glow in the dark", making the colors of the oil pastels look brighter when next to a darker color than they did just on the white paper.