Masterpieces from San Diego Youth Art Month Show

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the annual San Diego Youth Art Month (YAM) show. I saw some gorgeous artworks – here are a few that caught my eye.

Elementary school:

Collage:

Playing card collage

Playing card collage, elementary level.

Playing card collage, elementary level.

Corrugated Cardboard portrait collage

Elementary corrugated cardboard portrait.

Elementary corrugated cardboard portrait.

Printmaking:

Clipper ship watercolor and print

Clipper ship watercolor and print from Ocean Air elementary school.

Collagraph printed in rainbow ink

Collagraph print in rainbow ink, from Ocean Air elementary school.

Collagraph print in rainbow ink, from Ocean Air elementary school.

Sculpture

These plaster masks are from our school! Congrats to Camille (1st place elementary 3D), Olive (2nd place), Morgan (3rd place), Caroline and Santiago.

Solana Santa Fe elementary school masks at YAM.

Solana Santa Fe elementary school masks at YAM.

High School

Zentangle elephant

Zentangle Elephant by Alexis Griffith, Guajome Park Academy High School.

Zentangle Elephant by Alexis Griffith, Guajome Park Academy High School.

This is exquisite.  In the art room, this could be adapted as an early finisher activity if you hand out an elephant line drawing as a coloring page.

Dia de Los Muertos cut paper art

Dia de Los Muertos Cut Paper design by Lizeth Garcia, Torrey Pines High School.

Dia de Los Muertos Cut Paper design by Lizeth Garcia, Torrey Pines High School.

This piece is by a former student, now in high school! So glad she is still enjoying art.

Lots more awesomeness on display, including Don Masse’s mud cloth collage and Marz Jr. line drawings.

Thanks to the San Diego Art Institute and the San Diego County Art Education Association for a fabulous YAM show.

Enjoy!

Winter Olympic Sculptures

ski racing olympic trophy

Thinking about a Winter Olympic art project? Why not make your own sport trophy for your favorite Olympic event? Our fifth graders created these sport trophies using floral wire, foil, and plaster wrap. Accessories were made from toothpicks and popsicle sticks. We used acrylic paint or metallic spray paint (everyone can ‘get a gold’ if you use gold spray paint!). Everything was attached to a wooden base. You’ll need reference photos as well.

Click here to see all my links to my favorite sculpture supplies.  You can also find the floral wire at Michael’s and my favorite pop-up pre-cut foil at Costco and Smart and Final.

olympic skating trophyClick here, here, and here to see more examples and the complete lesson plan.

winter olympic curling trophyI taught this project to adults as well – they were able to create the unpainted trophies in about an hour. At the elementary level, this took us 6-8 sessions at 40 minutes per class. Middle and high school students with NICE LONG CLASS PERIODS (envy envy envy) should be able to do this in a couple of weeks.

Our students look forward to this project for years. They treasure their trophies for years after. A lot of work, but worth it.

Enjoy!

Plaster Masks 2013

plaster masks 2013

What’s the most popular, most anticipated project in the entire art program? Our plaster masks! Every year the 5th graders create masks using nothing more than plaster wrap and foil (and maybe a few yogurt cups). Painted and embellished with yarn and glitter, they hang in the art room until they star in the spring art show.

5th graders used plaster wrap and foil to create fanciful masks.

5th graders used plaster wrap and foil to create fanciful masks.

Plaster wrap is plaster-coated cotton gauze. It is similar to the material used to cast broken bones. Dip it in water, and it hardens within minutes.

Learning about masks

The week before the art project, we learn about masks. Masks can be used for plays and dances, for rituals, for protection, for celebrations (such as Halloween), or just for decoration. I bring in my entire mask collection from around the world. I distribute the masks between the tables, and we do a rotation so that everyone can try on all the masks. I show the kids all the students photos of the student masks from 2012. I also posted a link to all the masks at the Mingei Museum in San Diego, just in case they wanted to do some research at home.

Materials:

  • Plaster wrap (I get Pacon Plast’r Craft in 20 lb. boxes)
  • aluminum foil (I use pre-cut foil pop-up sheets – such a time saver!)
  • old yogurt cups
  • scissors
  • old plastic bowls (I use old Cool Whip tubs) for dipping, one for every two students
  • armature (I use plastic dollar store trays), or face form for mask making, one per student
  • newspaper for covering tables
  • 5-gallon bucket
  • acrylic paint
  • embellishments such as glitter and yarn
  • white glue
  • optional for hanging: medium size binder clips

(note: compensated affiliate links above)

Day 1: Cover the armature with plaster wrap

Cover the tables with paper. Fill plastic bowls 1/2 full with water. Cut plaster wrap into 2″-wide pieces and distribute. Pass out foil sheets.

If you are doing this project with dozens of kids, the logistics can be tricky. I wrote about this process last year. Click here to read more tips about working with plaster.

Start by covering the outside of the plastic armature or face form with foil (this keeps the armature clean so we can re-use it next year). Next, cover the outside of the armature with three layers of plaster wrap (dipped in water). After applying the wet plaster, students should smooth it with their fingers. Let dry overnight.

Don’t know how to apply plaster wrap? Check out this video from Artchoo!

Warning! Don’t Pour the Plaster Water Down the Drain!

At the end of class, DO NOT DUMP THE PLASTER WATER DOWN THE DRAIN (Never. That plaster will harden in the drain and cause a nasty, expensive clog). Instead, pour all the plaster water into the 5-gallon bucket and put it in a corner. By morning, the heavy plaster will have settled to the bottom of the bucket, leaving clear water at the top. Pour off the clear water. Don’t dump the plaster residue. Stick the bucket back in the corner until the next class.

Days 2-4: Add facial features and horns

Prep as you did for the last class. Pass out scissors.

Most facial features such as eyes, nose and lips can be made by adding wadded or rolled wet plaster strips. For a snout, use an inverted yogurt cup covered with plaster strips. Students can cut plaster into smaller strips if desired.

Horns can be made using twisted foil. Just shape the foil, and ‘tape’ it to the face using strips of plaster. Then wrap the horn in plaster strips, starting at the base of the horn. You can use this technique to make tusks, arms, etc.

Horns are made from twisted foil covered with plaster wrap. Snout is an inverted yogurt cup covered with plaster wrap.

Horns are made from twisted foil covered with plaster wrap. Snout is an inverted yogurt cup covered with plaster wrap.

 

M's mammoth mask has ears made from paper plates covered with two layers of plaster wrap.

M’s mammoth mask has ears made from paper plates covered with two layers of plaster wrap. Trunk was made from yogurt cups, foil and plaster wrap. B’s villain mask has horns made from foil covered in plaster wrap.

Big elephant ears (and bird wings) were made using cut paper plates covered in two layers of plaster wrap.

I wrote about this last year. Click here to see more mask making photos.

Day 5: Paint

Remove the armature and throw away the foil covering. Paint mask with acrylic paint. (Note: I have had bad results painting plaster with tempera.  It cracked and flaked off. If you absolutely must use tempera, put some white glue in the paint).

Day 6: Decorate

Decorate the masks with yarn, glitter, etc. White glue works really well with yarn. Use hot glue to add heavier decorations.

Attach a binder clip to the top of the mask and pin to the wall.

Reflection:

I’m not going to lie – this is the most challenging project I offer to any grade any year, both for me and for the students. It is completely open-ended – they can make any sort of mask, and use any decoration I have in the art room. I have two parent volunteers most weeks for this project. It would be easier if I had more than 40 minutes per class, especially because I have to allow 7 minutes for clean up.

 

End of project plaster clean up

What to do with a bucket of plaster goo? After you have poured off all the clear water, scoop all the remaining plaster goo from the bottom of the bucket into an old cardboard box and throw the box away.

Enjoy!


Face Form for Mask Making – $1.99 from: Blick Art Materials (compensated affiliate)

 

Note: this post contains affiliate links.

Plaster Fish Sculpture

Vintage ad for Pariscraft plaster bandage fish sculpture. School Arts magazine, February 1972.

Vintage ad for Pariscraft plaster bandage fish sculpture. School Arts magazine, February 1972.

Check out these instructions for a plaster fish made on a balloon armature. This is an ad for Pariscraft plaster wrap I found in the February 1972 issue of School Arts magazine.

You’ll need the following materials :

  • Pariscraft or other plaster wrap
  • Balloon, 7-8″
  • Scissors
  • Old cereal box or light cardboard
  • Tape
  • Dowel
  • Wooden base
  • Acrylic paint
  • Old bowl for dipping

Doesn’t it look amazing? Can you imagine a display of these at the art show?

You can still get Paris Craft at Amazon. I have never used this brand – I’ve had great success with Pacon Plast’r Craft  plaster wrap. Click here to read my tips for handling plaster wrap in class.

Happy throwback Thursday! Stop by on Thursdays and see what else I’ve found in my stash of vintage art Ed magazines.

Enjoy!


p.s. Remember – never pour plaster water down the drain!

 

note: this post contains affiliate links

 

Art + Cooking Camp: Degas, Sculpture and Chocolate Fondue

We had a fabulous time all week at my Paris-themed art and cooking camp. On the last day, we wrapped up our sculpture project and made yummy chocolate fondue.

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A couple of campers wanted to make animal sculptures. They used foil and plaster or white Sculpey polymer clay to create their creatures. Not so Parisian, but I love how they turned out.

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The recipe for chocolate fondue was the easiest of all our recipes this week: 8 oz. of chopped semi-sweet chocolate heated with 1/3 cup of half-and-half. Pound cake cubes, whole strawberries and sliced banana tasted delicious dipped in the warm chocolate.
So much fun!

Enjoy!


Let’s Go to Paris! Art + Cooking Camp
Day One: Crepes and Monet
Day Two: Madeleines and the Eiffel Tower
Day Three: Meringues and Degas
Day Four: Cherry Cake and Pointillism

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