INTRODUCTION
MATER I AL S
Art is everywhere. You don’t have to be an artist to teach art. Every child is an artist and you can find great inspiration from anywhere, especially nature. This study outlines the ground-breaking concepts, ideas and techniques that are found in Land Art and other major art movements of the 21st century through activities to be run with children ages 3yrs+. Teach children to use their imagination using natural materials such as stones, and empower them to create a world of possibilities available to them at any moment of the day, without the use of the latest action figures!
Sticks & Stones makes use of nature’s loose parts: stones, sticks and leaves as well as mud to explore sculpture and painting. Children are naturally drawn to these materials and focusing their attention on raw materials, that have not yet been manipulated by man, is fundamental. Children will learn that art can be done with anything, anywhere, and with a simple intervention, material can be transformed to convey a lot of meaning.
The goal for Sticks & Stones is for children to produce aesthetic works of art that they will be proud to share, beautifully documented with the Sticks & Stones Children’s Art Portfolio. In addition, the Sticks & Stones Children’s Art Portfolio makes a beautiful keepsake children will enjoy looking back on in the years to come.
Everyone has access to natural materials. Go on a walk to the park and pick up some leaves, look on the ground for some stones. You’ll be surprised by how much nature has to offer you to use in the classroom. In addition to sticks and stones, you will also need pencils, crayons, colored markers, children’s paint, paint brushes and containers to finish certain projects from time to time. Teachers will need a camera or smartphone all the time to document the children’s works!
My goal as a Contemporary Artist is to entrust teachers to talk knowledgably about Contemporary Art and inspire a new generation of artists to use innovative techniques to express themselves beyond the confines of figurative art. Sticks & Stones removes your budget constraints whilst taking children’s art to the next level. Enjoy!
PROCESS One of the reasons that Contemporary Art lends itself so beautifully to young children, is that oftentimes it is more concerned with the process than the final output. Sticks & Stones follows a very simple process: 1. Explore – children are invited to spend ample time exploring matter and its properties, shape and form. Once children are familiar with the object, then we move onto providing specialized techniques. This process is identified with the magnifying lense icon. 2. Create – Sticks & Stones makes use of basic art techniques from drawing, coloring, painting to printing, in addition to more technical methods and procedures such as installations, layering and sculpture. These processes are identified with the draw, print, paint icons. 3. Document – The documentation process is fundamental in all Hoopla curricula and in Sticks & Stones can be identified with the camera icon. Here the teacher or children document their work by taking a picture of the final output when related to sculpture work or creating their work directly on their portfolio.
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