Watercolor explorations (2nd Grade)

2nd graders were introduced to watercolor paper, which is much heavier than regular paper. They also used a wonderful technique of creating an instant 'frame' for your painting which I picked up from fellow Murch parent and artist, Regina Holliday.

This is not just any ordinary watercolor palette. This is a metallic watercolor set......the colors were brilliant!!

Children used masking tape to create an instant 'frame' for their watercolor paper.

4th Grade moving bodies figures...a few more samples

Here are a few more samples of our unit on moving bodies. Kids added props to strengthen their message. The goal was to create a sculpture in which the body's position expressed a very obvious message or movement.

Click here to volunteer for the art show!! (need help setting up and with snacks/refreshments)

Parents, above (green button) is the link to the volunteer sign up form for the 2nd Annual Murch Art show. Thank you all so much for your support in advance. To have your child's work celebrated by the entire community is an amazing feeling that will stay with children for the rest of their lives....

If you are having trouble signing up just know that food/drinks/cup/napkins due the 25th (night of the art show) at 5:30 to the all purpose room. You can also drop it off in the art room at drop off/pick-up. I will also need help with set up from 4-6pm and then after at 7:50pm for clean up. The works will come down the week after on Thursday at 3:30pm-4:30pm.

Are there any student or adult musician(s)/singer(s) out there who would like to perform that evening....I am wide open......

See you all FRIDAY!!!

Murch Parents, Save the Date!!

Click below to see entries and kids' names entered in the Cherry Blossom Art Show.

http://murchart.blogspot.com/2011/03/cherry-blossom-festivals-youth-art.html

Posters sent to the Cherry Blossom Festival will be exhibited at Union Station from March 22 - April 24, 2011, and winning

entries will be displayed at the Family Day & Opening Ceremony on Saturday, March 26,

2011 at the National Building Museum. I have not yet gotten any information about 'winning entries'. But I hope to see you all at Union Station Opening Ceremony March 26th, 2011.

2nd Annual Murch Art Show-DEADLINE EXTENDED

Pk kids to 5th Graders!!
Enter the....
2nd Annual Murch Art Show

Opening Celebration and Reception: March 25th,2011, 6-8pm
(Parents needed to donate refreshments and help set up and take down. Contact Ms. Cutelis at Miriam.cutelis@yahoo.com if interested)
Time: 6pm-8pm in All-purpose Room at Murch
Up to 2 flat art pieces due to Ms. Cutelis: By March 21th, 2011, 4pm or before

Instructions for entering:
All work must be 2D (flat). Sorry, sculptures will not be accepted this year.
Up to 2 works only per child
The work could be work done from home or at school.
All work MUST have a fully completed label (see below for labels)
All work must be taped/glue to a larger BLACK paper or black cardboard that will act like matting or frame. (see image below)

All labels must be attached to the matting, on the BOTTOM, to the RIGHT.
All work MUST be turned in by March 18th (4pm) to the art room.

Cut labels below:

Artist’s Full Name:_________________
Teacher’s name:___________________
Grade:___________________________
Title of work:_____________________
Medium used:_____________________

Artist’s Full Name:_________________
Teacher’s name:___________________
Grade:___________________________
Title of work:_____________________
Medium used:_____________________

All labels must be attached to the matting, on the BOTTOM, to the RIGHT.
All work MUST be turned in by March 18th (4pm) to the art room.

Cut labels below:

Artist’s Full Name:_________________
Teacher’s name:___________________
Grade:___________________________
Title of work:_____________________
Medium used:_____________________

Artist’s Full Name:_________________
Teacher’s name:___________________
Grade:___________________________
Title of work:_____________________
Medium used:_____________________

2nd Grade Mammal Clay Containers

Children in 2nd Grade have been studying all about sculptures. They are learning that sculptures can be made from pretty much anything such as wood, paper, cardboard, metal and even gold. We also learned that often sculptures can serve a double purpose. These here are beautiful mammal sculptures that are also containers and can serve a purpose. These sculptures are drying and will go through a 2-part painting process. Ask your child what mammal they made.

Metallic Watercolors, an exploration (K/welsh)

Kindergarten students in Mr. W's class have been exploring watercolor media. I introduced the kids to basic watercolor techniques, such as 'waking up the colors', and keeping a puddle in your palette to help keep colors rich. I also taped their 140lbs. paper to the table to prevent the paper from buckling. The watercolors were also not just your ordinary watercolor sets, they were METALLIC colors. The kids loved the glittery affect of all the colors.

Kids get to conference with either me or Mrs. Marcus to verbally work out their choices in composition.
Kids discover that the water color changes as they wash off their colors in the containers.

Check out that watercolor palette.

Amazingly detailed bird sketches (3rd Grade/HSU)

This 3rd grade class made the most amazing birdhouse for the Murch garden out of popsicles sticks. To decorate the birdhouse we made detailed sketches of birds that will afterwords be decoupaged on the house. I connected adding 'details' to our drawings as similar to adding 'details' to our stories. I told a story with very little detail and then the same story with many more details, then asked the kids which story they preferred. Kids loved the more detailed story. I then told them that the 'viewer' too prefers more details, for the eyes have more to see. On that note, I gave them wonderful calendar images (donated by Murch parents) from which to sketch from. I LOVE how amazingly different these sketches are!!

Creative family opportunities

Artist Julie Balzer from Balzer Designs, recently posted a video about art journaling (see below) on her website. On nights when we can't do messy art, I find art journaling with my 2 kids much more manageable and still very enjoyable. The key is to get every child a spiral bind art journal of their own so you can all work side by side and to have all your materials at your fingertips. You too will need an art journal of course. We do everything from cutting and gluing, doodling, drawing, coloring with crayons and markers, use stickers, stamps, punchers.....the sky's the limit.

So, I encourage Murch families to try family art journaling. I assure the grown ups will even love it. Enjoy!!

Art Journaling Fast Forward from Julie Balzer on Vimeo.

Note: for kids younger than 1st grade, I might just try giving them a paper to work on instead of a journal for they will not want to 'work' on a page for long.

Storytelling Class Update

For the afternoon storytelling class (Fridays for 20 K and 1st graders) we have been creating props for the story Three Little Pigs. Children practiced various emotions that each character felt at different parts of the story while sitting in a circle. Some kids made teeth for the wolf using rolled tape, some kids rolled paper for the 'hair' and glued them on. This coming Friday kids will take turns playing each part and being the audience.

Note: I will also be ordering some finger puppets and table puppet theaters for future classes.

Whole-School Auction Project Picture

Finally.....here is the image of the whole-school auction project Regina Holliday and I worked on for this year. My contribution was making sure every single child in the school added a 'twig' to the 3d tree you see on the left. In my own work I create trees and roots using molded paper on canvas, so this was such an amazing experience for me to share my own personal style with each child. Regina's contribution to this piece was working with the children to make the amazing moths you see and the very dramatic night painting. I just love that moon......

Storytelling using drawings

Children in prek have been learning about using drawing to tell stories. I demonstrated a story through pictures on my Elmo projector, the kids then chose a familiar story to illustrate to illustrate. Each work was just as rich and full of detail as the one you see below. Can you guess who is the troll in this image?

Tessellations Introduction (5th)

5th graders have been creating tessellations in art after looking at M.C. Escher's work. Below are some samples. We will explore more complicated designs using other geometric shapes after this week.

below is a video, so you and your entire family could play around with tessellations at home....

(warning, there is a very annoying ad right before this video.....ignore)

3D trees

As part of a unit on trees that will extend to learning about trees in the Murch property, 3rd graders here are making 3d trees. In the coming weeks they will paint their tree, each choose a Murch tree and create leaf prints for their trees. These trees will also be used as part of the set for the Murch play Little Red Riding Hood (3-5). Please see the Murch site for audition times and dates next week.