Parent Class
Working on our first flag, figuring out how to share space such a big piece of material.
Elements of the flag coming together.
Food flag sketches.
Our year began by getting to know each other and getting to know how we work together. Jordan was a newcomer to the class, so it felt necessary to become comfortable with people. After our initial flag exercise, one of our first projects was to create a flag of family memories from around the table. Each person shared about food that reminded them of home and family and then sketched their food. Their sketches were used to inform their final image on the collective flag. As a group, we figured out the layout of our flag so that everyone could have space.
Fleshing out sketches.
Negotiating layout.
Revising layout.
Beginning to place images on the flag.
Finishing touches.
Initial sketch and final flag.
To finalize our flag project, we took turns video recording telling the stories of our memories.
Once our flag was finished, we did an unwinding project where we worked collectively on a large piece of paper to construct a collage. As we cut and tore out shapes, conversation flowed. The objective was to keep our minds distracted from what our hands were doing so that we could relinquish the feeling of preciousness in the artmaking process.
Beginning stages of our collage.
Additions to the collage.
Our final collage, which remained on display in our classroom throughout the year, both as decoration and as a reminder of what can be done when we are working together.
Many jokes were made during class. Oliver Rosario was lovingly gifted a "bad" hat for talking over people so much.
To follow up our collage piece, we began working on faux stained glass, using color mylar sheets. Each person took a different approach. While people were working meticulously on their own projects, we also followed a similar model to our first collage, gluing scraps of plastic onto the windows to create another collective collage.
Our collective window collage.
Our window collages remained on the windows throughout the year. As the year progressed, we made our room feel more and more like our own by decorating with documents of our work. On many sunny days, light would pour through our window collage, coloring the room.
Our next exploration was in screen printing. This exploration took us to the end of the year. The more we learned, the more questions we had. We cut out paper stencils to use with screens. We used screen-drawing fluid to make stencils. We painted directly through iron-on stencils using freezer paper. Some of our prints were on fabric. Some were on paper. We discovered that we enjoyed many of our mistakes more than our successes.
Cutting out freezer paper stencils.
Painting through freezer paper stencils on a collective sweatshirt.
Our finished collective sweatshirt.
Our finished collective sweatshirt.
At one point, our class was invited to present on the art class's board in the 3rd floor hallway. We displayed our collective collage, family memories flag, and screen printing tests. At one point, the art teacher, Mrs. Netter invited us to speak with 7th graders about our process and answer questions. There was much excitement in the hallway that day.
Our final project was collectively designing and printing tote bags. We purchased 48 tote bags and brainstormed designs. By the end of the year, we hadn't finished printing, but that just means we can continue during our summer sessions, which everyone is excited to join.
