Art for All

Welcome to Art for All, a unique arts experience, presented by the Taft Museum!

What is the Taft Museum? The Taft Museum of Art is a living landmark tucked away in downtown Cincinnati, where art and history live on the walls—and in the walls. Built around 1820 as a private home for several of Cincinnati's most prominent citizens, the Taft Museum of Art is now one of the finest small art museums in America and holds National Historic Landmark status for its historic house and Duncanson murals.

Don't forget to show us your creations. Email pictures to partners@covington.kyschools.us. We can't wait to see!

After watching the video, complete the following questions:

1. Name three things that surprised you.

2. Name three things you learned.

3. What are three questions you still have after watching the video?

You can also color the picture below. This is the Taft Museum of Art.

*Materials for the art activity mentioned in the video will be available from your CLC coordinator when students return to school. Materials can also be delivered home. The instruction video for this project can be found HERE. Contact your CLC coordinator for further information.

This week's activity is inspired by the artwork "Europa and the Bull" by J.M.W. Turner. View the above video to learn more about this piece. See how he swirls his paint on the canvas? Turner allows for the textures of the paint to add to the mysteriousness of this composition. Answer the following questions before beginning the art project.

1. When you look at this painting, what do you see?

2. What emotion do you think Turner is trying to convey?

Sidewalk Chalk Paint

Check out the video or follow the instructions to make your sidewalk chalk paint!

SUPPLIES:

• Cornstarch

• Water

• Liquid food coloring

• Bowls

• Paint brushes (1”-2” coarse bristle hair brushes are recommended)

STEPS:

1. Add about 1/3 of cornstarch to a small bowl.

2. Add about 1/3 cup of water to the cornstarch and mix to combine. If you find the cornstarch is too gloopy and thick, continue to add water a little at a time until the cornstarch stops sticking to itself. This is supposed be watery!

3. Add 4-5 drops of the food coloring of your choice. Mix to combine. Continue to add color if desired. The paint dries lighter than the color you will see in your bowl.

4. Grab your paint brushes (I’d recommend using one brush per color), your paints, and go outside and start creating!

TIPS:

• The paint is supposed to be very watery! You can always add more water or more cornstarch to the mixture as needed.

• This paint covers all sorts of concrete surfaces very well.

This week's activity is inspired by the artwork "The Trout Stream" by J.M.W. Turner. In this artwork, you see Turner's signature swirling skies in the background and fishermen in the foreground.

1. Can you see the fishing poles in this painting? What do you think the two men sitting on the sand are doing?

2. What emotion do you think Turner is trying to convey in this painting?

3. How does this compare to last week's artwork, "Europa and the Bull"?

Foil Fish

Check out the video or follow the instructions to make your foil fish!

While you may not be able to go out fishing where you live, creating your own fish can be just as fun!

SUPPLIES:

Knowing that we all might not have the same supplies, we have a few options for the base of our bodies. We need something sturdy to wrap our foil around. If you need to use regular paper, we suggest putting a few sheets together, folding them in half, and then taping/gluing/stapling them together.

• A paper plate, thin cardboard (think empty cereal box), cardstock, or 3-4 sheets of paper

• Aluminum foil

• Markers (permanent works best if you have them)

• Scissors

• Tape (optional)

STEPS:

1. Draw your fish. Once you have your paper body structure, use a marker to outline a fish onto the material. Fish come in all different shapes (look up fish with your family and see what kind of body you want to draw). A simple way to draw a fish is to draw a large circle for the main body and then draw a smaller triangle with the tip touching the circle to make a tail.

2. Cut out your body using the scissors. Depending on the thickness of the material you are using, this may need to be a job for the adults.

3. Rip or cut a piece of foil that is big enough to wrap around your fish. Fold the foil all around your fish so that one side is completely covered in the foil and smooth. You may need to use a smaller piece of foil to cover the tail.

4. Take a marker and make a dot for the eye and a line for the mouth for your fish face.

5. Color and decorate your fish! If your markers do not show up on the foil, go ahead and color directly onto your body. You will still get a super cute fish!

TIPS:

• Make your fins wide and sturdy.

• Use tape to reinforce the back of your fish.

This week's activity is inspired by the Chinese vase "Square Tapering Vase with Flowers of the Four Seasons." In this artwork, you see each side of the vase represents one of the four seasons. On the first day of each season, the collections team at the Taft Museum carefully turns the vase so that the side depicting the current season is visible. Spring is represented by the peony, summer the lotus, autumn the chrysanthemum, and winter the plum blossom. Do a quick image search to see what each flower looks like.

1. Why do you think each flower was chosen to represent each season?

2. Which flower is your favorite and why?

3. If you could choose any flower to represent your favorite season, what would it be and why?

Salt Dough

Check out the video or follow the instructions to make your salt dough!

SUPPLIES:

• 1 cup of all purpose flour

• ½ cup of table salt

• ½ cup of water

• Optional: parchment paper, paint, yarn/twine, natural objects from yard

STEPS:

1. Add flour and salt to a mixing bowl, then stir in the water. Note that the ratio for this recipe is 2 parts flour, 1 part water and salt. You can scale the recipe up or down if you would like. For example, I did ½ cup flour and ¼ cup of salt and water in the video. If your dough is too wet, add more flour; if it is too dry, add more water! This is a very forgiving recipe.

2. Once the mixture comes together, begin to knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for about 5-10 minutes. This helps the dough develop more rigidity once dried. If you would like colorful clay, you can add food coloring to your dough now. I chose to leave mine natural because I wanted to paint the objects later.

3. Rest the dough for about 15 minutes and preheat your oven to 250 degrees. Then roll it out on a lightly floured surface or shape the dough however you would like! For the rolled dough, use cookie cutters or a knife to create shapes. Punch holes in your objects now if you plan to make ornaments or beads.

4. Place your creations on a baking sheet and place in the oven. I recommend baking on parchment paper if you have it, but it’s not completely necessary.

5. Baking time will vary depending on the thickness of the object. I checked on the pieces every 20-30 minutes, flipping them occasionally. It took me about 1.5 hours to bake a ¼ inch object. You can also air-dry your creations, but baking gives the object more rigidity.

6. Once your objects have cooled, paint away! I used acrylic paints for my creations!

Did you know the Taft has art from England, China, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain, and the United States? Art can be a fun introduction to a new culture. Learn about what a country looks like through landscapes, what symbols are important (think back to the flowers from the Chinese vase we looked at last week), and even different fashions through portraits.

For example, during the 1600s in the Netherlands, black clothes and lace were the height of fashion for the well-to-do. Black dye was very expensive and only high quality dyes would not fade easily. Lace pieces were hand-stitched making larger pieces more expensive. "Portrait of a Man Rising from His Chair" by the Dutch painter Rembrandt, painted in 1633, shows an example of this.

1. Knowing now about fashion during this time in the Netherlands, what social class do you think this man was a part of and why?

2. Think about fashion where you live. What is popular today?

Rembrandt's Statement Collar

Check out the video or follow the instructions to make your own fabulous fashion statements!

SUPPLIES:

• Paper plate or stiff cardboard (e.g. empty cereal box)

• Markers/Crayons/Colored Pencils

• Scissors

• Tape, stapler, hot glue, or white glue

• Odds and ends of wrapping paper, junk mail, foil, sequins, party napkins, wire, ribbon, etc.

STEPS:

1. Cut out your collar.

If using a paper plate, make a cut from the edge of the plate up to the circle base of the plate. Make a second cut about 2-3 inches from the first cut from the edge of the plate up to the circle of the base. The rim of the plate with the 2-3 inch gap will be your collar.

If using cardboard, place a large dinner plate upside down on the paper so that the plate covers most of the paper and trace the edge of the plate. Move the plate so it now covers about half the paper and trace the edge of the plate. Remove the plate and cut along the lines you created.

2. Use markers or colored pencils to add designs to your collar.

3. Decorate your collar by adhering different objects to it. For example, try cutting out different shapes from wrapping paper and tape them to your collar.

Close your eyes and imagine a painting. What surface did the artist use for the painting? What type of paint was used? We most often think of paintings on canvases with oil, tempera, or watercolor paints; however, artists have found ways to apply paint to different surfaces for centuries.

This week we're drawing inspiration from "Courting Dish with Elena Bella," an early example of maiolica (my-o-li-ca), an Italian decorative arts style, featuring a dish that is painted with metal! The plate is formed out of clay and fired in a hot kiln to harden it. Then, the dish is coated in a glaze made of ground-up tin and placed back in the kiln for a second time. The high heat turns the tin white, giving the artist a background they could then easily add color to by painting other metal powders one by one and firing after each color. The blues you see on this plate were likely made from ground cobalt.

Maiolica is very tricky to make because you would not know what the color would look like until after it was fired, and you would not be able to fix any mistakes!

Papier-Mâché Meets Maiolica

Check out the video or follow the instructions to create your own beautiful plate using papier-mâché and paints!

SUPPLIES:

• Newspaper or similar paper (can use copy paper or tissue paper, but newspaper is the best)

• ½ cup of all-purpose flour

• 1 cup of water

• Pinch of salt (optional)

• Plastic wrap

• 2 stoneware or glass dinner plates (can use plastic, stoneware and glass just provide more weight)

• Paint

• Paintbrushes

• Optional: Elmer’s glue

TIPS:

• The recipe is simple! 1 part flour to 2 parts water. If you want to scale down as we did in the video, use 1/3 cup of flour and 2/3 cups of water.

• If you don’t use all of your flour mixtures, cover the bowl in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge. When you’re ready to use it again, just whisk it together!

• Cover your work surface with something disposable or easily cleaned. Papier-mâché is messy!

STEPS:

1. Wrap one plate in plastic wrap.

2. Tear newspaper into strips. Vary the lengths and widths.

3. Create paste by adding 1 part flour to 2 parts water and a pinch of salt. Whisk to combine.

4. Dip one strip of paper at a time into the paste. Use your fingers to remove excess paste. You want the paper to be fully wet, but not dripping.

5. Place a strip of wet paper on your plastic-wrapped plate. Make sure you overlap the strips of paper to create a bond between the paper. Add wet strips until the surface is fully covered.

6. Continue to add layers of paper until you achieve the desired thickness. I added two layers at a time, let dry, then added more. In between adding layers, I set another plate on top of the paper mache so it would mold to the plate’s shape. It takes around 24 hours to dry fully between adding layers.

7. Once you are finished adding paper, allow the papier-mâché to dry fully.

8. Peel your creation off the plastic-wrapped plate and paint your own designs! I recommend painting a white or solid color background first using acrylic paint.

Rip, tear, shred! Let's go wild making torn paper landscapes.

Inspired by the Taft's famous Duncason murals, we’re mixing real and imagined scenes of nature. Did you know​ he used locations along the Ohio River to inspire his composition and then added his own elements from his imagination?

Torn Paper Landscapes

Check out the video or follow the instructions to create your own beautiful outdoor landscape! Think back to your favorite outdoor place. Is there anything you could add or change that would make it ‘your own’?

SUPPLIES:

• 1 full piece of construction paper (or white paper)

• Scraps of construction paper (or scraps of white paper)

• Glue stick (or white glue or tape)

• Optional: markers/colored pencils/crayons

STEPS:

1. If you are using white paper, take your coloring tool and roughly color the paper so you can tell what color it is meant to be before you move onto the next step. Do not worry if you can still see the white of the paper, you will be able to color more at the end.

2. Pick the color paper you want to use for your first piece of nature. Rip and tear the paper into the shape you want. Repeat this process until you have all the pieces you want.

3. Arrange your pieces on your full piece of paper to create your landscape. Try experimenting with placing larger and smaller pieces of similar shapes or overlapping your pieces to make a more complicated landscape.

4. Once you have your pieces arranged how you want them, glue them to down to your paper.

5. If you used white paper and coloring tools, go back and finish coloring your pieces after the glue dries.

The Taft is home to quite a few portraits of mothers with their children. In this painting ("Mrs. John Weyland and her son John" by Joshua Reynolds), Mrs. Weyland poses with her son John. Today's activity is inspired by this photo.

1. If you were to “unfreeze” this painting, what do you think the child would do?

2. How might his mother respond?

Stamping Cards

Check out the video or follow the instructions to create your own hand-made card. Take some time today to show someone special in your life how much you love them with this special card. You can make it for anyone!

SUPPLIES:

• Paper (cardstock is best, but any paper will do!)

• Paint (acrylic is preferred, but tempera works too)

• Plastic bottle caps

• Toilet paper rolls

• Paint brushes

• Markers

• Scissors

STEPS:

1. Fold your paper in half. Write a greeting on the front of the card based on who you are making the card for...Happy Birthday, Happy Mother's Day...Merry Christmas! You choose!

2. Take a toilet paper roll and make cuts about 1” deep all around the top. Fan out the “petals” of your flower stamp by bending the cuts out.

3. Repeat with as many toilet paper rolls as you would like.

4. Squeeze paint onto a flat surface like a paper plate or piece of foil.

5. Press the toilet paper roll stamp into the paint and make sure all of the “petals” are covered in an even amount of paint.

6. Press the stamp to the card’s surface. You may need to press each “petal” individually to ensure the paint is being applied to the paper.

7. Repeat as desired!

8. Dip the bottle caps or the uncut end of the toilet paper roll into paint and apply to the paper to make circles. Repeat as desired.

9. Trace back over your greeting with paint or after the paint has dried, use a marker to go back over the words.

10. Repeat on the inside of the card if desired.

Weaving is often considered a hobby by most who do it. However, some weavers practice so much that they eventually become masters and their work is considered art.

The Taft’s woven tapestry is around 500 years old. While at first glance, it may look like a painting in this video, but take a closer look. Can you see all the different threads that make up the tapestry’s composition? Imagine you were weaving this tapestry using just your hands...how long do you think it would take for you to finish it?

Looms & Weaving

Check out the video or follow the instructions to create your own loom.

SUPPLIES:

• Cardboard

• Yarn

• Scissors

• Optional supplies: old t-shirts, twine, paper, and other materials to weave

STEPS:

1. Cut a rectangular piece of cardboard from a box. For the video, the cardboard was 4”x5”.

2. On opposite sides, make a small ¼” incision every 1” or so. You can vary the number of incisions you would like to make, but just be sure to have the same number on both sides.

3. Using your yarn or other strings begin to create your loom by placing the yarn through one incision leaving about a 1” tail on the backside. Tape that tail down and then stretch the string to the other side of the cardboard and place it in the parallel incision.

4. Wrap the string around the backside to the next incision and then stretch across the cardboard to the parallel cut on the other side. Repeat these steps until there are no more incisions needing string.

5. To start weaving, place your yarn, string, or other material over the top of the first loom string. Then bring the yarn under the next string. Repeat the over-under pattern until you reach the end. To continue, just loop the string over or under (whichever is next in your sequence) and continue the weaving pattern until you run of out string or until you want to change materials.

6. To finish the project, trim any loose string ends or tuck them into the project and enjoy!

This week's project is inspired by the hawk's feathers (a porcelain hawk) in the video. The art piece comes from China and was created around 1760.

1. What colors do you see in the hawk's feathers?

2. Why do you think the artist chose those colors?

The tool you use to paint can affect how colors blend together. Let's try experimenting with different painting tools to create a colorful painting.

Blending Paint

SUPPLIES:

• Paper plates (can also use plain paper)

• Acrylic paint (can also use tempera paint)

• Scissors

• Tape or glue

• String

• Hole punch (optional)

• Markers (optional)

• Paintbrushes (optional)

STEPS:

1. Take two paper plates and turn them upside down.

2. Squeeze 3-6 colors of paint on to the flat surface of one of your plates. Remember: you don’t need a lot of paint!

3. Take the underside of the second plate and press on top of the painted side of the first plate.

4. Twist the plates between your hands and then peel the plates apart to reveal your blended paint masterpiece!

5. Once the paint has dried, trim the edges around the flat part of the plates. Optional: fill in negative space with drawings or create a border around the painted parts of the plates.

6. Tape or glue the unpainted sides together.

7. Punch a hole towards the top and use string to create an ornament!

Madeline Ndambakuwa is a communication expert, a public speaker, visual artist, writer, and poet, originally from Harare, Zimbabwe. She immigrated in 2001 to Cincinnati, Ohio. She believes that in every adversity, there is a gifted champion or game-changer rising with strength and resilience, ready to change the world and make an impact. Each piece of art and each poem is a statement of resilience, a refusal to interfere with destiny, and a voice of raw creativity. Learn more HERE.

1. How do you think poetry and painting are connected?

2. Your task: Draw a picture or paint a painting. Write a poem that connects to this artwork.

Pedro Moreno is a multimedia artist who immigrated from Bolivia more than 40 years ago. Moreno studied at art schools in La Paz, Bolivia, Texas, and Louisiana before coming to Cincinnati. Paint is Moreno’s primary medium, using it to describe and preserve his thoughts on life, its complexity, and the world as a home. Much of his recent work is inspired by Spanish culture. In 2018 and 2019, his work was displayed at the Peaslee Neighborhood Center in Cincinnati and was recognized as the 2019 Movement Artist of the Year by the Cincinnati Interfaith Workers Center. The Welcome Project has also exhibited his works as the resident artist during summer 2019.

1. Have you noticed any murals around your neighborhood or Covington? What did these murals look like?

2. Below are two murals that can be found in Covington. What do you think these murals represent? What was the artist trying to convey through these murals?

3. Your task: Create your own mural! If you could create a large mural anywhere in the world, where would it be? What would it look like? Why? Draw your mural on a piece of paper. Show us your mural--email a picture to partners@covington.kyschools.us.

“Hi, my name is Nikki Martin and I am a fashion designer,” Nikki repeats over a handshake with every new acquaintance she makes. Fashion design has become a great part of her identity, as great as being African American or a woman. Every week, she produces large quantities of drawings influenced by contemporary and vintage designers. She primarily works in ink, marker, and watercolor. Nikki has developed a technique to express different shades of marker by diluting its ink with a water-soaked paint brush. Garments from Nikki’s House of Couture collection were featured in the “What Matters Most” fashion show in fall 2009. V+V presented Nikki Martin’s Retrospective “Fitted” in 2016. Nikki has been shown in many V+V and community art exhibitions and she is also a member of Visionaries + Voices Teaching Artist Program (TAP).

1. How do you think fashion design fits into the arts?

2. What school subjects do you think are important to a fashion designer? Why?

3. Your task: Create your own new fashion trend. Be a fashion designer for the day and design a new outfit. After you've finished, email your drawing to partners@covington.kyschools.us--we want to see your designs!

Diamond Snowden creates paintings inspired by urban culture and abstract shapes. He valiantly undertakes any artistic challenge presented to him, confidently experimenting with new techniques and materials. Pop and urban culture have been primary influences in Snowden’s art. This vast source of inspiration has resulted in a diverse body of work ranging from portraits to cityscapes. Snowden has shown considerable leadership skills in his time at the studio. Always willing to assist his fellow artists, Diamond’s considerate nature and motivational attitude have earned him the title of “Studio Assistant” in the Northside studio. Diamond’s leadership skills and completion of Visionaries + Voices Teaching Artist Program have helped him earn multiple teaching opportunities in schools and programs throughout Greater Cincinnati. 

1. What do you see when you look at Snowden's painting in the video?

2. As an artist, do you think it is important to have inspiration? What would be your inspiration?

3. Your task: Create a cityscape of your favorite city. Google images of your favorite city's cityscape and use that as your inspiration for your picture. Use any method for your picture (drawing, painting, etc.). You can even create a 3-D sculpture. Be creative! Don't forget to show us your work--we love seeing pictures of your art. Email a picture to partners@covington.kyschools.us.