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Followers
2/27/12
2/17/12
2nd graders painting images plastic fruits and vegatables in high contrast lighting to better see the light areas and the shadows
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2/15/12
2/14/12
Strathmore art programs for kids
I just got this information about upcoming kid-friendly activities that complement the new Strathmore exhibition 'You Are What You Eat — Play with your Food' on Saturday, Feb. 18 and Cooking up Creativity on Saturday, Feb. 25. Both studio workshops provide kids with extended opportunities for creativity and learning alongside professional, working artists and curators. Students will create epicurean art inspired by Pablo Picasso, Georges Seurat and 16th-century painter Guiseppe Arcimboldo.
We also have as well as a free Talk & Tour on Saturday, March 10.
Full details are below under the heading Education Programming.
You’re welcome to share this information with your readers – and if your child might like to attend, please let me know so that we can make arrangements.
My best,
Mike
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 14, 2011
Contact: Michael Fila
(301) 581-5194
mfila@strathmore.org
Strathmore Fine Art Presents
You Are What You Eat
Nine artists explore consumption, body image, cultural significance of food in multi-media exhibit
NORTH BETHESDA, MD – With You Are What You Eat, Strathmore features nine artists whose work comments on perception of body image and the cultural significance of food, with a bent toward American idolization of consumption. The exhibition includes painting, sculpture, photography and multi-media works by Danny Rozin, Peter Anton, Matthew Lawrence, Pamela Michelle Johnson, Davette Leonard, Rhonda Harris Banes, Matt Freedman, Joey Manlapazand Donna McCullough on view through March 17, 2012 in the Mansion. Pieces in the exhibition can be purchased. For more information, call (301) 581-5100 or visit www.strathmore.org.
A free opening reception for the public will be held on Sunday, February 12, 2012 from 2-4 p.m. in the Mansion.
Commenting on the Cultural Signifance of Food
Sculptor Danny Rozin’s large scale picture plane Trash Mirror #3 is composed of 500 pieces of discarded refuse collected from the streets of New York—wrappers, cans, cigarettes packs, coffee cups, coupons, tickets, hotel room keys and other ephemera. Each piece of garbage is attached to an individual motor that moves in response to motion in front of the piece, reflecting the relationship between the viewer and disposable items.
Peter Anton explodes the proportion of foods commonly taken for granted to make them aesthetically pleasing and seductive in atypical ways. Anton’s sculptural works, mostly sweets, stimulate basic human needs and desires that generate cravings. The exaggerated scale of a toppled over ice cream sundae, a popsicle with a bite taken out of it or a rifled-through box of chocolates make them tempting, while at the same time making it impossible not to reflect on what the viewer consumes in their own diet. Anton’s “Boxed Chocolates” was created specifically for You Are What You Eat.
Overindulgence, decadence and excess are reflected in Matthew Lawrence’s multi-media works with glitter, rhinestones and bold color. The artist explores what people put in their bodies as a form of escapism using small toys, mosaic, cartooning and illustration in the style of classic tattoo art. In the piece, “My God Given Right to Consume,” created specifically for You Are What You Eat, the artist shows a woman with a vortex of consumables—cupcakes, pills, a hot dog—swirling into her mouth, illustrating the use of external means as a coping mechanism.
Painter Pamela Michelle Johnson infuses nuanced social commentary into her seemingly traditional still life paintings by focusing on unconventional subject matter. A pitcher of Kool-Aid, half eaten muffins with an open box of Jiffy Muffin mix, Hostess Snoballs—junk food; Johnson deifies these mass produced symbols of American culture in her works. Elevating the perceived importance of these objects, she causes viewers to reflect on how food defines culture and social values.
Similarly to Johnson’s glorification of food, photographer Rhonda Harris Banes sanctifies the places in which people eat. Captured during a cross-country road trip, the black and white photographs depict diners, private residences and hotel dining rooms with a thoughtful reverence. Each location, captured exactly as the artist found it, is devoid of people, but appear as if they’ve just left—their presence alluded to by a steaming cup of coffee, a place setting or an askew chair, as Harris Banes explores the places people eat.
The omnipresence and availability of food is explored in Joey Manlapaz’s paintings of D.C. eateries in familiar neighbourhoods—Dupont Circle, Georgetown, Capitol Hill and Penn Quarter. Restaurants and cafes are illuminated with neon signs beckoning patrons inside and food carts are situated on busy street corners, inviting viewers to eat—to satisfy any craving, however minimal—whenever they want.
In the interactive Consumption Junction gallery, visitors will hear continuous recipe carols from pop-rock band One Ring Zero’s hybrid music/literature release The Recipe Project. For the project, band mates paired up with accomplished chefs to sing the recipes to some of their signature dishes. Each recipe is performed in a way that reflects the cuisine and culture of the dish. The book, along with menus from various decades of food history, will be on display for visitors to thumb through, highlighting the pop culture nature of food and its influence on design.
Commenting on Body Image
Bodies are adorned with food in Matt Freedman’s portraits, as the photographer explores food as a decorative element. Grapes, cherries, chocolate chips and sliced strawberries line the hips of models creating an abstracted landscape in one picture, while cucumber slices wrap a nude man seated cross-legged in another. The artist addresses societal constructs of body image by using atypical nude models presented as proud, self assured and dignified rather than shameful or embarrassed by their exposure.
Donna McCullough creates bodices and women’s clothing woven out of discarded packaging—cans, tins and other metal containers. McCullough carefully selects her “fabric” to reflect the eating habits and lifestyle of the person for whom the sculptural clothing is made, which also serves as a reference point for the viewer to create their own narrative about each piece and its wearer. Crafted of steel and embellished with flourishes of wire mesh, screening, cut-outs and bits of found objects, the dresses are at once both elegant and imposing.
At first pristine and fully ripened, upon closer inspection the cut fruits in Davette Leonard’s still life paintings are browning, their leaves wilting, the skin curling—rotting. By taking a predictable tablescape and infusing it with subtle, almost subversive details, the artist creates a dialogue about aging and decay.
Education Programming
Strathmore will enhance the visitor experience of You Are What You Eat with public educational programs. On Saturday, February 18, 2012 at 10:30 p.m. kids will create a series of edible portraits styled in the fashion of celebrated 16th-century painter Guiseppe Arcimboldo’s innovative Vegetable Portraits featured images in the workshop Play with Your Food. “Project Runway” meets “Top Chef” in Cooking Up Creativity on Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 10:30 p.m., as students and then create—using paintbrushes and colored icing—one-of-a-kind cookie masterpieces inspired by Pablo Picasso and Georges Seurat. On Saturday, March 10, 2012 at 10:15 a.m., a Children’s Talk & Tour invites children to explore the exhibitions and exercise their creativity through a hands-on arts activity. At 1 p.m., adults learn about the artwork in the exhibitions from exhibition curator Harriet Lesser during the Art Talk & Tour.
Also for adults, on Monday, February 27, 2012 at 11 a.m. Dr. David Gariff, Senior Lecturer at The National Gallery, will explore the history and symbolism of food represented in visual art through the ages with a special focus on Italy.
Both events are free. Reservations are required for the Children’s Talk & Tour and can be made by calling (301) 581-5109.
About Strathmore
Strathmore is an arts presenter and cultural destination serving to nurture art, artists and community through creative and diverse programming of the highest quality. The Mansion at Strathmore is located at 10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda, MD, one half-mile north of the Capital Beltway and immediately adjacent to the Grosvenor-Strathmore station on Metro’s Red Line.
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Strathmore is supported by a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council, an agency dedicated to cultivating a vibrant cultural community where the arts thrive. An agency of the Department of Business & Economic Development, MSAC provides financial support and technical assistance to non-profit organizations, units of government, colleges and universities for arts activities.
Strathmore is also supported in part by the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County.
Strathmore Fine Arts Presents
You are What You Eat
Saturday, February 11 through Saturday, March 17, 2012
Gudelsky Gallery Suite
Gallery Hours
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Wednesday, 10:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m.
Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
Opening Reception
Sunday, February 12, 2012
2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Free, open to the public
Education Activities
Play with your Food
Saturday, February 18, 2012
10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
For ages 6-11
Tuition: $45 (Stars Price $40.50)
Cooking up Creativity
Saturday, February 25, 2012
10:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
For ages 6-11
Tuition: $75 (Stars Price $67.50)
Food as a Symbol in Art History
Monday, February 27, 2012
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
For adults
Tuition: $5
Art Talk for Adults
Saturday, March 10 2012
1:00 p.m.
Free, no reservations required
Children's Talk and Tour
Saturday, March 10, 2012
10:15 a.m.
Ages 5 and up with adult.
Free, but reservations are required
Mansion at Strathmore
10701 Rockville Pike
North Bethesda, MD 20852
For additional information or to purchase tickets visit www.strathmore.org or call (301) 581-5100.
2/3 of the school had added their twig or root to the school-wide murch auction painting....
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Recently painted 4th grade figurative sculptures drying in the sun
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2/11/12
The Importance of Art Education in a 21st Century Education
Below are the 8 habits of mind I use in my art studio. As an art teacher and a teacher of 15 years I deeply believe that the arts help prepare our children for 21st Century learning, thinking and work-related skills. It's one thing to teach a child concepts, vocabulary, and historical facts, but it's quite another form of learning to teach a child to think, work with their mistakes, persist, envision, express, observe, reflect, explore and understand. In teaching with the habits of mind as the 'umbrella' that guides all lessons and units we ensure that children will always embrace all situations with these helpful habits of thinking. In the art room, I don't teach the kids to be 'artists', I teach them to be independent thinkers and explorers of answers by following their own questions.
I have often been asked why I don't have kids make Picasso-like work, or Matisse-like work. While we still look at these artists and their work, we rarely waste time trying to merely emulate them or their style. In emulating another artist's work we dispossess the children of their own innovative abilities to find their own unique style. Instead, we discover what inspired these artists to do what they did and similarly look for our own inspirations in our own lives. In following our own inspirations we place value in our own ideas, our own stories, our own unique capabilities. When all else in school is simply telling kids what they should know, in the art studio kids learn to value their own voice and to verbalize, through art, their own expression of this world. The idea that you can only be exceptional at what you love is huge in the art studio. To simply create a Picasso-like face, we might make a pretty picture to take home, but kids will never walk away truly feeling like creators or innovators of their own ideas or concepts.
The arts, in fact, give children an enormous advantage in the future, when they hit the job market. Children who can follow these habits of mind (see below) can take everyday obstacles, in any field, and turn them into opportunities. When I hear people downplay the importance of my role as an art teacher in education, I immediately know they've never had a hands-on studio art experience. When I hear about art and music being cut from budgets to only be replaced with more seemingly academically-focused courses, I am saddened for those children, for they will only be further crippled by this lack of arts education in their lives. I am not creating artists, I am teaching an essential 'language' of seeing, creating and expressing that will undoubtedly enhance all forms of human interactions. Art is a life-changing experience.....and no education should be without it....
Studio Thinking Framework | |
| Develop Craft |
| Engage & Persist |
| Envision |
| Express |
| Observe |
| Reflect |
| Stretch & Explore |
| Understand Art World |
2/10/12
4th graders detail their yoga-inspired sculptures after a long discussion about how we use our bodies to communicate meaning.
Students in Mrs. Mathur's class got to detail their clay sculptures today using clay tools. Before we placed our clay bodies into a position, we had a discussion about how the way we hold our bodies communicates meaning. Next week, they will use permanent acrylic to paint their sculptures. During our discussion I showed them a slideshow of various sculptures of people that strongly show some sort of emotion. Children were amazing in their insight in to what emotions these sculptures were trying to communicate.
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2/9/12
Our school-wide auction project is coming along!!! we have 1/2 the school left to add their 'twigs' or 'branches'...and sign the back.
Below is an image of the unpainted, semi-finished textured tree on canvas that will be painted for the auction project. So far about 1/2 the school has added either a root or a twig to the tree. Every person that has added an element to the painting has also signed the back....(see image below). When all children, teacher and staff from Murch has added their part I will take the canvas home and paint it. You are welcome to come in the studio and get a glimpse of the work in progress. Just let us know you're coming.
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1st graders explore ink painting using varied brushes (Bergin)
In the art studio, children do a lot of exploration at the beginning of each unit. In this ink painting unit children begin with exploring various degrees of ink and various brushes. At the end of class children shared out various characteristics they noticed that was unique to this media. One child said that they saw that the level of black varied depending on how much water was used. Another child noticed that thinner marks can be made using 'detail' brushes. Another child noticed that a 'fuzzy' mark was made is he painted on pre-wet paper.
Explorations allow us to build experience with a media and learn certain things about a media. During the discussion times, children learn to label these findings and categorize them in ways that will be useful to them in the future.
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3rd graders stuff their designed pillows and sew it shut
Children in 3rd grade have been LOVING sewing. So much that I think we might extend the learning into a more in-depth project that takes what they learned in their pillow-making into a new level. I could say with certainty that it has been an amazing experience for them to actually create a pillow.....from beginning to end. I will post pictures of some of the finished pillows later.
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4th graders pull several GIANT abstract prints .....
The 4th graders are starting a new unit in printmaking. We began the unit by working in teams to create giant abstract shape stamps and pulling a print for each child.
Below you see the whole class in front of their drying GIANT prints
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4th graders create a giant stamp..launching into our new printmaking unit
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5rh grades working on designing altered books..need old and no longer needed baby board book!!
We are in dire need of board books, but seriously, any book would do. In 5th grade students are working on designing an altered book containing some pop-up elements.
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Where's my child's art work?
I recently had a parent ask me why more art work is not going home weekly stemming from the art program. I see all kids at Murch 45 minutes a week. Each unit I introduce my take up to 4 weeks, sometimes more. A unit is a set of lessons based around one media. An example unit with a media might require (1) exploration with the media in our sketchbooks, (2) reflection on what we learned and created a shared resource wall and begin planning steps for a final project in that media. Lessons 3-4 often entail working on our 'final projects'. This may differ some from more 'crafty' art lessons that look good but carry little individuality and very little value in terms of building skills. When done, the project may be used to be displayed in the hallways or sent home. At this rate, parents may get work about every 4-6 weeks. But by no means, does this mean learning is not happening. I post on this very blog at least twice a week and at most three times daily with pictures and 'glimpses' of what is going on in the studio. In addition, I have an open door policy in my classroom. I welcome all parents to come and observe their children and the class during their child's art class. So, please take advantage of this and come join us and see for yourself what we are working on. My focus in the art studio is exposure and skill building in various true art media and building of ideas and concepts that stem from within the child and lessons that are meaningful to the child personally. I have a full curriculum for all grades posted right at my door. Please contact me if you have any questions at Miriam.Cutelis@yahoo.com.
2/3/12
More work with integrating technology in the art classroom with all DCPS art teachers on Professional Development Day
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At the Hirshhorn all day learning about how to use digital technlogy in the art room
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2/2/12
Resource wall created by 5th grade class to be used during book design unit
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1/27/12
1/26/12
1/19/12
Our African Inspired Designs on our Pillow cases
African-inspired designed pillow cases (George /3rd grade)
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1/13/12
Artist, Fiona, from first grade, shares her invented vehicle' sketches from her sketchbook
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1st graders creating collagraphs of their invented vehicles. Notice they are using their sketches from last week as a resource.
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2nd graders using fake foods to create still life sketches, which will be used to make collages with emphasis on composition
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1/10/12
National Gallery Art for Kids!!!!
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Anasazi-Inspired Vessels Gallery (4th Grade-Patterson)
This is just one of the 3 classes that worked on creating Anasazi-inspired vessels. We began by learning about the Anasazi, looking at maps of where they lived and discussed similarities in the vessels they created. We then learned about cylindrical vessels, what they are, what they are not, how to draw them. In our sketchbooks we drew half-a-dozen cylindrical vessels and drew Anasazi-inspired designs over our vessel sketches. Next, we used parent-donated recycled plastic containers, and sometimes inflated balloons, to create our vessels. We used tape, then paper mache to make our vessels extra strong and durable. When dry, we painted them and the last week we used varied-sized brushes to detail them using the designs we had drawn in our sketchbooks weeks back. What an amazing process to learn that you can be inspired by the work of another culture or artist and still make the final product your own personal creation. Enjoy the gallery!!
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