The 2015 District Art Show

I am absolutely thrilled with the work shown at this year's district art show.  As I said in my previous blog, I believe that my young artists have met the high standards I have set for them, and I am proud of the growth I have seen in the students.

I was better prepared this year for the district show than any other year because I have focused on organization of the students' artwork, and making sure they had titled their work.  I hung my artwork on the first day I was able to get into the gallery, and made sure to get a nice table for the three-dimensional work.

             

                       The Teddy Bear clay sculpture got a lot of attention, as well as the First graders' stitching projects.

The tiny Arches National Monument sculpture (bottom left) was one of the most creative sculptures I have ever seen with clay

Another piece that received a lot of attention was the Eye painting (seen on the middle right).  Many people, kids and adults, were very impressed that it was done by a fifth grader.  The artist was able to come to the opening night, and it was fun to get to tell him about the buzz around his piece.  

In general, the show had a great turnout despite heavy thunder and lightning storms that swept through from the beginning to the end of the gallery opening.  I love getting to meet families of the artists and see that impact it has on them as well.  Everyone took lots of happy, proud pictures.  

Next up -- The School Art show!

Spring in the Vickery Art Studio

Hello Everyone!

First of all, I am sorry I haven't been around much.  I was very ill for most of December and my recovery has been slow.  Despite that, however, I have been more pleased with the work that has come out of the Vickery Art Studio than ever before.  I have been holding the young artists to a higher standard, and they have met, or sometimes surpassed my expectations.  The "Plus It" expectation has worked wonders, as the artists have stretched themselves and gained confidence in their abilities.

I do consider myself "modified" Choice-Based, and after returning from my illness I realized whole-group projects would best for the students and myself as I got back on my feet.  One of the projects we did was one I had wanted to do for years, but had never set aside the money for supplies, or the time to introduce the tools and techniques.

We started with plastic canvas, short plastic needles, and yarn.  I discovered that my clay tools were perfect for threading the needles, which was another hesitation in trying a project like this one.

In the display case I paired it with my own artwork, my 2014 Temperature Blanket, because the lesson focused on variety, and also my awesome principal requested that I hang it in the case.  Here are a few pictures:

The Crazy Park

The Roller Coaster

Minecraft Shooter

My Pretty House

We took four weeks on this project and I am glad to be back on studio work with the kids!  

Thanks for reading!  The next post will be about the 2015 District Art Show.