Marc Chagall Expressionist Goat

First grade art students were taught about the Expressionist artist, "Marc Chagall."   Ms. Stewart teaches Kindergarten through Second grade art classes, she showed the students several Marc Chagall paintings with the imagery of goats in them:  "Solitude" http://www.wikiart.org/de/marc-chagall/solitude-1933  "A Jew with Torah" http://www.wikiart.org/de/tag/goats#supersized-search-202369  and "A Village in Winter."  

Students were excited by the bright and pastel color palette that Marc Chagall used.

To start this project, Ms. Stewart demonstrated how to use soft pastels when drawing.  Students used pencil first, then shaded areas in using a palette 

of neutrals for the fur and eyes.  I love how each student's goat looks totally different! 

Students outlining with soft pastels.

 

     Blending neutrals and adding fur lines.

                  

                     Red was used for contrast in the nose.

Next, goats were cut out and set aside for the completion of their project.  The painting was created the second class.  Ms. Stewart squeezed blobs of paint onto the students paper.  Students mixed the colors trying to paint in the same direction.  They had so much fun painting in their background! When the painting was dry the goat was attached using glue.  
Here are the beautiful pieces of work that they created! 

Awesome for first grade students!

To view more artwork check out my Artsonia school site: https://www.artsonia.com/museum/gallery.asp?exhibit=844781

"Journey Into The Arts" 2013

May I tell you how completely blessed I am to be working at a school that supports the Arts!

Every other year I put together a full day of Art Classes taught by K-6th grade core teachers.  I call it, "Journey Into the Arts."

Several years ago while working at another school, my principal shared a snippet of a fun filled art day.

Burton Morris door decorated by

K Teacher's Aide Ms. Baxter

Well it took several years later and another school to get this vision into fruition! Much preparation goes into this day before it even begins!

Students switch classes attending around 4-5 classes which teach "The Arts" throughout the day.  The accumulation of the day ends with a school wide assembly highlighting a guest artist.  For our first year, we had Autumn DeForest, a 10 year old art prodigy who lives in Las Vegas.  This past year, we had an art viewing at the end of the day instead of the assembly.

I give art students in grades 7th-12th the opportunity to teach an art class (Under my planning and supervision).  

Also, 7th - 12th grade students help our core teachers in their classrooms. Classes this year ranged from Kandinsky to how to create a beat and rap!

To get teachers motivated we do a door decorating contest with the artist that they are teaching. The best door wins a Starbuck's gift card!

Parent volunteers help me collect supplies from vendors for free! This year several vendors donated to our cause.  
The most generous donation came from: 

Jerry's Artarama!

Pablo Picasso door by
1st Grade Teacher Mrs. Bielich

Andy Goldsworthy door decorated by
P.E. Teacher's Mrs. Freedman & Mr. Underwood

Some of the classes that were offered were:

1)  Picasso drawings over gessoed bag's using oil pastels. 

     Taught by First grade teacher- Mrs. Bielich.

2) Robert Rauschenberg mixed media using crayon melt and popular images. Taught by 6th grade teacher Mrs. Huddler.

3) Colored bubble flowers. Taught by Seventh grade students- Meadow, Caterina and Talia.

4) Burton Morris "PoP" paintings. Taught by Kindergarten T.A.- Ms. Baxter.

5) Chalk drawing with photography. Taught by High School students- Eden, Heather and Rachel.

6) Goldsworthy nature walk with creation. Taught by P.E. teachers- Mrs. Freedman & Mr. Underwood.

7) Wyland animal eyes using soft pastels and watercolor. Taught by 7th grade students, Allee and Jade!

8) Creating a beat with a rap and dance. Taught by 3rd grade teacher- Mr. Williams, 7th grade student Gianni & 8th grade student Jony.

Local art teacher pins to the top in Pardee Homes' guest designer contest

In the early 1980s, Nanette Bratton and her family moved from Brooklyn, N.Y., to Las Vegas and into a Pardee Home in Spring Valley.

“It was really our family’s dream house, with a grand staircase and so much space,” said Bratton, an art teacher at a private school. “That house inspired a lot of big ideas and dreams as a child.”

More than three decades later, Bratton has reconnected with Pardee — not as a new homeowner but as the winner of the builder’s Pinterest Dream Room contest.

In July and August, Pardee invited its social media followers and all interested people to be a “guest designer” and help inspire the décor at Horizon Terrace, a new neighborhood scheduled to open in early 2014 in Henderson.

Bratton created and submitted a Pinterest board with ideas for her “dream room,” which included ideas for several rooms. Her creative vision will be brought to life by the builder’s design team at Horizon Terrace, where it will be featured in a loft in one of the neighborhood’s model homes. Bratton received a $500 Pottery Barn gift card and will be included in the neighborhood’s grand opening activities.

“I have been using Pinterest as part of my instruction for the past two years,” Bratton said. “It is a great way to find and pull examples of techniques, design and color and share it in real time with my students and to post class assignments so they’re accessible to students at all times. It really is an art teacher’s dream.”

Kathy Hilty, marketing director for the Southern Nevada division of Pardee Homes, said the contest was a fun way for the company to celebrate its 60th anniversary of building homes in Southern Nevada.

Pardee has built homes for more than 40,000 families in Southern Nevada since 1952.

The builder’s neighborhoods in the Las Vegas Valley include four LivingSmart Homes neighborhoods: Providence in northwest Las Vegas, Sandstone at Camino Eldorado and Ann Road and Eldorado Ridge and Eldorado Heights in the Eldorado master-planned community in North Las Vegas. Other Pardee homes that include LivingSmart features are Durango Ranch, near the intersection of Pebble and Cimarron roads in southwest Las Vegas, and the new Durango Trail neighborhood adjacent to Durango Ranch.

Sales offices are open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday. For more information, visit www.pardeehomes.com; call 702-604-3332 or follow the builder on Facebook atwww.fb.com/pardeehomeslasvegas.

Charcoal Still life

High School Students learn how to do observational contour drawings using vine and compressed charcoal.  I set up a still life using a white sheet and simple objects to draw from.  A few lights were strategically placed to cast shadows.  Before students started to draw we reviewed:

1) Value scale
2) How to translate value when viewing color.
3) Chiaroscuro

4) How to use vine charcoal
5) How to use compressed charcoal
6) Using the kneaded eraser as a drawing tool.
7) Using a view finder to isolate still life image to draw.
8) Contour drawings.
9) Timed thumbnail drawings
10) Final drawing

Horizon Terrace Dream Home Pinterest Contest

In August I  saw the posting for a Pinterest contest on Facebook for Pardee Homes-design your own dream home.  Their development, Horizon Terrace would feature a room designed by you and award you with a $500.00 gift card! So off I went pinning away finding my favorite collections of colors and textures!  I must tell you this brought me back to my childhood when I would design Barbie houses out of my picture books and fabric!   Last night I was contacted that I WON the contest!  Check out my winning board on Pinterest:
Horizon Terrace Dream Home
http://pinterest.com/nanettebratton/horizon-terrace-dream-home/

I encourage you to seek out these contests! They are fun and rewarding!

"Jazz Trains" in perspective

I love New York City!   Born in Brooklyn, New York I spent 11 short years there before moving to Las Vegas.  The city is so rich in culture and the arts! Being that I am a New Yorker and will always be one no matter what- teaching on Harlem Renaissance comes natural to me.

I start with a discussion on how my students live in Las Vegas -vs- New York City.  I show a presentation on Harlem city life in the 1920's, define "Renaissance" and listen to Duke Ellington! Being that I teach this movement to several grades I will show you the various grade level projects.  The first is "Jazz Train" in perspective taught to 3rd grade art students.  For this project, Romare (Romy) Bearden's artwork is shown.  We talk about how he would draw inspiration from the sound and movement of the train behind his house.  Many Harlem Renaissance jazz artists also drew inspiration from the movement and sound of the train. The "train" or railroad is very significant in the Harlem Renaissance movement as it signifies movement from the South to the East creating a new free life! If time allows I will show them,"Visual Jazz" a movie on Romy Bearden. 

My students really enjoy learning about this movement and especially love listening to the jazz music while creating their train!

Watercolor Tropical Fish

For this lesson, third grade art students viewed  Mayan Reef  on youtube to sketch tropical fish.  After the video, students chose the fish that they wanted to draw and watercolor.  Watercolor techniques were reviewed and used in the paintings.