ART I HEART

You know what they say about March...in like a Lion!  Here's my favorite lion inspired works. 

Banksy London Pub

Albrecht Durer

Henri Rousseau

NY Public Library

Rembrandt

ROCK ART

The Cobblestone Painter: Stephane Jaspert

We may think of Rock Art as something archaeologists studied in caves-- but it takes on a whole new meaning when actual rocks are just painted.  The artist, Stephane Jaspert, pulls Parisian cobblestones out of the street and paints extremely detailed images on them and places them back where he found them.  Art and Science Journal explains that the artist hopes to "inspire critical consumption of cultural images and their tangible connections to history while also adding some whimsy to one’s walk."  Like any great street art, coming across one of these on your own would be parallel to finding a hidden treasure.  

Here's a video from NHK TV about the complicated process of tearing out the street in order to get the cobblestones for the pieces.  

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELVES:
1. How would you feel if you stumbled across one of these stones while walking down the street?
2. Which one of these stones is your favorite?
3. How do you think the artist comes up with the ideas for each piece?
4. Why do you think the artist uses stones as his medium?
5. If you could paint anything on a stone, what would you paint?

  
LINK TO DIVE DEEPER:
Additionally, here's another video about rock balancing (via the wonderful Handbook of Nature Study) that is really impressive and would be easy for us to try to emulate in our backyard (if we had one).  It reminds me of the rock piles that you see while hiking-- but taken to a new level.  These are really awe-inspiring, gravity defying pieces of magic. We're looking forward to stacking and balancing rocks at the beach this summer!

EXTENSIONS: 

Fortunately, to do our own rock art, it's not necessary to go through all that work to have a great end result.  Today at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, I found some painted rocks that while simple, had a message.  These were laid out around a tree dedicated to firefighters that gave their lives in 9-11.  There's something about painting on rock that seems very permanent.  Try it out!

SKETCHBOOK CHALLENGE

Inspired by all the drawing/ sketchbook challenges on Tumblr, I thought it would be fun to do with kids.  This can be like a weekly virtual refrigerator (no magnets necessary!)  Whether representational, realistic or just scribbles inspired by the theme, comment below with the pics and I'll post them all the following week.  Instead of thinking of these entries as needing to be our child's finest work, think of it as a fun way to showcase their progress and a great way to get kids drawing!  And afterwards, we'll have a groovy keepsake sketchbook of their work.  (This may also be fun to release the budding artist inside all us parents and to participate with a sketchbook of our own.)  

Here's a cool article by Early Childhood News that explains the different stages of drawing from toddlerhood to primary school age.

The first theme will be "Yourself."  So, get out the crayons, pencils, and (most importantly) a special sketchbook.  Send them in and I'll post them on Tuesday.

LINKS OF INTEREST

This past week has been chock full of interesting tidbits and parenting news items.  There never seems to be enough time to actually read the Sunday Times, tumblr pages, all the magazines piled up, etc.  So, here's a list of a few (in my humble opinion) thrilling things to check out.

*Model Mothers I adore this slideshow of models and their mothers.  Just in time for fashion week, its a lovely homage to the beauty of mothers-- and in this case, ones with great genes.

*The Evolution of Mom Dancing- Michelle Obama does an amazing Dougie.

*Born To Wait: For City Parents, a Waiting List for Nearly Everything  Everyone living in NYC realizes how competitive it can be, and great classes for your kids can be harder to get into than Harvard.  This NY Times article showcases how demand outweighs the supply for desirable programs.

*Bullies Called Him Pork Chops- this animated short by Shane Koyczan won the Sundance short.  It's pretty much all over the internet, but if you haven't seen it- here it is.  I find it pretty heavy handed, but it's got a powerful anti-bullying message which is rad.

Molly Ringwald on The Moth- I heard this great segment on NPR and I thought this was another interesting take on bullying.  Molly Ringwald really was a huge inspiration to so many freaks and geeks (myself included!) and what a full circle life can be.

Art That I Heart

Here's this weeks art inspiration-- featuring kids.  Can you think of other favorites to add to the line up?

via Street Art Utopia

via Street Art Utopia

Mark Ryden via ArtNet

Louis Boudreault via The Jealous Curator

Pablo Picasso via Wikipaintings

William Adolphe Bouguereau via Wikipaintings

Mary Cassatt via Museum Syndicate

via Jonathan Lichtfeld

THE BUTTERFLY CONSERVATORY

The Butterfly Conservatory 
American Museum of Natural History
October 6, 2012- May 27, 2013

In these last cold days of winter, nothing feels more uplifting than sunshine and butterflies.  The Butterfly Conservatory in the American Museum of Natural History is a yearly seasonal exhibition that is really magical, especially for city kids who don't get many chances to run on fields of flowers.  Entering the butterfly vivarium is like entering a pocket of summer- a bright, warm greenhouse where butterflies of all shapes, colors and sizes swirl around landing on majestic plants, sliced fruit and even us people.  Signs are posted everywhere not to chase or try to touch the butterflies, due to their extreme fragility.  I thought this would be a difficult rule for the pre-schoolers we had in our charge, but it turns out that the transcendental mood of the room is enough to awe even the most active learners.  Butterflies soared and swooped, and the guides were more than happy to answer questions and bring extra large specimen over so the kids could look at them up close.  In the middle of the room is a case of actual cocoons, that you can actually watch for the caterpillars being re-born as butterflies.  We saw a cocoon twitching and it looked like by the evening, there would be one more butterfly in the conservatory.

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELVES (OR THE GUIDES):

1. How many different colors/ kinds of butterflies do you see?
2. Can you find a butterfly flying?  Eating an orange slice?  Resting on a plant?
3. What is the difference between a butterfly and a moth?
4. How long do butterflies live?
5. Do all butterflies migrate?
6. Are butterflies an endangered species?

LINKS TO DIVE DEEPER:

Natural Museum of History Education Guide
How to Grow A Butterfly Garden
The Butterfly Website
Handbook of Nature Study: Monarch Butterflies - The Outdoor Hour Challenge is one of the best nature study websites I have found online.  It's such a good resource for so many topics, and such a good way to get families outside and noticing the details and beauty of our surroundings.

EXTENSIONS:
For Parents: Butterflies are symbols of so many themes in our lives, none more so than when we have children.  Metamorphosis, migration, cocooning...these are all relevant to our lives as caretakers and parents.  I just finished the marvelous Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver which gave such an engaging look at the "King Billy" butterfly, the details and hardships of migration, and the dangers of global warming.  To teach our children to be stewards of the earth as well as active participants has never been more important, and they can only lead by example.

For Kids: Read The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle and marvel at the transformation from one tiny egg to a beautiful butterfly.  A great go-along activity is to research and color your own butterfly chart.  The process is educational, but the end result could be a beautiful wall hanging.

SAPPORO SNOW FESTIVAL: JAPAN

SNOW SCULPTURE FESTIVAL:

Sapporo Snow Festival
Sapporo, Japan
February 5th, 2013- February 11, 2013

The snow storm, Nemo, just happened to correspond with the internationally acclaimed winter event Sapporo Snow Festival.  Every winter, millions of spectators come to gawk at the very detailed and ephemeral works created by artists worldwide especially for the contest.  This year, the prize went to Thailand for an incredible display of elephants on parade.  The Sapporo website offers a glimpse on how these large scale models are built, where the snow is bulldozed to make a firm base, and then the snow is literally heaped on top with the help of heavy machinery and cranes until it is packed about 23 feet high up.  Next, a wooden frame is built around the mass to help harden the snow, and scaffolding is attached.  Then the sculpting can begin.  The amount of effort and beauty put into these fleeting creations can act as inspiration for families to make its own (smaller scale) snow sculptures.  Using the snow as a medium allows for all sorts of public art that can help to beautify our environment, even if only for a few hours until the sun is shining.

KNOCK KNOCK JOKE from Yo Gabba Gabba

Knock Knock
Who's There
Ken
Ken Who?
Ken I come in, it's freezing out here!

LINKS TO GET INTO IT

Complex Magazine: The 25 Most Spectacular Snow Sculptures
The High Line's Snow Sculpt Off
Breckenridge International Snow Sculpture Championships

EXTENSIONS:

For Parents:  Reframing art as something impermanent and evanescent may free us from the pressure of striving for lasting perfection in our own work and life.  Using the materials at hand and the time constraints that we have, to do the best we can, and to be happy with those results is difficult.  Slowing down to enjoy the process can create more space, ultimately resulting in richer ideas and outcomes, even when it feels like time is slipping through our fingers.  Take a moment to think how allowing the idea of impermanence could affect your life?

For Kids: For further inspiration on building a snowman, read Snowballs by Lois Ehlert or The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats.  But for a book that really demonstrates the magic of a snowfall, try to find Something is Going to Happen by Charlotte Zolotow.  I returned my own copy to the Brooklyn Library by mistake last week, so it will probably be available on their shelves soon enough!

VALENTINE'S DAY PARTY

Valentines Making Party in a blizzard... We made these from a kit by Paper Source.

MICKALENE THOMAS: ORIGIN OF THE UNIVERSE

ART SHOW:

Mickalene Thomas
Brooklyn Museum of Art
September 28, 2012–January 20, 2013

Rhinestones, collage, glamour- whats not for kids to love here! Inspired by images of African American women, emblems of the Black Power movement and her mothers photographs from the 1970's, Mickalene Thomas's art engages viewers with a powerful roar. Many of the pieces are collage inspired works referencing historical artists like Edoard Manet, Henri Matisse and Romare Bearden-- so this is a great time to pull out your art appreciation books. I loved the room showing the artist's process where you can actually see all the steps she took to get to the finished product. She begins by photographing models, then she creates small photo collages which act as studies for the final piece. These small studies would be a fun project for your older child to emulate. Collect a variety of wrapping paper, some photographs to carefully cut, and a historical painting printed out for inspiration and you've got a fantastic project for a snowy day. 

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELVES:

1. Compare a photo collage to the corresponding finished painting.  What is the same and what is different?

2. Describe the facial expression of the subject in one of the paintings.  What does it say about the subject's mood?

3. How do the materials used affect the mood of the piece?

4. How would these pieces be affected if they were in subdued colors instead of these vivid hues?  Why has Mickalene Thomas chosen to use these bright colors?

LINKS TO GET INTO IT

Brooklyn Museum Educational Materials

Artist Website

Video of Mickalene Thomas discussing her creative process

EXTENSIONS

For Parents: From the Brooklyn Museum, "Many African American female authors have creatively expressed and reflected on their diverse experiences."  Read the following novels "which present protagonists in dynamic settings that challenge readers to understand these characters in complex ways."  Think about the ways the authors and Mickalene Thomas both represent experiences of the African American woman.

Passing (1929) by Nella Larsen

Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937) by Zora Neale Hurston

Sula (1973) by Toni Morrison

Kindred (1979) by Octavia Butler

Mama's Girl (1996) by Veronica Chambers

For Kids: Read Peters Chair by Ezra Jack Keats and Frederick by Leo Lionni and compare the collage style of these illustrations to that of the artist.  Make your own collages from old magazines, wrapping paper or construction paper!