LINKS OF INTEREST

Part of viewing art can involve looking for the meaning behind the visuals.  That's also the same with great literature, poetry and even dream interpretation.  Learning to look behind the lines in any of these fields is great practice for any other medium.  Being able to link historical events, imagery or quotations to what we are examining gives greater value to the object and our own education.  I love Eclectic Dad's examination of Six Socially Conscious Dr. Seuss Books.  Maybe it's obvious that "How The Grinch Stole Christmas" is about anti-materialism, but I never would have thought "Horton Hears A Who" is actually "an allegory for the Hiroshima bombing and the American post-war occupation of Japan."  It's easy to write off children's literature (and especially Seuss) as just silly rhymes or childish topics, but the truth is these classics stay around for a reason and can be great springboards to deeper conversations with our kids.

KIDS SKETCHBOOK CHALLENGE 1

Lincoln, Age 3


 In case you missed the set up for this challenge last week, we are throwing a theme at the kids and seeing where their imagination takes them.  This week's idea was YOURSELF.  Feel free to catch up on the challenge, and remember that they don't need to be figurative-- they can certainly be abstract or interpretive!  Use pen, crayon, paint, glitter, or whatever.  Just send me (or leave in the comment) a pic of the art, your child's name/ age, and I'll post for the following week.  The next idea is FLOWER (just in time for spring.)  So, start making some art!

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.