Art Class

Ms. Jess
February-June 2016

Teachers Note: Thank You

Dear Parents and Faculty of MMS,
I would like to say thank you to everyone involved with the
Montgomery Montessori community for your support towards the arts this
year. It has been an honor working with your children and students this
year, and to watch them grow creatively through their projects. I will always
carry this experience with me as an art educator through my teaching
practices, and I will never forget the beauty of the Montessori philosophy to
teach the whole child. Above all else, I will always treasure what I have
learned from each and every child and teacher here, and all of the
experience and joy they bring to this school. I wish you all a wonderful
summer and new school year filled with opportunity and growth.
Yours Truly,
Ms. Jess
Art Educator

Upper
Elementary

After our landscapes, we began our unit on self-portraits and all of the masters
that are known for their self-portraits. We began by using and learning the methods of
watercolor and how to layer from light to dark. Then, Upper Elementary was given the
task to paint their own self-portrait with only the use of warm and cool colors. As we were
painting, we focused on artists such as Frida Kahlo, Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh,
and other masters. We also created self-portraits with words as well as a form of graphic
art. With this project, they brainstormed what makes them who they are, such as
adjectives, hobbies, and goals for the future. Once, we wrapped up self-portraits, we
then moved into our unit on sculpture and what 3D art is.
We began the unit on recycled/environmental art in spirit of Earth Day by
creating sculpture reliefs made out of used pizza boxes, paper towels, and glue. Here we
studied flowers in conjunction to their plant studies this year by looking at works from
Georgia OKeefe. We also studied environmental artist Andy Goldworthy and his
installation works and recreated our own at the river. Finally, we looked at sculptures in
the round, specifically the works of Alexander Calder. Elements that we focused on in the
project were geometric versus organic shape, positive/negative space, and what
creates balance in a 3D work. From this lesson, they created their own sculptures
influenced by Calders word with the use of cardboard. Each of these studies linked to
our end of the year art trip to Storm King Art Center where they saw Calder and
Goldsworhys work among other works from various sculptors.

Lower
Elementary

After creating our snowmen, Lower Elementary began a new work based on their unit
on self-portraits and well known Italian portrait artist, Amedeo Clemente Modigliani. We
began the lesson by understanding the different features of a self-portrait and what it means
to be a self-portrait artist. We then looked at Modiglianis work and how he created abstract
portraits by drawing long necks, almond-shaped eyes, lemon- shaped lips, among other
styles. From this lesson, lower elementary then created their own self-portrait with oil pastel on
construction paper in the style of Modigliani. After the self-portraits, we then moved into the
artform of typography that started with Illuminated Letters in Scotland/Ireland. We looked at
famous illuminated letters in The Book of Kells, and what made these letters so unique and
beautiful. After our lesson, we began creating our very own illuminated letter by using our first
initial to our first name, or our first initial to our last name. Students used letter tracers to start,
and then used rulers for a border and markers for details. They had to use a type of pattern
that was symmetrical as well as a complementary pair of colors and a symbol that described
who they are. At the end, students got to matte their own work and add gold marker
detailing on top as if it was gold leaf.
For their final project, lower elementary got to create their own printing blocks with the
use of recyclable material to make prints of their own cityscapes. We studied the parts of a
cityscape, various famous cityscapes and their architecture style, and designed their own city
based on what they learned. They were assigned to create their own cityscape that had to
include different types of line (straight/curvy) along with different shaped windows. Once their
sketch was approved, they etched their design on styrofoam, pasted it on cardboard, and
printed on warm/cool watercolor backgrounds by inking their plate with marker. Once the
prints were finished, lower elementary then altered their works by either cutting a cityscape
out and pasting it on another print to create a work with a background, middleground, and
foreground. They also added detail with marker and even made their cities pop out by using
3D paper techniques.

Primary
For the rest of the school year, Maple and Willow used various art methods to
create an artwork that reflected the world around them. Some shapes that they
reviewed and made were circles, triangles, heart, rectangles, and many others.
We also talked about other colors such as brown, white, and black and where
each color goes in the rainbow. Our subject matter related to what is happening
in nature, and the changes in seasons and wildlife around us. Some themes that
we created in our works included umbrellas, lions, lambs, rainbows, caterpillars,
earths, butterflies, and flowers. Techniques that Maple and Willow got to try also
were straw painting, tissue paper, puffy paint, paint-mixing, coffee filter art, and
other medias. At the beginning, middle, and end of lesson, I also ask the children
questions about what they see, what shapes/colors their using, and tieing in
letter and number recognition as well. For example, when creating a butterfly, I
ask What letter does butterfly start with, as well as What does black start
with? so their classroom knowledge is brought into the art classroom as well.