Under-Glaze-A-Thon

Yesterday I finished teaching a four day summer camp of ceramics for kids in Door County, Wisconsin.  While the temperature rose to 92 degrees, we lethargically had a glaze-a-thon for the slump mold bowls, the monster mugs, and our gnome homes.  Since the ceramics summer camp was only Monday through Thursday afternoons, there was not enough time to allow our stoneware projects to dry before firing them.  What we do then, is use underglazes to add color to the clay.  Students and families then have the option to pick up the finished artwork next week, or the Peninsula Art School will ship the projects home to the art students who will no longer be in Door County. What's nice about this set up is I don't need to stay later to fire the student projects, but that also means I don't get to see the final results.

As I started class with the students, I explained to them that we would be glazing our stoneware projects, the slump mold bowls, monster mugs, and gnome homes.  We talked about how painting and glazing are different and the students had all heard of a kiln before too.  I tried to emphasize to students that there should be no clay spots showing through the colored underglazes they chose to use on each project.

We started with the slump mold bowls first.  I showed students how to get the glaze into the designs they carved into the surface of the bowl.  We then took a sponge and cleaned off the extra glaze on the higher surface areas of the bowl and glazed that with a different color. After getting some practice on the bowls, which we did first, since it was the simplest surface area to paint, we started on the monster mugs and then moved to the gnome homes which also make great candle holders.  For students who finished early, we used some of the air dry clay to make some inhabitants for the gnome homes.  Since it was the last thing we did, I gave parents and students some tips for painting air dry clay at home with a variety of paints.  Parents were appreciative of the activities we had engaged in during the week.  For a total of 10 hours of art this week, students made mobiles, bowls, mugs, and gnome homes and were good workers all week.  It was a treat to work with motivated young artists throughout the week and I can't wait to return next year.

Tricky Knots

Today was day three of my four day summer ceramics class in Door County.  My students and I worked on our mobiles.  We started crafting the mobile pieces on Monday using air-dry clay. This afternoon, I showed my class how to use washes of watercolor to bring out the textures in their clay pieces.  Once they were dry, we used paper towels to add a thin layer of metallic acrylic paint.  The acrylic paint adds a nice sheen and also makes the pieces a bit more waterproof.

Since the Peninsula Art School is situated in a wooded area, we went stick hunting to find bases to hang our clay beads from while the paint was drying.  We used some natural color string to bind the sticks together to create a triangle or square shape.  Then came the trickiest part, and something I had forgotten since I have been teaching older, middle school kids for the last three years; tying knots!  My class is made up of 6-8 year olds, and I had forgotten how tricky it can be for this age group to tie knots.

I showed students several times how to tie a basic knot and gave individual demonstrations too.  At this point in the project, students were directed to tie clay pieces to the bottom portion of a string and then add a pattern of beads by tying knots to keep the beads spaced. I encouraged them to use a pattern of beads that would match the watercolor layers on the beads. I didn't have enough hands to reteach knot tying quickly enough. But some students were starting to figure it out and were even helping their neighbors and using teamwork. Luckily, several of the parents came a little early and were willing to lend a hand in class to help tie knots.  Some of them even stayed later to help finish the mobiles. It was nice to see parents and students engaged in art making together.

Tomorrow will be the last day of our ceramics summer camp.  The time has gone too fast, and unfortunately, with timing, I won't get to see finished projects.  We will be working on adding underglazes to our monster mugs, slump mold bowls, and gnome homes tomorrow.  Then the staff at the Peninsula Art School will be firing the pieces so families can pick them up or ship them if the students won't be in town long enough to retrieve their works of art.  The time has gone entirely too quickly, but the important part is that the students had fun and learned or practiced hand building techniques in clay.

Gnome Homes and Monster Mugs

Today was the second day of a four day ceramics art class for 6-8 year olds.  At the end of class yesterday, I asked students to draw several monsters on a piece of paper after we had cleaned the studio of our clay projects.  Without much prompting, I did see several sketches of Monsters Inc. characters. Normally, I encourage students to deviate from popular imagery and try to steer them toward a more original idea.  I usually help students accomplish this by asking them to change or modify something on their drawing that represents their own ideas. We practiced coil and pinch pot hand building techniques today to construct our monster mugs and gnome homes.


In starting the monster mugs, students used the pinch pot method to form the basic structure of a mug.  Next, I showed them how to "weld" additive clay pieces on from all angles to make sure they don't fall off or break as they dry.  Students were then encouraged to add monster facial features like eyes, nose, mouth, ears, horns, teeth, etc.  Most students departed from their original plans on paper to create more unique pieces.



After a short break and hunting for hidden gnomes in the garden, my class and I made sketches and discussed what kinds of natural materials would make good homes for gnomes.  Students were able to think of tree stumps, mushrooms, rock piles and woven grass as potential house structures for a small creature.  Using what we learned from our monster mugs, students began coiling a basic clay structure for the walls of the house.  Next they cut out windows and doors and needed to decide on the best way to construct a roof.  I showed students how to roll out a slab and then cut it into natural, organic shapes, like leaves to sculpt a roof for their gnome homes. After roofs were built students could then add any other details to their homes, such as chimneys, mailboxes, sidewalks, etc.

For tomorrow's class we will be painting some air-dry clay pieces to construct mobiles and necklaces.  The weather in Door county right now is very hot and humid, so I am worried about students' clay pieces being dried and fired on time.  Have only a few hours and four classes does not give us as much time as we would like, but that's how art teachers learn to be resourceful, inventive, and flexible.

Clay with Kids

When I think about favorite projects of past students, the most popular choices usually involve sculpting with clay.  What's not to love?  Clay is squishy, pliable, and basically a blank three-dimensional canvas.   Kids love the possibilities of what clay can become and are so eager to get their hands on it, that it takes little to motivated young artists.

I have arrived at the Peninsula Art School in Door County, Wisconsin early this afternoon to teach a ceramics class for 6-8 year old kids.  This week's projects include mobiles, necklaces, slump mold bowls, monster mugs, and gnome homes.  Students are asked to bring their imaginations to class as we practice hand building techniques and making textures in clay to construct our multitude of projects.

I had a full class, which means 12 students. (I wish that was a full class in schools too! My oh my, what we could accomplish!) We began class with introductions and then discussing what the kids already know about clay.  Even though this is a summer class, I consider it my personal goal to make my classes a "meaty" and meaningful as possible; especially in the summer.  I showed the students how to roll out the clay with rolling pins and use a variety of tools to create 15 or more bead-like pieces which we will string into necklaces and mobiles.  We decided a nature theme was helpful in trying to figure out what kind of pieces to make.

After a short break, we began our slump/hump mold bowls.  To help us with ideas, I showed pictures of Dale Chihuly's glass artwork and we talk about the differences between organic and geometric forms.  Kids were able to talk about all the things they noticed and liked about Dale Chihuly's sculptures.  For me, this is one of the best parts of teaching kids; they notice things and describe things about art that most adults don't notice.  Students rolled out some clay and and drew patterns and designs  on one side, and then gently draped the sheet of clay over a container to create an interesting organic form.  We decorated the outsides with different patterns and set them out to dry.

Tomorrow, we will be painting our mobile/necklace pieces and building gnome homes.  Stay tuned for more details.

Resourceful Scrap Sketchbooks.

 In my own art making process and in my art classes, I find that a critical component in the creative process and in documenting creative and critical thinking, the sketchbook is a very utilitarian tool and one of my necessities. I am always looking for new ways to create sketchbooks with my students of all ages.  Instead of requiring kids to go out and buy a sketchbook, we make our own out of scrap materials I have saved in a big box each school year. (I usually write a school wide e-mail asking people to bring in cereal or any other thin cardboard food boxes.) Last year, as I was teaching middle school, making a sketchbook was our first art project.  I gave a basic demonstration and examples of several creative page ideas and then challenged students to see who could construct the most unique sketchbook.  Basic steps follow.

Recommended Resources:
cereal box or other thin cardboard
copy paper
scrap construction paper
glue
clothespins
scrap art or unfinished projects
lined paper
envelopes
calendars
magazine pages
craft/butcher paper
scissors
fancy cutting scissors
any other scrap craft materials

On the first day of class, I gave my students homework: Raid your recycle box for scrap materials like thin cardboard and junk mail paper.  Students can usually share one box between two people. Or, if its a small box, you will need to use the front and back panels as the covers for your sketchbook.

Step one: To get started, you will need to cut out the front or back panel of a box and make sure you have two pieces that are the same size.  Then choose the scrap paper you would like for the front and back covers and cut the paper so it is about half and inch bigger than the cardboard pieces on all sides.  Next, cut two pieces of paper slightly small than the cardboard pieces.  Place the cardboard, printed side down, with glue onto the cover paper.  Cut the corners so they will fold neatly onto the cardboard and glue down.  I find it helpful to use clothespins to clamp down the edges.  To finish the covers, glue the smaller paper so that it overlaps the cover paper and covers any visible cardboard.

Step two: Make the spine or binding of your sketchbook. Use a piece of copy paper and accordion style fold it.  Try to make sure that each crease is even and less than half and inch wide.  Trim the paper so that it is a little shorter than the covers of the sketchbook.

Step three: Make the pages.  This part will require some problem solving and creative thinking.  I give the students several basic ideas and leave directions very open ended.  When making your pages, I recommend that you cut and fold them so that they will be protected by the covers.  I usually require students to put in five or more pieces of trimmed, lined paper for any vocabulary or special notes they may need.  Next I show how to use one of the covers as a template to ensure some plain paper can be cut and added as normal sketchbook paper.  Trace around the cover onto a sheet of paper. Then make a stack of three to five papers and cut them at the same time. You can encourage students to try this with any kind of paper or scraps.

Next start to make the more creative and interactive pages for the sketchbook. For instance, I use paper that is obviously too large to fit into the sketchbook and show how it can be folded in a variety of ways to fit inside the covers.  By contrast, you can cut papers that are too small to fill the binding and add multiple pieces or overlap them to make a collaged sort of page to draw on.

 Pieces of old maps make fun printed pages to draw on and can be folded to create longer, landscape surfaces.  You can do the same thing with tall paper.  Fold the tall paper in half and trim the open edges so it will fit the sketchbook.  Instead of gluing the paper into the binding the landscape direction, try to glue one edge so that the tall paper unfolds up or down beyond the edges of the covers to create a much bigger drawing surface.

Envelopes also make nice pages to draw on and double up as a storage pockets to keep a collection of mini drawings or even an artist trading card project.  You can also use old junk mail papers and envelopes and re-purpose them as sketchbook pages.  Another idea students liked was making folder pockets on the insides of the covers to hold papers and even pencils.  Simply cut paper about half as tall as the cover pages and just as wide and then glue the sides and bottom down, leaving the top open.

 Once you have assembled a collection of cut and folded pages of all kinds, you are ready to glue them into the accordion folded binding. To do this, start with the first "v-shape" of the binding.  I usually start by adding five or more lined papers for notes at the beginning.  Add a line of glue in the "v" of the first fold and attach the first page. Then add a thin line of glue on the edge of the lined paper that is in the binding to adhere the next piece on top.  I recommend adding about five to eight papers per crease.  Once you have the first set of papers glued in, add a line of glue the the other side of the "v" and fold that one section of binding together sandwiching the paper inside and securing them.  Then move on to the next section until you have an accordion style binding with sets of papers secured within.  (It is important to keep folding the binding together as you continue gluing each section to make sure that the pages and binding stack on top of one another and not side by side.)

                                       The finished bound pages should look something like this.

 To secure the bound pages into the covers, put a generous line of glue on the front and back of the accordion fold and place your front and back covers on top and underneath the bound pages so that everything is neatly stacked and lined up.  Next cut some straps from scrap papers to glue from the front and onto the back of the the covers. I usually make three straps for the top, the middle and the bottom.  As you glue them on, be sure to pinch each strap tightly around the binding and the spine of the book.  If you would like to attach a closure you can glue a rubber band or ribbon underneath the straps on the back cover.  I like to use string or ribbon so it can tie the book closed on the front.


 Obviously there are many ways you can add to or change the sketchbook to make it your own. For instance, the overall shape of the sketchbook doesn't even have to be a square or rectangle. (I had one student make her sketchbook in the shape of a butterfly with its wings folded.  When it was opened, you could see two symmetrical wing shapes!) The students who really got engaged with this project brought in materials of their own to make it more personal.  Overall, its important to make the scrap sketchbook a fun place to work and process ideas.  I have also made mini sketchbooks that I give as gifts and I also keep one in my purse for spur of the moment ideas and inspiration.  You can also theme the sketchbooks too.  I am working on one right now as a place to record and keep recipes.

 Keep creativity growing by filling up your own handmade sketchbook.  Until next time, happy scrap sketchbook making!