action painting

Artist, Mauro Bonacina, fills balloons with acrylic paint and pops them on an adjacent canvas. This sounds much more fun and a little more exciting than the boring, over-used Jackson Pollock methods. . .

patio uniform

I cannot wait to spend lovely, summer evenings in Arizona in my patio uniform! I will be renting an adorable, TINY studio for the next year while I begin my first, permanent teaching position as a Middle School Art Specialist! Yahoo! I am thrilled for so many reasons, but even more so, most recently, as I secured an adorable home for myself, which, albeit, is probably the smallest, oddest living space I have ever seen, but it has a ginormous backyard with loads of beautiful cacti and a pomegranate tree. . . and potential for a "patio"!!!

‘Tis the season for leisurely lazing and for parading about in finery that's nothing short of amazing! The patio is no place for sloppy regalia. Au contraire! The occasion begs for celebratory paraphernalia. It's best to dress in various layers; a ritual exercised by only the most seasoned patio players. You'd never step foot on the patio without the perfect caftan. I'm thinking that special vintage one Aunty brought back from Pakistan. A proper patio is equipped with an appropriately shaded zone meant for long term lounging on a chaise-like throne! No stint on the patio is complete without leisure entertainment, such as a good book and a handful of cocktails for necessary sustainment. A hand-held spray fan is an absolute must should you go topless you'll want to cool off that bust! And there you have it: the patio uniform demystified; consider it your how-to-properly-leisure guide!" -Mrs. Lilien


{studio and backyard}


{studio and pomegranate tree!}

group learners

Here goes another random thought for a lesson. . .
Ask students to collaborate in groups to stage a modern day scene of an art historical image, which would then be photographed!! I think it could be genius!

Fyi: many contemporary re-conceptualizations of Johannes Vermeer's, The Girl with the Pearl Earring, have prompted this lesson idea.


via Caitlin Joan

doilies as canvases

via where the lovely things are

the weekend, briefly.

This is slightly delayed. . . however, last weekend was so wonderful, I wanted to share some images. The days were filled with cottage gardening, a road trip back to Philly, and an Indian wedding!! :)


{baskets}

{baskets}

{dirty hands}

{poppop working on the lower bed}

{finally, sun!}

{grandma and grandpop coombs get flowers}

{filling up at the gulf for the ride home}

{jesse gets bedazzled}

{me, not sure what's in store}

{sisters and myles!}

{being tied together}

{married!! ...commence throwing tumeric stained rice and flower petals}

{having fun feeling included!}

{donna got all the bling because my wrists are too big for the bangles :( she was happy}

{seven steps}

{nattamai, silver, jakobi family}

{hindu dance club action}

{masterful bollywood dancers}

Ward Combination Record and Plan Book

Ward Combination Record and Plan Book (910-16) - Genuine School Supplies

This is the perfect old school teacher's planner for me: 6 periods and 9-10 week marking periods! YES! Thank you for always guiding me in the right direction, Marissa! :)

blind contour drawing... literally

I have this idea for a lesson that I need to write down before I forget! This happens to me all the time, and normally I just don't write my idea down and totally forget about it. However, I've been contemplating lesson ideas very intensely, lately, so I really want to document this thought!

I believe in using sketchbooks in classrooms and have been pondering the best ways to create and utilize them in the classroom with children. In thinking about sketchbooks, I had an idea about contour drawing in which students are blindfolded (I think middle schoolers will pretend to hate this, but actually love it), students would draw an object from a sack, and then using their fingers as their tools they would feel the contours of the object and draw the object from their observations. This would be a fun introductory activity to contour drawing/still life/etc.

Too, here is a great resource for utilizing sketchbooks in the classroom via Sketchbooks in Schools. I LOVE this site!