Caden's 2015-2016 Explorer Portfolio

Mrs McKenzie compiled many of Caden's projects over the year into one portfolio that he brought home from school on the last day.  For our blog book, I'm going to highlight a few of the projects here.  I love that they prepared this sampling of his learning and work.

Garden of Eden  (Torn Paper Design)

After reading about the Creation and the Garden of Eden in the Bible, Caden created his first piece of art, a torn paper design of the Garden of Eden.

 

Noah's Ark (Cut Paper Mosaic)

Mosaics are everywhere in art from the ancient times to the present day.  They are also thought to be a good beginning point when teaching art to children because they provide a concept and minimum fine motor ability is required to complete it.

 

Seed and Bean Collage

Nature provided the inspiration for the seed and bean collage.  As he began his study of observing and enjoying nature, seeds are very intriguing!

 

Positing and Negative Butterflies

This activity was used to explain the concept of positive and negative space, as well as, symmetry in art (& creation).

 

Crayon Resist

This builds on the idea of positive and negative space.  The paint resists the crayon and the design shows through.

 

Roman Arch

The arch was fundamental to Roman architecture and the invention of the aqueduct was the beginning of plumbing and municipal water supply.  He used watercolor to paint an arch and/or aqueduct.

 

Color Star

Caden made color stars to show how color is made.  First the primary colors are applied, and then the secondary colors are mixed om the star.

 

Straight Line Design

This work was inspired by one of Mondrian's pieces of modern art.  Line is obvious in Mondrian's work, but it is a fundamental part of design and is used in all works of art.

 

Castle (watercolor)

As he studied the Middle Ages in History, he spent a lot of time learning about the parts of a castle. 

 

String Pull

The String Pull is on  of the most fun crafts that the Explorers get to do.  The string pull is another opportunity to talk about symmetry and the role that it plays in art.

 

Still Life

The Explorers learned that there are 3 broad categories that most art can be placed in: portrait, landscape, and still life.  They looked at art by Cezanne, Manet, and Matissa.  This is Caden's drawing of a setting of items that were placed in front of the class (checked tablecloth, bowl of green apples, stacked books, and flowers).

 

Painting Under the Table

During his study of the Renaissance, Caden learned about the gifted painter and sculptor, Michelangelo.  Although, the magnitude of his work on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel cannot fully be appreciated by simply looking at a picture, Caden and his class painted laying on their backs under a table.  After many spilled glasses of water, sore arm muscles, and the frustration of not being able to control their designs as well as they are used to, an appreciation begins to form and they begin looking a little closer at pictures of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.  Here is Caden's "ceiling" painting.

 

Starry Night

Starry Night by Van Gogh is a favorite and a great illustration of impressionist painting.  Here is Caden's interpretation of that famous work of art.

 

Bubble Prints

After reading the poem Soap Bubbles, the kids looked at Manet's painting Boy Blowing Bubbles.  They learned to blow bubbles using a straw and to make bubble prints using bubbles dyed with different colors.

 

Lighthouse in Pointillism

The children looked at Lighthouse at Honfleur by Georges Seurat, who is the undisputed master of pointillist painting.  Here is Caden's interpretation of Seurat's painting.

 

Chalk on Cloth

Many artists have used pastels in their art at some point or another.  There is nothing quite like the vibrant colors and blending that this medium provides.  Here is Caden's chalk piece.

 

Mosaic Self-Portrait

The children looked at many different self-portraits, and they learned how the artist physically was able to paint himself and what he chose to include.  Caden used mosaic for his self-portrait.

 

Another project they worked on throughout the year, as they studied the historical timeline from creation to modern day, was a set of drawings representing different periods in history.  Here are Caden's interpretation of "Bible Times", "Ancient Egypt", and "Ancient Greece".

 

Here's "Roman Times", "Viking Times", and "The Middle Ages".

 

"The Renaissance"

 

"Columbus", "The Pilgrims", and "Revolutionary Times". 

 

"Westward Expedition", "Pioneer Times", and then the book ends with a picture of Caden in his costume for the Exporer's Timeline song performance from Grandparents Day.

 

Another exercise they worked on was drawing Fairy Tales that they had read.  Here are a sampling of what was in Caden's book.

 

"Jack and the Beanstalk" 

 

Rapunzel. 

 

The Frog Prince. 

 

 The Fisherman and His Wife.

 

The kids also had a book where they would draw as they were listening to music.  Here is a sampling of Caden's work from that book.

 

"Raindrops Prelude" by Chopin 

 

"Flight of the Bumblebee" by Korsakov. 

 

"The Nutcracker" by Tchaikovsky. 

 

"Carnival of the Animals" by Saint-Saens 

 

"Water Music" by Handel 

 

"Star Spangled Banner" by Key 

 

Here is a side by side of Caden's self portrait on the first day of school, compared to the end of the school year.