Art Spirit

A building that is flat ; attached to a wall ----- December 31, 2009

Farolitos on Christmas Eve

We had the absolute best time putting together the paper bags of sand, lighting the candles and enjoying the stunning display of light with no electricity. The farolitos that my boyfriend and I installed at his house on Christmas Eve were so beautiful. My boyfriend figured out the math as to how far to space each bag and then how many we needed to create this beautiful image of light around his house. He lived for many years in the high desert of New Mexico and is very familiar with the farolitos ---- and my parents are both from northern New Mexico --- growing up every Christmas Eve when I was in grade school all the way through high school we placed luminaries ( as we called them ) along our drive and up our walk. I have strong memories of sitting on a freezing Christmas Eve folding bags and filling them with dirt while my oldest sister, my oldest brother and my Dad would walk around placing luminaries and lighting them --- so beautiful then as the were on Christmas Eve this year--- Enjoy!

Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr. Fox'

What is crafted? What is made ? It certainly is the look and feel and environment of Wes Anderson's animated film 'Fantastic Mr.Fox'. The texture, the way the hair on the stop motion foxes moves as they travel through their adventures is truly beautiful. The landscapes in the surrounding are inspired by the English countryside of Roald Dahl's world but they have a pastoral mid-western-ness that is open, comforting with out being sappy. The entire film is one beautiful setting after another. Well crafted and considered in its making.

December 22, 2009

  When  typing the date on the blog --- I almost  always think --- its someone's   birthday... happy birthday to them ..So here I am waiting for the repair man for the crazy self expressive toilet ... at least my house chooses vacation time to act up so that I can call the plummer or whom ever and not take a day off to do it. Like everyone else I am thinking about the things that need to happen for the  celebrating Christmas.  Really not much to post... other than I have eaten my share of cookies, I have a  to return to mall after a day of bushwhacking   through the crowds  because  the running shoes I purchased are two different sizes... and I am still thinking and thinking about what else there is what else can happen with art making , teaching , and being an artist. A low point? Not at all ... only maybe  in glucose  because of all the sugar  but artistically  things feel as though they are turning. I applied to a large outdoor show here in Denver this summer --- the Cherry Creek Arts Festival . Now whether I am accepted or not I won't know until January  but it feels good to start turning slowly another direction.

meet you at recess by the trees

 In 3rd grade, we are starting our investigation of architecture  by creating  elevation views of buildings   using Greek, Roman, Victorian and modern architectural elements. The children are truly enjoying putting together  varieties of  architectural  elements  and --- as  one would imagine these buildings are  very fantastic!

So we are painting and moving around the room getting the paint, going back to our seats, painting , getting up again to get a new color --- this sort of thing. There is a  deal great of working as well as movement in the room.  A small group of boys gathers around  another boy's seat -- they are chatting --- and I move over to 'break up the action' and encourage them to keep working.

I do this by saying "... what are we talking about ?"   My method of not saying what I want them to do  which is  to keep working and not gather and chat usually works really well --- the children  always tell me and then move on  to their task --- in this case  all the  boys  standing there just looked at me  ---  looked at each other all agreed  " OK meet you there ..."  and moved back to their  work --  But  answering me ---the child who was at his seat said "... our buildings..."  Being completely  surprised by this I asked  what about your buildings --- this young man offered that they had made up a game yesterday on recess that was centered around their buildings. They were  all going to meet each other by the trees  to play at recess that afternoon.

When I asked  if  I could play he said without blinking "... sure... is your building done ? You gotta have your design done to play."  I said I think so-- and he said  then I  could meet them at the trees too.  I love this  whole thing of the work they do being embedded into their imaginary play. 

I never went outside to meet the children at the trees -- but I have not stopped considering this and wondering about their attachment to what they make.

What  creates this  interest in making and then the expansion of the idea --- especially architecture-- into the child's spatial creative play imagination. I am thinking that they truly do inhabit their ideas --- its wonderful. They are in their ideas to the point the idea becomes  the alternate reality of the  child's constructed game .  So interesting and so wonderful !