Week 7: Get Well Deb!

This week in all my classes, we spent the majority of the time creating get well cards for Deb Thomas, the president of Riverside Industries. Deb had recently undergone hip replacement surgery, and Halley thought it would be a great idea if all the artists at Riverside Arts created "get well" cards for Deb. At first I thought I might get some resistance from students because they might want to just do their own art. But all of the students were very enthusiastic about creating cards to help Deb come back to Riverside as soon as possible!  I had to help some of the students spell some words when they wrote their messages, but other students required more assistance. Each student put a lot of effort into creating a beautiful, personalized card for Deb. I was quite impressed with the drawings and painting some of the students created on their cards. The artists at Riverside have so much passion and show so much care for the staff, their peers, and visitors. It's inspiring to see how the students can come together and support each other in times of need.  Seeing how the artist's support each other makes me wish everybody in the world could have the same attitude. The world would be a much better place!

During the advanced class, which lasts two hours, I was able to direct the students in an art project once they finished their get well card. I showed the students a quick and easy way to make their own scratch paper. I had each student create geometic patterns with colored pencils on a piece of heavy paper. I told them the more colors they used, the more interesting their piece would be in the end. Once the paper was complete full of color, I gave each student a black oil pastel and told them to completely cover the paper.A couple students were hesitant to cover the colorful piece of art they had just created, but I told them when we finished they would be able to see the color in a whole new, exciting way. Once the paper was covered, I showed the students that by using a pencil or a scratching tool, they could scratch away at the black, leaving colorful designs behind. The students loved the effect created by the scratching. This technique allowed the students to have fun, but it also helped them step outside their comfort zones and look outside the box. I was happy to see the positive reactions from the artists about the project. My supervisor said this is a technique I may want to try with some of the other students in the different classes.