Art Clubbers and Lepidoptera!

Art Clubs are singing along and students are already working on their second project! We are looking into the wonders of Lepidoptera (an order of insects that includes moths and butterflies). Stay tuned for the finished product!

Regarding Returning Student Artwork...

As many of you know, Fine Arts and French Night is our annual art show where we are able to display students' best artwork all over the school! It is a wonderful event that showcases the hard work, effort, and joyous enthusiasm that your students invest in their French and Art classes. That being said, please be aware that, for this event which takes place in the spring, I choose each student's best artwork to display from the projects they have completed over the course of the academic year. Because I need access to all their finished projects to do this, I do not return completed projects until the end of the year. If you have any questions regarding this matter or would like to know how your student in progressing in art, please feel free to send me an email! Thank you for all you do!

5th Grade: Progress on Rembrandt Elephants

Fifth grade has been learning about study drawing and is working on charcoal reproductions of Rembrandt's study drawing of an elephant. Check back later to see samples of student work!

4th Grade: Making Progress on Self Portraits

Fourth grade is working on their Self Portrait project and are close to being finished! Check back in for samples of student work and a little info on what we've been learning!

Third Grade: Light in Art and Student Still Life!

Students studied the different jobs of light in art by viewing fine works by Vermeer and Caravaggio. We discussed how the element of art called value (or light and shadow in a work of art) acts to create the illusion of depth and form. We also discussed other jobs of light in art, such as directing the viewer where to look in a painting, helping communicate a narrative, and setting a mood in a work of art. Students created their own still life for this project, using value to create light and shadow in their work. Here are a few samples of their work!

Second Grade: Line and Picasso's Rooster!

Students studied the art element of line during this project, focusing on Pablo Picasso's line work in drawing simplified figures and animals. We discussed the difference between organic line, which is more irregular, curving and found in natural forms, and inorganic line, which tends to be regular, mechanical, and found in geometric or man-made forms. Students used organic line to build their replication of Picasso's Rooster and added color using oil pastels. Here are a few samples of their wonderful work!

Welcome Back Archway Arete Families!!!

Dear Archway Arete Families,

I am thrilled to welcome you, whether you be new or returning, to Archway Arete as the academic year begins. I hope you have enjoyed your summer and are refreshed and ready for a new year of learning! My name is Ms. Arce-Lindsay, and I will be teaching art for 2nd-5th grade. This will be my third year working as a Visual Arts teacher for Great Hearts Academies, and I feel truly fortunate to be afforded such an opportunity. I received a degree in Studio Arts from Biola University, and graduated from the Torrey Honors Institute, a program which specializes in Socratic dialogue centered around classic works of literature, poetry, theology and philosophy. Additionally, I have been working with children in an academic setting for over five years. I feel that these qualifications uniquely outfit me to not only teach your children about art, but to help them see the goodness, truth and beauty in it as well, and there is so much to see!

Fine art, especially the visual arts, is a great passion of mine. I am so excited to have the opportunity to share that passion with your students. This year, we will delve into great works of art as we learn how to view them in the light of their historical context. We will learn how to identify the various elements of art used in these works, and how to interact with them with wonder and reason. This year, I hope to see students expand their visual vocabulary, expand their curiosity, and flourish in their creativity.

If you have any questions, whether it be about curriculum, class, or even if you would like to know if there are ways you can help, please feel free to contact me. I will be updating my blog once a month with updates about each class’s progress, and if you have any questions in particular, please feel free to email me. I have great hopes for this class, and I am eager to work with you to make it a success for you and your students. Here’s to a fantastic year!

With sincerity,

Ms. Arce-Lindsay

Carce-lindsay@archwayarete.org  

http://cal-archwayareteart.blogspot.com      

Soiree de Beaute Approaches! (Otherwise known as Fine Arts and French Night!)

It's coming up soon! See the flier below for more information, and don't hesitate to email me with any questions. Hope to see you there!

Art Clubs Progress!

Check out some of the projects we've been creating in Art Club this semester!

We got to make our own chalk pastel still life, while learning about that medium and how it needs to be adhered to the paper you use with a sticky substance called 'fixative'.

We made our own masquerade masks while learning about the fascinating history behind this artistic tradition!

We recently just finished our beautiful Chinese paper lanterns! We learned about the traditions behind the different uses and design choices for this ancient art form.

5th Grade: Textiles and Taptestries

Fifth Grade learned about the textile called tapestry and its many uses, including insulation, decoration, and demonstrating a person's wealth. We discussed the different themes often exhibited in 16th century tapestry, such as biblical stories, mythological creatures, and scenes from daily life. Using the art of quilling, or paper filigree, each class created a representation of one of the most well known tapestries on the early 16th century, The Unicorn in Captivity. See a sample of their fantastic work below!

4th Grade: Gothic Architecture and Stained Glass

Fourth Graders studied Gothic Architecture and its different components, with a focus on its incorporation of stained glass windows, flying buttresses, Gothic rib vaults and ornate interior decoration. Students completed their own reproduction of the famous rose windows often seen in Gothic churches, using the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France as a reference, See an example of their wonderful work below!

1st Grade: Meet the French Impressionists!

First Grade has been learning about Impressionism and its emphasis on texture and atmosphere rather than photograph-like clarity. They were able to view and discuss paintings by such French Impressionists as Monet, Renoir and Degas. Here is a sample of a Renoir reproduction they practiced brushstrokes on, and below are a few samples of dancers they did while learning about the style of Degas.

Kindergarten: Vincent Van Gogh's Surprising Colors and Textures

Kindergarteners learned about Van Gogh and his love for using abundant and obvious brush strokes in his paintings. They attempted this method by making haystacks of their own using oil pastels. Here are a few samples of their work!

5th Grade: Completed One Perspective Landscape Painting

Our fifth grade students recently completed their linear perspective landscape paintings. We learned about the birth of linear perspective during the Renaissance and how important this was for the development of realistic spacial drawings.We also studied color theory, specifically how to make neutral colors using by adding white, black and gray to hues or pure colors.

4th Grade: Completed Illuminated Manuscripts

Here are some of our 4th graders' finished illuminated manuscripts. While working on this project, our students learned about the kinds of designs most often used in Gaelic insular (made on an island) art. Each student chose a virtue to illuminate, and wrote their own definitions. Then they designed their own page, employing the abstract patterns and zoological images we learned were used in illuminated manuscripts such as the Book of Kells.