NAHS gets a start on gifts for senior citizens

Thanks to Jessie, Amanda, and Abbey for the kick off

Art students get in the holiday spirit!

In a totally random fashion statement, C Block artists noticed that the students at their tables were dressed in similar colors - and when the two tables got together, they discovered. the complementary color combination red and green. Perhaps a foreshadowing of the holidays to come.

Congratulations to Annabelle

Homework Wall of Fame for this week!

This could be the best NAHS auction ever!

Challenged with the theme of recreating famous works of art on plates this Winter's NAHS auction will feature works by O'Keeffee, Munch, Monet, and Tiffany. The usual two hour session at Claytime extended to 3 1/2 hours with one plate still unfinished - who paints dogs playing poker? Can't wait to see what the 10" plates - new and more expensive canvasses - look like after they are fired! We are fired up about the potential funds we may raise for charity!

Reminder for Art 2 Honors

Your homework this week involves watercolors - your choice of subject matter.

Sent from my iPhone

Best optional homework of the week

Way to go Emma O'Malley!

Only two make the Wall of Fame

Great Job on homework this week Alyssa Whitley and Andrew Proietti!

NAHS takes first place!

Our scarecrow depicting the couple in Grant Wood's painting "American Gothic" won first prize judges award in the clubs/business category!

Congratulations to this week's homework Wall of Fame artists

Great job Gabby Santana, Nick Kalil and Xana de Melo-Shay!

Congrats to this week's homework wall of fame students!

Great job drawing your favorite childhood toy Annabelle, Mikayla, and Dominic!

Congratulations to the Blog Check Winners

Amanda Rinker, Stephen Simmarano, Caitlyn Smith and Amanda Baldi all won sketchbooks for being the first to report in about my summer travels.

Blog check competition ......

As you know I challenged all my students on day one to take the time to find this blog where homework assignments will be posted.


If you are doing this ..... YEAH! ..... tomorrow if you are one of the first three to tell me where I went on my summer vacation you will get a sketchbook!  Come in right away in the morning , no need to wait until your class.


So, I went to Southeast Asia .... specifically Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.  It was awesome.

Just what is optional homework???

On the fourth week of a homework rotation, students have the opportunity to take a break from doing homework and relax - no grade penalty will be incurred. 
BUT if the student elects to, he or she may create any two or three dimensional artwork. 


Often students elect to bake their creations and an example of a minion cupcake is featured here.  We enjoy "grading" visually and via taste as a class. 


The only exception to the "optional" homework is that students taking Art 2 or higher levels for honors credit are required to complete a homework assignment on that 4th week.

Preparing for the May 1, 2014 Silent Auction

NAHS at work at Claytime creating 24 square plates for our silent auction.

More unbirthday photos!

Cupcakes are such healthy breakfast foods!

A happy "unbirthday" to all NAHS members!

Happy faces at our early morning celebration 4/4/14.

How exciting to be at an opening game!

In and outside of the conference .....

I started the day early on Sunday by attending a workshop presented by a friend from Marlboro High School. Though she focused on her photography program, the concentrations created by her AP students gave me many great ideas for inspiring next year's AP Studio Art students...lots of very interesting contemporary photographers whom I had never heard of.

Then I had to focus on my presentation.  I was a bit nervous, not so much because I was speaking, but because I was presenting with three other award winners and I had all of our presentations formatted on my laptop.  So of course, knowing how technology "works" I was concerned about everything going ok.  When the workshop before ours ended we had 10 minutes to set up.... and of course the plug to the projector was bent and would not go into my laptop.  AWKKKKK!!!!!  Someone ran for the tech folks while I nervously searched for my back up flash drive.  But ta dah,
just about two minutes before we were to present the tech man replaced the plug and all was right with the world.

From left to right: Marjorie O'Shea-Southeastern Region, Sheila Tetler - Eastern Region, Donna Barnard-Western Region, and Karen Popovich - National Secondary Art Educator of 2013.

By the time I put all my machinery away and answered questions from participants I was too late to get to the next workshop session, so instead I took the opportunity to meet and get an autograph from Terryl Whitlatch.  If her name does not sound familiar her work certainly will.  Perhaps a google search?  Let me just throw out the names ... Pixar, Disney Feature Animations, Lucasfilm....

Just about everyone at the conference then packed into a large ballroom to hear artist Deborah Butterfield - one of my favorite sculptors.  She was very down to earth and funny and the opportunity to hear her speak about the progression of her artistic vision and career.

And the day was capped off with the opening night game of the San Diego Padres (vs the Dodgers) at Petco Park - a short walk from my hotel (My husband's idea of course).  I will upload a photo later today and I must say, the National League is a bit different from the American League! Never saw so many bunts in one game in my life!  And finally some great Mexican food for dinner.

Saturday was an awesome day!

After attending several inspiring presentations I was invited to join Scholastic Art Publications for a boat tour of the harbor. Then onto a reception sponsored by Mass. College of Art and dinner in the Gas Lamp District.

Art Matters!

So many art teachers in one place. Just attended a workshop on digital portfolios and am ready to try out our iPads!

A beautiful day in San Diego

Getting ready for San Diego

Just a bit of chaos as I finish preparing my presentation for the National Art Education Association conference in San Diego.  Let's hope my technological "skills" are adequate.  Will post from the conference .... Stay tuned.

Sent from my iPhone

Six art students' works to be exhibited

Congratulations to the following students whose work was selected to be included in the 2014 Mount Wachusett Community College Annual Exhibit of High School Art Work:  Amanda Baldi, Celeste Blodgett, Heather Cotter, Desiree Lothman, Stephanie Peterson, and Meredith Prato.

Congratulations Stephanie Peterson

Stephanie has been recognized with an Honorable Mention in the Boston Globe Scholastic Art Awards Competition.

Stephanie's award winning acrylic painting.

The completed library mural

Congratulations to all of the students in Advanced Art Honors for their teamwork in completing the mural for library patrons to enjoy.

 

As the deadline for completion approaches the details continue to appear.

The art students take over the circulation desk.

Colors and brushes are everywhere and the push is on to make the deadline of January 15.

Monday focused on the bookworm and his books.

On Monday the Bookworm finally started to get some facial features and reading glasses.

Friday brings new challenges and a few good books!

As students add books to the tree of knowledge, the prospect of adding pages gave great challenges to Julie and Meredith who volunteered to tackle that aspect of the mural.
Other students teamed up to try to suggest tree bark and discovered stylistic differences that may call for a few revisions.
All in all, base colors are almost done and now shading and details are next week's focus.

Working on the bookworm.

Day three - Thursday saw some added color!

With colors pre-mixed the class made great progress on day 2!

Advanced Art Students Create A Mural for the Library

Undertaking a mural as a project based learning experience, the WBHS Advanced Art Honors Class met with their client librarian Ms. Klem to propose and refine a design for the newly refurbished library.  The team of students measured the wall, created scale drawings, inventoried available paint and ordered new paint and began the painting on 1/7/2014.
Updates will be provided as the work progresses and the team tries to make their completion deadline of 1/15/2014.

The selected design is a combination of original ideas by students Desiree Lothman and McKenzie Dano.