Video: Idea Channel

There's a new video series on Youtube from PBS Arts Online that I just love. The Idea Channel is, "a biweekly web series that examines the evolving relationship between modern technology and art." Or in simple terms, quirky and thoughtful 3 minute videos about art and pop culture. It's a great springboard for discussions and essays--if you're looking for something to spark thoughts on that subject. This is a great resource for your tech savy, pop culture loving teens. The host poses an off the wall question, and then quickly sets out his argument for the answer. I enjoy the fact that they're simple questions yet make you stop for a moment and really think.

Watch a video, respond to the questions posed in each short, maybe find some fresh inspiration or a new perspective on the world around you. Plus, they're just fun to watch!

This video is about Mario, which pretty much every kid has played at least one Mario Bros. game. But it's probably not how you or your kids have ever thought about the video games before: How is Mario like a Salvador Dali painting? Huh? There's more to it than you might think....

Project: Simple wire sculpture

Here's a very simple project that leaves room for a lot of creativity across a wide range of skill levels. Create a sculpture using simple craft supplies: buttons, beads, feathers and pipe cleaners.

Picture from The Artful Parent

Resources: Dough recipes

MaryAnn Kohl posted some recipes for various kinds of modeling dough (some edible!) from her book, Mudworks. Here's the link to four recipes you can try out, from Goop to Play Clay to Bakers Clay to Pretzel Dough. I'm a big fan of art you can eat, so I want to try my hand at the Pretzel Dough - it sounds tasty! :)

Blogs: A Faithful Attempt and That Artist Woman

I just discovered two art blogs this week: A Faithful Attempt and That Artist Woman, both of which are chockful of art projects and lesson ideas.

A friend clued me in to A Faithful Attempt, which is written by a K-12 art teacher who has taught all around the world. She provides background information for each project, step-by-step instructions and lots of pictures of students' work. Since the author is a school teacher, she uses simple easy-to-get materials that are used in new ways.

A Faithful Attempt had a link to That Artist Woman, which is also an art projects blog. I find the crafts to be a little more detailed and time consuming, which works well for homeschoolers who aren't beholden to 50 minute class times. As on the first blog, That Artist Woman provides clear instructions and lots of pictures. I like the layout of the posts better on this site, because there's more step-by-step images that walk you through the project. She also reviews books and has occasional contests and giveaways for her readers.

I think both of these blogs provide ample artistic inspiration, and I'm positive you can find at least one project your kids will enjoy. Go make some art!

Website: Art 21

I've written about the tv show Art 21 previously, but thought it was worth mentioning again as they recently launched their own website, Art21.org. Before they had a sub-site within PBS' monolithic website, now they've got an independent page with more resources. It's incredibly simple to navigate with four main sections. You can look through content by artist, browse through the numerous videos and educational resources. 

Season 5 is coming out 2012!

My favorite thing about the website is all the videos you can watch (there's over 100 as of this writing!). Some of them are just clips from episodes, but there's a lot of original content that never saw airtime on tv.
The educational section has many resources I think you'll find helpful, especially a glossary of art terms. There's also accompanying educators' guides to give background information on the artists and art spotlighted in the show. It takes very little time to browse around and find information as they've laid it out so nicely.

I recommend Art 21 in general for older teens, as there can be mature themes discussed. Some artists like to be shocking and disgusting simply because they can. Personally, I don't find any artistic merit or educational value in a piece of work titled "Captain Ballsack." It's not edifying or enlightening to me. I suggest just skipping artists like that. Most of the artist interviews that I've watched are entertaining and educational with little objectionable content. Art 21 has helped me learn how to talk about art in an educated and understandable way. I've learned there is no one "right way" to discuss art; what matters is engaging the mind and asking questions and seeking answers.

Art 21 also has blog full of depth and insight, though I find the language tends to be fairly scholarly and the discussions pretty academic in nature. The posts tend to not be very understandable to the reader who isn't well versed in art history.

Author: Mary Ann Kohl

MaryAnn F. Kohl has written some of my favorite art activity books. She has published over 20 titles, from books focusing on American artists to a more global perspective. Unfortunately, I haven't had the opportunity to read all of her works, but the few that I have are wonderful. Each project is explained well with a short lesson about an artist or art history to go along with it. MaryAnn is a former school teacher with years of experience. She and I have the same view about teaching kids art: "Art is a process, not a product."  I highly recommend her books if you're looking for some inspiration in your art lessons.

I love this book. So inspiring!

And not only does MaryAnn write books, she also founded her own publishing company, Bright Ring. There are free online resources on Bright Ring's site: excerpts from some of the books, a list of project ideas, links to other websites and blogs, and supplements to Discovering Great Artists. They have a Facebook page as well with links to crafts and funny status updates, for those of you who are in to social media. And MaryAnn also has her own blog. There are a ton of projects posted on there with lots of pictures. She also links to other art blogs for more creative idea resources. This woman has a pretty prodigious output, I must say.

Resources: National Gallery of Art

I'm learning that major art museums usually have awesome websites with tons of free resources. The National Gallery of Art (NGA) is no exception. I don't even know where to start, because there is just so much awesome to write about. They have an excellent site that is very easy to use (would I really recommend anything else?). There's no superfluous icons or visual clutter, it's just simple and to the point. Everything is easily accessible from the front page, you don't have to click through multiple links to get to the good stuff. And the site is definitely full of good stuff.

I'll begin with what first led me to the site: the Children's Video Tour. This page contains 50 short videos about various paintings in NGA's collection. Unfortunately you can't link to any of them specifically or re-post the videos on another site, but I can understand them not wanting to strain their bandwidth that way. I've watched a handful of them and found each one to be engaging, piquing my interest in the painting discussed.

There's more to watch on the Videos and Podcasts page. The videos here are more documentary-like, longer in length, focusing on individual artists, exhibitions, and other areas. You can also listen to various podcasts as well, which include lectures on a wide range of topics, conversations about particular artists, art movements or works in the collection, and insight into the inner workings of the museum.

You can choose from a plethora of online tours, arranged according to artist, art works, and themes. These would be a helpful addition to your curriculum, giving a fuller understanding of art history. The tours are educational and informative without going over your head.

Speaking of educational, the Education page is probably what will pique your interest the most. The Children's Video Tour, NGA Kids, Learning Resources and Classroom links are handily grouped together under the Resources heading. NGA Classroom has online lesson plans and curriculum guides, ranging from art fundamentals to more specific subjects. The Learning Resources page is "a place to borrow, browse, and download more than 300 resources." What's really nifty is they have a free loan program for teachers and homeschoolers! You can request a catalogue to find out all the materials available to for borrowing. If you don't like teaching art or don't think you can do a good job of it, this is for you. Seriously, it's free and from one of the best museums in the country, how awesome is that?!

And NGA doesn't neglect homeschoolers, they have a page specifically for you! There's a little bit of redundancy here, as all the sections I've reviewed are listed on the Homeschool page as well. But I thought it was worth mentioning, because you can bookmark that one page instead of half a dozen.

Your kids might like this last section, since it's aimed specifically at them: NGA Kids. This page is really interesting in that you can make "interactive art online." I found it to be a bit of a visual overload, not as easy to find links as the rest of NGA's website. However, there are a lot of fun activities to be found here, and your kids might like playing around with all the different games.

Another good website to bookmark for further browsing.

Magazine: Arts and Activities

Ask your library to carry it!

I was hanging out at the American Craft Council Library (yet again) the other day and discovered "the nation's leading art education magazine," Arts & Activities. I'd never heard of it before, but after reading this month's issue, I think it's a great publication. They have projects with step-by-step instructions, the grade-level that it's aimed at, skills and knowledge students will gain, lesson plans to go along with it, and follow up ideas to try. It spans pre-K through high school, so I'm sure you could find at least one project to try.

I was impressed by Arts & Activities for several reasons: 1) The projects aren't dumbed down or overly simplified, yet they're explained well and help convey ideas and information about art history--it's not just random "craft time" but has a purpose. 2) I usually am annoyed by ads in magazines, but the ones in Arts & Activities actually caught my attention. The advertisements were for materials that I would use or products that I could see being beneficial in teaching art. 3) The articles are written by teachers for teachers, so the information is coming from real world classroom experience, not just a lesson outline that may or may not pique students' interest.

Their website has a lot of free resources as well: curriculum guides, videos, and online extras that build upon articles from the monthly magazine. You can get the magazine in print or digital form.

Book: Art Attack

Another book has been added to my must-own list: Art Attack: A Brief Cultural History of the Avant-Garde by Marc Aronson. The title sounds way more pretentious and overtly academic than the book actually is.  "Avant-garde" simply means "advance guard;" in relation to the arts it refers to work that's innovative or cutting-edge, that pushes the envelope of what's acceptable. Art Attack gives an overview of the last 200 years or so of art and world history.  I powered through the entire book in one day, I enjoyed it so much. The whole thing comes in at just under 175 pages, yet it's full of great information. What could be an overwhelming and confusing topic, the author makes accessible and interesting. Art Attack is aimed at curious teens, but it's so well written, I could see it being used in a college classroom.

Each chapter begins with suggestions for music to listen to or a movie to watch to give the reader a better feel for the time period discussed. I pulled up Youtube and easily found all the suggested composers' works. Listening to the different music styles really helped each section come alive. Most chapters took me under 10 minutes to read, which fit nicely with the length of the accompanying musical selections.

Art movements aren't discussed as abstract concepts but through stories of individual artists. I really appreciated how the author shows what happens in the arts isn't separate from world events, but affects and is affected by what happens in the wider world. So often art books can present artists as working in a vacuum  when really they are so influenced by and are responding to what's happening in the culture around them.

Art Attack leaves the reader with some great questions to ponder: When what is avant-garde becomes acceptable, where can you go from there? When it's normal for everyone to push the envelope, how do individuals stand out? This book was published in 1998, but the issues it discusses are still relevant today, especially with the continuing growth of the Internet. One quote that really stuck with me: "The avant-garde is, and is meant to be, disturbing. Is that because it forces us to see the shocking world in which we already live?"

Resources: The Private Life of a Masterpiece

My Mom brings me home many treasures from our local library. The only reason I'm so well read up on all the art magazines is because she checks them out every month for me. I've watched many art documentaries she's found with her keen eye. One of her latest finds that I'm quickly coming to love is from the BBC: The Private Life of a Masterpiece. I'd never even heard of this show before my Mom brought it home.

Each episode is about one work of art, some famous (Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper for example) and others not so much (ever heard of Paolo Uccello?). So far, I've watched six episodes and thoroughly enjoyed them all. They're educational and entertaining, with much pertinent information about the time periods and artists. There's no recycling of stock images as some shows tend to do; also, you don't stare at talking heads forever instead of seeing the art in question. You get many close up shots of details that you normally couldn't see, even if you were standing right in front of the piece. The scholars and critics that offer commentary are insightful and help you see the art with fresh eyes.
Each episode is around 50 minutes long and there are 29 total in the series. This is a very good show and I highly recommend it.
Here's a clip from the episode about The Last Supper:
 

Resources: American Craft Council Library

The American Craft Council (ACC) moved their offices from New York to Minnesota in the last couple years. A loss for NYC but a big gain for the arts in Northeast Minneapolis. The ACC publishes my favorite magazine, American Craft, six times a year; they also put on several American Craft Council shows around the country, from California to Minnesota to Maryland.
But the best part about the ACC moving to Minneapolis is their library came with them. It's free and open to the public 10am - 5pm, Monday through Friday. I love browsing through all the art magazines, some of which I've never seen anywhere else. The library has over 6,400 books, 7,000 exhibition catalogs, 700 volumes of periodicals and a substantial collection of artist files (from letters to images of work to artist statements). Obviously the main focus of the library's holdings is American craft, with an emphasis on works after 1940.

I suggest browsing the Craft Council's very simple and easy to use website. It's probably one of the best website designs I've seen in a long time. They have a great list of links to art magazines, museums and art centers, other craft organizations and schools.

You can search their catalog online or talk to the librarian to help you find what you're looking for. You can call the library at (612) 206-2330 or send an email inquiry: library@craftcouncil.org.

The American Craft Council is located on the second floor of the historical Grain Belt Brewery at 1224 Marshall St NE, Suite 200, Minneapolis MN 55413. There's free parking in a lot right across the street.

(sidenote: there is a long running debate about the difference between "craft" and "art" in artistic circles. Everyone seems to have a different definition. Personally, when I define "craft" I think of something that historically is meant to be functional first and aesthetically pleasing second. When I think of something created to be "art" it seems to me that aesthetics are more considered than any function. Another way I define the two terms: craft = domestic, made for use in the home, whereas art = gallery, created to be viewed and not touched. For example, a hand crafted teapot has a practical use but is also beautiful to look at and can be displayed as a work of art. The traditional studio arts (painting, sculpture, drawing, etc) are made to be put on display, but don't have a functional purpose beyond bringing beauty into the viewer's life)

Project: The Sketchbook Project

Last year, I had the fun of participating in the Sketchbook Project created by the fine folks at Art House Co-op. They create "massive, international art projects that tie thousands of artists together--and anyone can participate."
The Sketchbook Project is a simple idea yet leaves a lot of room for creativity. Each person picks a theme for their book. They then receive their 32 page sketchbook and instructions in the mail. You're free to rebind the pages, and any form of 2-D media is encouraged (as long as it doesn't smudge or flake off). I chose to fill my book with collages. You have several months to complete the project, and then you mail it back to Art House. Each book is cataloged, sent on a world wide tour, and then archived at the Brooklyn Art Library in New York. You can see my whole book here.

You have to create an account on Art House's website to participate, which is free and simple to do. However, there is a fee for every project, which covers the cost of the materials and helps keep the non-profit Art House running. For an additional fee, you can have your sketchbook scanned and posted online (which is what I did).

This would be a good project for an artistic, motivated teen to take on. Depending on how detailed someone wants to get and what materials they choose to use, it can take several months to finish. The first handful of pages fly by, and then you realize you still have to fill the rest of the sketchbook. It can feel a bit overwhelming at first, so it's good to plan out how many pages you want to complete in a week. The creators of the Sketchbook Project where smart to have people pick a theme for their books--it helps for coming up with ideas for so many pages (for example, one artist filled her book with drawings of birds).
It's extremely satisfying for me to look through the images of my sketchbook now. I think, "I made all that? Yup, I did." It was a fun and challenging project, which I will probably do again in the future.

Resources: Altered Esthetics' Drawing Night

Altered Esthetics is a gallery in Northeast Minneapolis that I've mentioned before. They're a non-profit art organization that gives many artists their first opportunity to show work in a gallery (myself included). They have monthly art openings, artist talks, workshops, mentor programs for new artists, and more.
One of their new events this year is Suit Up Ae. Every third Wednesday of the month 6:30 - 8:30pm Ae provides an evening of figure drawing. Volunteers dress up in costumes and anyone is free to come and draw for two hours. There is a suggested donation of $3, which is very reasonable. If you have a student who wants to further their drawing skills this is a fun and low key opportunity to do so.
There's just something special about making art in the company of other artistically inclined souls. And there's no comparison to drawing from real life--you can obsess over the details from a photograph ad infinitum, but a model can only hold a pose so long. Life drawing teaches you to focus on the important details and not worry about the little things so much. It can be challenging but it's a lot of fun.

Article: More Drawing Advice Than Anyone Wanted

The artist of a webcomic I follow recently wrote up a great essay about drawing and learning to be yourself as an artist.

"Anyone who has any aptitude at drawing will be asked at some point “how do I learn how to do that?”, and it seems to me that when people care to go into a more elaborate response than “Practice all the time” they are usually advising people to read up on a lot of Hogarth and Loomis, and learn all of the fundamentals before they start trying to get creative. I think one of the best pieces of drawing advice for beginners I ever saw was once upon a time on DeviantArt when Modus Operandi’s artist Tish Doolin told someone that if you were just picking up a pencil and trying this drawing thing out for the first time, it’s going to benefit you more to draw things that you have fun with than struggling with dry fundamentals right out of the gate."

You can read the rest of her post here. It's pretty long, but it's good reading. Expressing yourself artistically takes investing some time and effort into the endeavor. She uses the analogy of learning a new language--you don't expect to be fluent after paging through a few pages of a Spanish textbook, likewise you're not going to be Monet after painting once or twice.

She references and links to several helpful resources, one of which is this essay/tutorial.
I've come across similar guides in the past, but I found this particular one to be very well done and quite informative. It's surprisingly academic (but not in a over-your-head incomprehensible way) in that it's not simply about drawing. To draw well, you have to understand some basic ideas. To draw really well and to own your artistic style, you also have to know some art theory, which is not as scary as it sounds. I've referred to the landmark graphic novel Understanding Comics by Scott Mccloud in the past. This essay paraphrases a lot of his ideas into simpler, shorter form. I'd suggest reading the book for a fuller understanding of symbols and the styles of representation in art.

Resources: Google Art Project

I just found out about an awesome new website from Google. It's called the Art Project and it's amazing. It's like Google Maps but instead of streets and buildings, you can digitally wander around some of the best art museums in the world. I'm really excited about this! Not only can you "walk" through the galleries, you can click on art works to see more detail, zooming in to see individual brush strokes on paintings.
You can search by museum or for a particular piece of art. You can also create your own collections of favorite art pieces that you can then share with others. And you can save close up views as well, if there's a particular part of a work you like or want to show someone else. It's a nice way to set up a lesson plan for your students or browse a museum's collection you might not otherwise be able to see. And please do take advantage of this resource -- some of the most famous works of art in the world are now easily viewable in high resolution for your viewing pleasure.
I found the site extremely easy to use. After watching the intro video and a few minutes playing around, I easily got the hang of browsing through the Art Project. You have to hand it to Google, they know how to design good websites. They've found another good use for their street view technology! The Art Project links to all the museums, so you can easily view more works and find further info on each institution's website as well.
Over 15 museums are currently on board, sharing their art and galleries, and information about the works; more museums will hopefully be added as time goes by. You can read more about the project and see instructional videos here. The Art Project also has a YouTube account that has more videos and links to the museums' videos as well.
Way to go, Google, way to go.

Resource: Masterpiece Art Instruction

Here's a site I came across today: Masterpiece Art Instruction. It's specifically aimed at homeschoolers, so I think you'll find it particularly useful. There's a monthly newsletter with lesson and project ideas, online classes, free download-able lesson plans and project templates, and also lessons and other products for sale.

Masterpiece Art Instruction is a very well designed site, simple and easily navigable. It's rare to find such a website that's not stuffed to the gills with banner ads or awkwardly designed. Simple and easy to use, with helpful information for your art teaching--it's definitely worth a look.

Resources: Kinder Art

Here's another website filled with a breathtaking amount of resources for all your art needs! Kinder Art is definitely for those of you, especially with young children, who want to do art projects but don't where to start or are trying to break through a creative block. There is a huge amount of information available here. Kinder Art has been around for over 13 years, so there's a lot of content to browse. They've got craft ideas, coloring pages, a newsletter, a section specifically for preschoolers, art history lessons, ideas for the performing arts, projects broken down into a variety of mediums. There's the Teacher's Toolbox, which is aimed at those of you just starting out with teaching art and needing some direction. The name of the game here is simplicity in your art education--you don't need over the top projects to teach your kid something.
I've only browsed a small fraction of Kinder Art, but I like what I've seen so far. The only quibble I have with the site, is there's a lot of ads and advertisement links all over. It's a little distracting because there's not enough distinction between the site's content and the ads at times. I do like the face that Kinder Art has a pretty simple page design--this is not a Flash based web site, which takes forever to load on some Internet connections.

Resources: mnartists.org

MN Artists is a great organization. From putting on the popular Drawing Club at the Walker this past summer to staging a field day for local artists to meet and play to providing a site for artists to market themselves to being a hub of all things art related for Minnesota. As part of their mission statement says,

"mnartists.org is an online database of Minnesota artists and organizations from all disciplines. It offers to Minnesota-based artists a central gathering place on the Web, and will grow to become a marketplace and community hub. It offers the public a new way to explore art and get to know artists. In addition to providing artists and organizations with a web page containing images and information, mnartists.org provides news and features about the local arts scene from a variety of sources."

mnartists.org is a wealth of resources, available to any who take the time to look. There's a newsletter, access+ENGAGE, which has articles about art exhibits, classes, events, art openings, plays, etc. You can browse through the thousands of artists' profiles (feel free to take a gander at mine). There's a calendar with a variety of upcoming events. There's something for everyone.

The only issues I have with the site is that it's just so vast and unwieldy. I found it quite confusing to use at first, so I suggest taking some time to click around and figure out where things are located. There's just so much good information and a huge archive to browse through, it can feel a little overwhelming at first. 

If your high schooler is interested in a career in the arts, mnartists.org is a great starting point for them. It's pretty easy to set up an account and create a profile. And unlike some so-called art websites out there, mnartists tends to get draw in serious artists. You can make some good connections on there--I got in touch with an older artist who has so much experience and knowledge to share. Also, the majority of the art shows I've gotten have been through postings I've seen on mnartists.
Check it out, it's well worth your time.

Resources: American Craft Magazine

I read voraciously (working in a bookstore encourages that kind of behavior). I devour books and magazines on a variety of topics, but I especially love finding good writing on art. One of the downsides to a lot of art related literature out there is that it's so esoteric, with passages filled with words that go over the majority of peoples' heads. What's the point of trying to read something if it requires a four year degree in art history and a dictionary at hand? Not fun, not helpful, not truly informative if you don't get what the author is trying to say.

One of my favorite art publications out there is American Craft Magazine. I will rip through a whole issue in one sitting because it's so enjoyable to read. The articles appeal to both the novice and the expert. I learn something new every issue. With a simple, uncluttered layout and lots of gorgeous pictures, it's eye candy for the artistically inclined. I like how the articles are written in clear, understandable, to the point language. You walk away with a deeper understanding of each profiled artist and their work. The articles are short and sweet with lots of history and background information. It's not only about the "what", but also "how" and "why". Here's an artist, see nice pictures of their work, now here's an explanation of what you're looking at--what inspires the artist, their ideas and intentions, what they want to accomplish with their art.

American Craft also publicizes and reviews exhibits from around the country. As much as I wish I could travel to experience the art in person, the summaries are a decent substitute. The reviews also help you become more aware of the not-so-well-known museums, galleries and artists. There have been quite a few times where a picture has caught my eye and the review piques my curiosity, and I discover a new artist to admire.

I found the magazine's website a bit cumbersome to navigate at first. You have to scroll down a bit to find the links for the different categories. I think the headings aren't always clear enough to tell you what that department is about, but if you take time to browse around you'll find some good information. 

American Craft is published by the American Craft Council, located here in Minneapolis. Their goal with the magazine is to celebrate "the modern makers who shape the world around us. Presenting unknown innovators and artistic stalwarts, American Craft connects the disparate worlds of art, industry, fashion, architecture and design, giving an entirely new voice to the craft community. The American Craft Council is a national, nonprofit educational organization founded in 1943 by Aileen Osborn Webb. The mission of the Council is to promote understanding and appreciation of contemporary American craft."

Resources: MPR News Arts 101

Talk radio is definitely not one of my favorite things. I don't think I've ever listened to Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), but I do like their website. It's easy to find things and there's a lot of good information posted. One of the sections is Arts and Culture, and one of its ongoing features is Arts 101. It answers reader submitted questions about the arts, such as the difference in spelling theater or theatre. Take a look through the articles and submit a question of your own.