Sculpture documentation

Today I got to teach!!!!

I was really excited to, I could hardly sleep last night.

Although the end product turned out really well, I think there were a few details I could have paid more attention to.

I was quite breif explaining the principles of composition, and I should have explained some of the techniques for working with the wire as soon as we started working.

Kristen asked a few questions that really helped me. I would have missed some things if she hadn't asked me about them, for example, she asked for an example of line. Which enticed me to elaborate a little more.

I think that the process went well. The students developed multiple relationships with the sculpture, and interactions with the pace.

They had to create good lines and a sturdy foundation with the thick coat hanger wire. I asked them to create a sense of movement. I told them that they should avoid making the typical skeletal figures, because they don't have and volume. This was also part of the process to move away from 2 dimensional thinking

I wanted my students to develop a sense of mass and weight with the thinner wire, wrapping it to build up a body out of the spokes.

My group was much more comfortable with the soft wire. They were having some trouble forming the thicker wire, and they suggested that the coat hangers would be a little too tough for the age group of 10-12 year olds.

Once the soft wire got going, the figures really started taking shape.

Every once and a while I would give a recomendation and praise for things that I thought were working well.

I decided to leave mine partially exposed in order to reveal the process our group had taken.

I was quite pleased that my group engaged enthusiastically in all aspects of the lesson. They responded well to the provocation activity at the beginning of class when we impersonated our mythological creatures. We ended up circling our tables like a parade of bizarre animals! It was lots of fun.

My goals for today were to recreate an engagement in 3-d materials and 3-d thinking, artistic planning and problem solving, and some imagining.

I think we accomplished those things.