Superfluous Adornment: The Labor of Creation

Sunday, April 8, 2012

The Labor of Creation

"The artist seeks contact with his intuitive sense of the gods,

but in order to create his work,

he cannot stay in this seductive and incorporeal realm.

He must return to the material world in order to do his work.

It's the artist's responsibility to balance mystical communication and the labor of creation."

— Patti Smith

Last week here in Lakeview was the school's Spring break and so I decided to try having kid's classes all week to give the kids something to do. It was very successful and fun, lots of spring and Easter activities. Our first project was a mixed media picture with a woven bird's nest, cut branch, painted egg and bird and springy quote. Here is Trent's masterpiece.

"Hold fast to dreams,

For if dreams die

Life is a broken-winged bird,

That cannot fly."

— Langston Hughes

Here is Nathan's work.

"Early bird

Oh, if you’re a bird, be an early bird

And catch the worm for your breakfast plate.

If you’re a bird, be an early bird—

But if you’re a worm, sleep late."

— Shel Silverstein

And Madison's.

She took several of the quote choices and made her own verse:)

She also cut a heart in her branch; a very creative student.

Here is Amelia's work, she made her very own verse!

Madison used this verse:

"Thanks for this day, for all birds safe in their nests, for whatever this is, for life."

— Barbara Kingsolver

Here are all the girls' with their great mixed media art!

These are eggs made from "gluing" tissue paper to clear contact paper with an egg frame, very pretty on the window.

Trent was so ahead of the game I decided to have him try his hand at making a mosaic. This was his first day and his own pattern.

Here it is finished with gluing.

Here is his Mom waiting in the salon's comfy pedicure chair for him to finish grouting:)

Wiping clean after grouting.

Finished masterpiece!!! He did in 3 days what most clients take 4-8 days to complete.

Great job, Trent!

The last two days were spent creating a "Peeps" Topiary. We glued fabric to a terra-cotta pot, added cardboard circles and florist's foam to hold up the ball, painted the stick, and made the ears from a white pipe cleaner and pink tissue paper centered between two layers of clear packing tape. They are fun to bend !

Peeps are darn sticky! We used gumdrops for filler.

Here is Kadren helping daughter Suzanne with her yummy job!

The last craft was a small egg mosaic where the kids used beads and glass (they had a quick lesson on how to cut bits of stained glass). Here is Gwen helping her son.