art/vision/voice - Maryland Institute College of Art

26 art / vision / voice
tree We discussed different ideas about superheroes and their powers,
and they began drawing—but with a really big difference. The kids
were invited to use bright colors and paper collages, and they went
to town! The following week we started them drawing side and back
views of their superheroes, which ultimately led to making brightly
colored, finely detailed sculptures. The cap team worked very closely
with the kids, and a real bond appeared to be forming. I think the
kids really enjoyed the project, and they loved getting their hands in
the clay. The attendance varied, but it gradually rose—from four to
six to eight and eventually fourteen kids. The snow melted, and word
got out that everyone was having a good time.
With spring underway, Mari, a student in mica’s Rinehart School of
Sculpture, launched a project close to her heart—a three-dimensional
project involving Patterson Park. The youth were asked to make nests
out of objects found in the natural environment and among discarded
items from neighboring streets.
tree To introduce the project to the kids and help them formulate
their own ideas, Mari and I made our own found-object nests. We
also showed them pictures of work by famous found-object artists
such as Picasso. Then we brought in someone from the Audubon
Society to take the kids out in the park and talk about birds, nests,
and the environment. The feedback we got from the kids was that it
was boring. We noted also that they weren’t bringing in any stuff for
their own nests. We questioned the kids and were told that their
mothers wouldn’t allow them to go into the trash-filled alleys. Also,
during past projects a lot of them never wanted to get their hands
dirty. We remembered also that during the superhero project, the
kids had said that trash was something bad and gross and they
would like to get rid of it. So, we realized that the nest project just
wasn’t going to happen.
cinder I heard about the nest project from Mari. She told me that she had
been frustrated that the kids were not bringing in objects and materials
to make their nests. We talked about why that might be, but she needed
to hear that from them. It was key that she then took the time to really
talk with and listen to the kids, and the kids were honest with her.
I saw her quickly scramble to completely modify the original plan
and begin an activity making kites, based on her feedback from them.
Found-object art is derived from Surrealist
Theory, this form of art making is founded on the
notion that any kind of everyday object can be, in
its own right, a piece of artwork. Artwork based
on some combination of found objects and the
altering, enhancing “hand of the artist” is an
accepted part of the “high art” cannon and culture.