I have been ill this week and also very busy at school. It’s been a difficult week. I have many pressing things to do at the end of the school year. I put up the Sturgis Middle School annual art show on Monday with four sixth grade volunteers. I am so thankful to the young students that helped me as it would have been a nightmare to do on my own, especially feeling the way I do this week. The art show will be up through the school day of May 23rd. If you are in the Sturgis, Michigan area, check it out because it showcases some awesome talent! I will also be putting more artwork on display at the middle school for this coming Monday when we have our sixth grade open house. I am going to showcase the talent of my students on my blog today, so enjoy it. Over the year we have done many different types and styles of art. Students have worked with pastels, oil pastels, scratch art, papier mache, clay, collage pattern, line, color, watercolor, acrylic paint and mixed media. They have had many different opportunities to work with art materials. It is a pleasure to work with middle school students. If you click on individual pictures, you can see the work in detail.
On Thursday my 8th grade class took a field trip to the Kalamazoo Institute of Art. We had such a fun time. Earlier in the week my students tie dyed t-shirts for the trip. Don’t they look great? We were able to take the trip because I was awarded a bus grant for this trip from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.
At the KIA we were able to see the West Michigan Area Art Show and it was fun to see all of the local artistic talent. We also saw the Young Students of Kalamazoo County exhibit. This was a K-8th grade exhibit. If you are in the Kalamazoo area, you should check out the KIA. We were greeted with such happiness by the KIA. It’s a wonderful place to take students and visit!
This has been a busy week as I am preparing my middle school art classroom for the new school year. Meetings started on Monday and we even had our open house on Wednesday night. It wasn’t a good time to run up to Kalamazoo to check out a Chinese painter and calligrapher. However, since I already have my students work with this material I thought it would be interesting to see the “master” painter, Paul Wang.
Late last week I received an email from the Kalamazoo Institute of Art about the opportunity to go to a demonstration of both Chinese painting and calligraphy. I decided to ask my principal if he would grant me permission to leave early Thursday so I could catch this master painter. Eric did allow me this opportunity, which I am very grateful for as it was refreshing watching a master at work.
The ease in which Mr. Wang painted was obvious, whether he painted Chinese characters or a long, thin bamboo piece. Mr. Wang shared many little stories with his painting techniques. He said this is a dying art. Before the 20th century students had to exhibit their mastery of both painting and calligraphy in an examination. A large portion of the calligraphy is about creating poetry. Students that performed with excellence were brought before the emperor. They would be assured government jobs. Today the young people of China are more interested in technology. Chinese painting and calligraphy are becoming sought after because of the rarity of true masters.
This Artwork Mr. Wang Created in a Matter of a Few Short Minutes.
This is a Finished Painting Framed.
He said Chinese painting is true “impressionistic” painting as the artist studies nature but does not try to recreate it exactly as it is. It is more about capturing the essence of what it is. The strong contrast between the black of the ink and the white of the paper make it possible to see small subtleties of differences much like a black and white photograph. Bamboo would be painted if you are having a bad day. Orchids might be painted if you are having a good day. He talked about bamboo being strong and hollow but also pliable. When painted it should be straight. The bamboo is symbolic of strength. As the shoot grows one can notice a thickening in the shoot and then it is thin again. That thickened area symbolizes courage. The hollow part of the bamboo is to show humbling. If you think of a person this falls in line with what Confucius would say. Much of Chinese painting and calligraphy is tied to the teachings of Confucius. I found all of this so interesting and helpful to me for sharing with my middle school students.
Paul Wang Demonstrating Painting Bamboo.
This is a Finished Artwork that was on Display.
At the end of the demonstration I purchased a catalog of artwork by Mr. Wang and he signed it for me. He explained the difference between artwork on a scroll or for hanging. He sends his work back to China to be mounted. Sometimes it is put on a scroll to read at night. These pieces are usually full of poetry. He said that people who read the scrolls at night sleep well! He also had calligraphy printed up in accordion style books. This was fascinating. He explained how the Chinese characters are symbols for other things. He painted a symbol for a woman and put it with one for a boy. He said that represented “good” because the two together are good.
He asked if we had noticed a difference between the Japanese woodcuts and the Chinese brush painting at the Kalamazoo Institute of Art. He was so funny when he shared with us the fact that the Japanese do self portraits where as the Chinese are more interested in nature and any person depicted would be more of a symbol. He grimaced and made faces for how the Japanese made almost caricatures of people and that too was so fun and very fascinating.
This Artwork was One of Many Paul Wang Shared With Us.
More Beautiful Artwork Paul Wang Shared With Us.
All and all I had a great day! Mr. Wang has been painting for sixty five years. I could sense the peacefulness in his quick, sure strokes and I felt fortunate to have witnessed this special man with his graceful dignity and obvious humble nature. He isn’t just a master painter and calligrapher but he is also a master teacher in the way he shared so many wonderful stories about the art forms and its place in history.
Many of the things he shared today can be read about on his website. It is well worth reading.
The artwork above received the Grand Prize. It is Michele Shelton, A Moment to Remember, paper, fabric, metal, beads. This picture is credited to the Kalamazoo Institute of Art website.
I am inspired. Thursday I took my advanced eighth grade art class to the Kalamazoo Institute of Art. None of my students had ever been there before. We had a great time. On exhibit was the “West Michigan Area Show”. It is what inspired me and my students. We were all blown away by the diverse collection of art in the show. http://www.kiarts.org/page.php?page_id=104
The exhibit was selected by Chicago artist Gladys Nilsson. Her selection showed much diversity from realism to abstraction. Many pieces were an explosion of color but all seemed so unique and able to stand on their own let alone be part of this wonderful exhibit. Many pieces begged discussion and wonderment as to what drove the artist. Gladys Nilsson’s art really explains how she was able to select such a wonderful show. Her artwork is full of color and while it is representational in its subject matter it is full of elongated shapes, disproportions that create whimsy and a sense of borderline abstraction. Her work reminds me of Marc Chagall although there really isn’t a connection. I love the rhythmic way her work is full of movement. She uses color to saturate ones mind as though one is standing outside in a warm mist of color filled rain.
It is no wonder that this talented artist was able to select such an interesting exhibit for the West Michigan Show.
When I went home I marveled at the awesome ability of these west Michigan artists. I thought that many of them probably benefited from a great public school education. It is this creativity that has to be nurtured in our schools today. In out effort to become the best we can be in our schools with test scores we sometimes lose sight of this much needed creativity. It is the creativity in our country that develops new products that forces us to think outside of our limited boxes that we put ourselves in. We must nurture this creativity through the arts. Whether it be the visual arts, music or drama all of the arts nurture that creativity that is so necessary to the continuation of our own humanity. It is this spirit of creation that drives us all to be unique enough to not blend into the sea of humanity that just goes with the flow. These are the people that just continue to follow whatever they are told to do like mindless sheep. The spirit of creativity makes us stop and think about what we are doing and how we can make improvements to our lives. It is this spirit that I believe built our country and made it strong.
I enjoyed this show even more than some of the exhibits I’ve seen of famous artists. This exhibit inspired me and my students to come back and make art. I know my students are now anxious to get to their final painting that they will do this year. Many found inspiration in the colors and shapes and subject matter they saw in the show. The hour of our tour zoomed by and the students were very curious and inquisitive. When I talked with them individually I know they were excited about what they saw. This was a visual treat for all them and myself. I hope anyone that reads this that has an opportunity to see this exhibit will attend the show. It is well worth the drive. You will be inspired and you will go away feeling like you participated in something special. I say, “Kudos” to the Kalamazoo Institute of Art for bringing such a wonderful exhibit to the public and finding sponsors to make it free to the public.
