Fern Arts Committee Update
This Spring has been busy for the arts at Fern. In March we had Steven McCabe with poetry and Jim Hake’s collage project. In April we had the Aché Brasil show and Patricia Phelan with her textile tapestry project. We showcased and auctioned off Jim Hake’s students amazing pieces at the Spring Fling. We are now moving into May and our Fern Family Tree project is moving right along too. We are working together to have it up by the end of May. Helping to inspire art, beauty and creative confidence in our kids!
Patricia Phelan: Medieval Textile
Students in Ms. Tse and Ms. Cardilluci classes examined the famous Medieval Textile: The Bayeux Tapestry with artist in residence and Fern parent, Ms. Patricia Phelan. Inspired by themes and characters from this elaborate work, the students expanded on these themes to create their own collaborative ‘Tapestry’ depicting modern times. The finished product will measure approximately 3 metres by 50 cm.
The students drafted designs on paper of characters and objects representing all facets of modern life: travel, food and fashion, occupations (including governance and symbols of authority), leisure and sports, and the environment (natural world and made structures). They then translated these designs to individual squares of cloth using story embroidery appliqué techniques. All the squares of cloth will be attached together to form a textile similar to the Bayeux Tapestry.
The students also made their own medieval looms using pulleys and weaved a border for the ‘tapestry’ collaborative project.
Here are some of the positive things her students had to say about the project:
Molly: "I liked how Ms. Patricia brought in all those things for us to see from around the world."
Felix: "It's amazing what you can make with Popsicle sticks and a bunch of string."
Taylor: "It was really fun and we learned something new. I appreciate how much time Ms. Patricia put in to teach us to weave and sew."
Christopher: "I liked learning about how different cultures used different types of weaving, and different ways of using the materials."
This tapestry will be proudly put on display at Fern for the continuing beautification of our school.
Jim Hake: Utopia Collage Project
Jim Hake, artist in residence and Fern parent, worked with students of Mrs. Chakungal’s class on the Utopia Collage Project.
Given the definition of Utopia, the students were asked to define the concept for themselves and imagine what their Utopia would look like. In groups of three or four they discussed ideas of Utopia while working on self portraits using cut pieces of recycled magazines. Once the portraits were ready, they were organized on canvases and then each group created a Utopian landscape around their composition. The project took three months to complete with each student investing over 30 hours.
In total, nine canvases were created; all of which will be proudly placed on display at Fern PS until the end of the year.
Steven McCabe: Line Drawings and Poetry
Steven McCabe, visual artist and writer, brought his poetry as a living language workshop to Fern PS for a week in April. Steven worked with the students of Ms. Geridis grades 5 / 6, Ms. Sonya Mabely / Mr. Roy Morra grade 6, Ms. Chakungal / Mr Sy grade 5 and Ms. Ashforth/ Mr. Sy grade 5 class.
Students worked from curriculum based themes of science or nature. They started with a spiral based line drawing which never crossed allowing it to evolve into a finished piece. The students then deconstructed their line drawings, searching for imagery within them. The students than used their images to find verbs, nouns and adjectives. From there, they created basic tongue twisters, journey poems, tankas and longer Haiku’s. Mr. McCabe used the student pieces to demonstrate larger links to the world and creative thought. He showed them the parallels between poetry and stories, song writing and life experiences. The students finished with a beautiful line drawing and a complete poem.
Their work will be proudly put on display in the halls of Fern PS.
Aché Brasil
In April, the Fern PS auditorium was filled to capacity with an audience riveted by a spectacular performance from Aché Brasil. The dancers of Aché Brasil demonstrated an utterly thrilling fusion of dance and martial arts, which is believed to have originated amongst African slave communities in Brazil. Their spectacular movements where accompanied by the percussive musical rhythms of Capoeira. It was not only an evening of entertainment but also an opportunity to explore a dazzling element of Brazilian culture and heritage.
Fern Family Tree
“Trees love to toss and sway; they make such happy noises” Emily Carr.
This Spring the Fern PS Arts’ Committee will be working on a large outdoor installation project to help beautify our school yard and bring the joy of creative art experiences to our students.
The Fern Family Tree will be a series of painted wooden cutouts of insects, leaves and a large tree. Students will explore the idea of their own family, the Fern school community and their local community. Our Kindergarten students will learn about insects and the growth cycle of a tree while exploring their creative talents through paint. Our junior students will work on their own personal interpretations of “family” by painting the leaves with words that represent their definitions. Every student at Fern will have his/her name on the trunk and branches of the tree, bringing the whole Fern Family together.
Katherine Wheatley: Update
Our beloved Katherine Wheatley posted the Beast Feast video, illustrated by Mr. Roy Morra's grade 6 class, on her "Where's Wheat" online newsletter. In the video, each student illustrated one line from the song creating a lovely visual piece. Someone from the Haliburton Festival saw it, and subsequently it was selected for The Dock Day Festival in Haliburton on Saturday May 5th.
Congratulations to Katherine and all the amazing students in Mr. Morra’s class!
Reminder : The week of May 7th is Education week so be sure to look for the artwork from these projects in halls of Fern PS.