Durer

Our new artist is Albrecht Durer. He was born in Germany and was a painter and a print maker. We had fun this week as we made prints from their designs. They were instructed to draw or trace an item onto a piece of Styrofoam. Usually I would not let them trace something but there were so many steps that we would never have finished if they needed to draw their own item.

Once their design was ready they came up to the printing station and once inked they made "stamps" of their design. It was so fun to see their excitement when they lifted their paper and saw their design. Most of the students made 2 prints. We all agreed it was a fun project to do.

The seventh and eighth grade classes made their prints on wood using a hammer and flathead screwdriver. Their arms were tired! They underestimated the weight of a hammer over a long period of time.

Dancing Giraffes and Florentine Reliefs

This week in first and second grade we made dancing giraffes. It was based on the great book "Giraffes Don't Dance." The students did a great job following directions and making their giraffes dance.

In grades third through eighth we did Florentine reliefs to mimic the style of work that Ghiberti practiced when he made the "Gates of Paradise" doors on the Florence, Italy baptistry. Now he used gold and we used foil but the effect was fun and impressive.