Evocative Object Final Piece

I have been working on my final evocative object piece throughout the Expressive Arts and Culture Module, inspired by my favourite novel “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”.

As I discussed in week one of this blog, reflecting on this book has sparked a number of emotions and memories, which I then used to create the final piece.

I was not sure of what direction I wanted to take this piece, so I initially beginning by focussing on my evocative writing. I have always enjoyed poetry, and so I decided to create a poem that would depict exactly what this book meant to me.

I then redrafted and edited the writing in order to cut it down to the required 62 words or less. I was slightly concerned that the feeling and voice of the poem may be lost during this process. Fortunately, I found that the emotions in the poem were acually enhanced, because every word was crucial and the meaning rang true.

“Magic begins with the turn of a page, a whole other word once you step on the train. Adventure in word, line, verse… Learning each charm, spell and curse. Year after year down familiar golden halls. Eager hands turn pages, small hands once now not so. Life’s an interesting read, each chapter brings change, but home on the paper always stays the same.”

I then began to think about interesting ways that I could display my written text. I eventually decided to arrange it in the shape of a lightning bolt, a symbol which is so associated with the Harry Potter franchise. I then decided that I wanted my piece to be similiar to that of a scrapbook and create numerous drawings surrounding the text. All of these drawings were inspired by various elements of the story.

I felt that this scrapbook concept was effective as scrapbooks are used as a way to preserve memories. This piece not only reminds me of the things I love about Harry Potter, but also of certain periods of my life, mainly from my childhood, and personal memories I have from reading the book. I completed the final piece on an A3 sheet of paper using simply pencils and pen, which creates a childlike quality to the drawings, which I think works effectively with my concept and the meaning behind the piece.

Finally, I decided to take my completed image and add a layer of sound in order to create a multi-sensory experience and to give the finished piece more impact. I selected “Hedwig’s Theme” which is the most iconic, and well known piece of music from the Harry Potter films.

This created a final piece that included poetry, the visual arts, and film music all inspired by a book. Which just goes to show how powerful stories can be as evocative objects.

https://youtu.be/oHO9YrgI6RM

Presentation

The link to my group presentation titled “Do the Expressive Arts Impact the Wellbeing of our Young people?” can be found below.

https://1drv.ms/p/s!AnV9-GkV1mTkgRzzqmmdpiZWLZy6

“Museums inspire powerful and identity-building learning in children, young people and community members” (DCMS, 2003-2004).

Unfortunately I was not able to attend the workshops in Kelvingrove during the module. However I did pay a visit to Kelvingrove during my own time recently as I did not want to miss out.

I have always loved going to museums and art galleries since I was a child. They provide the perfect opportunity to really connect with natural history, different cultures, ancient people and places, art, fashion, and a variety of exciting other things in a way that you simply cannot achieve in a classroom or through a book. Museums capture your interest, and also your imagination.

Museums have the power to inspire learners regardless of age, gender and ability, across all curricular areas and inter-disciplinary themes. They are sites that allow learners to achieve more than they think that they are capable of, and are able to simulate those who find learning a challenge and can target and can effectively increase motivation in disadvantaged pupils and groups of children (DCMS, 2003-2004).

There are arguably potential barriers that prevent schools from visiting museums and art galleries. Transport difficulties, problems with administration and risk assessment, perceived constraints of the curriculum, getting staff cover while teachers in secondary schools are on the trip, lack of knowledge and unrealistic expectations about what museums can provide, and limited communication with museums can cause difficulties (DCMS, 2003-2004). However, it is important that teachers are able to overcome these barriers and important to overcome these obstacles as there is so much to be gained from a museum visit. I intend to be the kind of teacher who is willing to go that bit further to ensure my learners recieve the opportunity to experience places such as Kelvingrove.

The highlight of my trip there was finally seeing the painting “Windows In The West” by Avril Paton having studied it the Integrated Arts module last year.

The thing that I really love about this painting is despite being such a large piece, it feels like such an intimate look into the lives of the people who live there. It almost feels like a photograph and is a really evocative piece. The below video is of the artist Avril Paton discussing Windows in the West.

References

DCMS (2003-2004) Inspiration, Identity, Learning: The Value of Museums. [Online] Available: [Accessed  9 April 2017]

Glasgow Museums (2011) Avril Paton on ‘windows in the west’ at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and museum, Glasgow. YouTube. [Online]. Available: https://youtu.be/BVDRL6wsQYU [Accessed 8 Jan 2017].

“Every young person should experience the world beyond the classroom as an essential part of learning and personal development, whatever their age, ability or circumstances” (Adams, 2008).

This week, we were learning how take the arts into the outdoor environment and also how to make art with the natural resources found there.

We ventured outside into the university campus and explored the enviornment and created a project with whatever resources we could find.

The intervention that I liked the most was the “yarn bombing”. It involves wrapping yarn around trees and other outdoor objects to create a vibrant, colourful environment filled with unique patterns to create a quirky yet peaceful feeling. These sort of projects allow learners creative autonomy, as well as to embrace and enjoy the outdoor environment.

Me and my friend felt a little apprehensive and were not sure exactly what we wanted create during this session. However, we decided to just embrace the activity and the outdoor environment, and see where the creative process took us. We ended up making an “outdoor wind chime” We made this using natural materials that we found in the university campus. This was achieved by hanging long, leaves over an already existing wooden frame that allowed them to float in the breeze. These then brushed against a leafy branch which created a gentle rustling sound when the wind blew.

I think that outdoor learning is of paramount importance. Integrating art and outdoor learning allows children to open their eyes and engage with the world around them in a way that they may never have previously done.

Learning that emphasises the built environment and public art has a variety of benefits including: moral and cultural wellbeing; social development; intellectual development; and emotional wellbeing (Adams, 2008). According to Adams (2008) bringing the expressive arts outdoors also nurtures alternative thinking and feeling and teach that there are various ways to view and percieve the world around us (Eisner, 2002).

“Children are learning all the time, in any environment where they find themselves… Learning does not take place only in the classroom” (Adams, 2008).

References

Adams, E (2008) Art and Design Education and the Built Environment. In Coutts G. & Jokela, T. (Eds) Art, Community and Environment: Educational Perspectives. Bristol: Intellect.

Eisner, E. (2002) 4, What the Arts Teach. In: The Arts and the Creation of Mind.

“STEAM is an educational framework that brings reality into the classroom”.

During this session, we were learning about turning STEM into STEAM.

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, maths and mathematics. It is in an effort to get children more enagaged with these subjects and and allow them to be capable of working within these fields in their future careers. However, what these subjects lack is a fundamental element of creativity and innovation and that is where STEAM comes in. STEAM is the integration of the arts into STEM subjects.

According to Education Closet (2017), STEAM creates students who are willing to “take thoughtful risks, engage in experiential learning, persist in problem-solving, embrace collaboration, and work through the creative process” and describes these learners as the “innovators, educators, leaders, and learners of the 21st century”.

These two videos explain why STEAM is fundamental, and how the arts can be successfully integrated into STEM subjects.

https://youtu.be/T70fZeyMulw

While I have seen STEM being implented in schools, I have yet to see evidence of STEAM. At the moment from the research that I have done it seems that STEAM, while it has really taken off in America it has yet to implemented as such in the Scotland. Creativity is what essentially makes us human (Csikszentmihalyi, 2013)and is at the heart of so many things, including careers in fields such as engineering and science. I believe that STEAM is a way to create a whole rounded educational experience that creates successful art integration in our schools and truly enhances STEM subjects. By embracing the arts teachers can “provide a pallet of learning” and allow STEM to reach new heights.

“STEAM removes limitations and replaces them with wonder, critique, inquiry, and innovation” (Education Closet, 2017).

References

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2013) Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention. New York: Harper-Collins.

Education Closet. (2017) What is Steam? [Online] Available: http://educationcloset.com/steam/what-is-steam/ [Accessed 9 April 2017]

“Printmaking is a great way for pupils of all ages to experiment and explore visual art” (Learning At YSP, 2017).

During this session, we explored print making. I was originally printmaking themed around my evocative object, unfortunately my piece was incomplete and did not really turn out how I planned. However, I still enjoyed the session and felt it was a valuable experience and one I think would be worthwhile in the classroom.

Having participated in printmaking during this module and within the Integrated Arts module I feel that it is a very liberating process. It is messy, unconventional and allows the learner to break free from too much structure that they often experience in the classroom. The printing process is also an activity that takes time and may require a number of sessions to produce a finished piece. This allows children to experience a progression of coherent and meaningful learning over time, in contrast to art lessons that are often rushed and do not give learners the “opportunity to explore a thoroughly creative challenge” (Craft, 2007). Activities such as printmaing ensure art is not just being “slipped in” to other subjects but the lessons are a valuable learning experience in their own right (Gibb, 2012). In addition, If the children are not rushed and concerned with meeting deadlines they will be able to fully engage with creative process and not stress so much about quality of the final outcome, allowing them to enjoy the experience.

From the teacher’s perspective it encourages them to tolerate mess, to step away from rigid time constraints and to embrace a tolerance for ambiguity. This is the sort of teacher i hope to be and I plan to introduce activities such as printmaking into my classroom to ensure children get to fully enagage with the arts in the same way as literacy or numeracy.

There are a number of benefits from print making including: problem solving skills, reflection, team work, listening skills, communication, critical thinking,  fine motor skills as a result of the use of tools and the hands on nature of printmaking, artistic skills and literacy skills. Printmaking also “enhances a sense of integrity and ownership” over the piece of work made (Learning At YSP, 2017).

References

Craft, A. (2007) Creativity and Possibility in the Early years [Online]. Available: http://www.tactyc.org.uk/pdfs/Reflection-craft.pdf [Accessed 7 April 2017].

Gibb, C. (2012) Room 13: The Movement and International network: International Journal of Art and Design Education. Vol.31 (3).

Learning At YSP: Yorkshire Sculpture Park. (2017). Exploring Printmaking. [online] Available at: http://moodle.uws.ac.uk/pluginfile.php/872850/mod_resource/content/1/ignite-teacher-resource-printmaking.pdf.

“Animation can explain whatever the mind of man can conceive” (Walt Disney).

This week we were learning through animation and were given the opportunity to create an animation of our very own. Animation is created using an optical illusion whereby a series of images are played quickly enough to create a flowing, moving image.

I discovered these interesting videos that discuss the history of animation, the various types of animation and also explain how each type is created.

Throughout the workshop, we were able to engage with several forms of animation including “stop motion”. A student from the class drew a line in some sand which was placed on a light box, after which a photo was taken. This process was then repeated many times, and eventually rapidly viewing the photos in sequence creates a moving picture.

Following this my group then decided to try our hand at “stop motion” animation, and more specifically we had a shot at making “claymation”.

We decided to base our animation around a little snowman who gradually melts throughout the day.  We created the snowman with clay and took a sequence of photos, within each, we moved the snowman ever so slightly in an effort to create a fluid moving picture.  I thoroughly enjoyed making the animations as it was something I had never previously attempted and would never have thought to introduce in the classroom.

“Children experience moving images from earliest childhood. Cartoons, films, adverts, and all moving image media are very carefully constructed to tell stories and provoke feelings. They are a huge part of our culture, and children learn intuitively to read this information” (Moving Image Education, 2017).

There are simple toys that create animation that do not involve the use of a camera these include:

• The Zoetrope
• The Praxinoscope
• The Thaumatrope
• Phenakistoscope

Inspired by these early 20th century toys it is possible to create animation devices out of ordinary, easy to come by resources, such as spare card, empty tins and so on…

However, the digital revolution now means that there is now the resources, and technology to bring animation into the classroom using cameras. Just as books allow  the opportunities to share the knowledge and creativity of others, so does animation, and it is therefore a valuable and fundamental experience for learners.

References

Moving Image Education. (2017) Available: https://movingimageeducation.org/ [Accessed: 10 April 2017].

“We think with the objects we love; we love the objects we think with” (Turkle, 2011).

During our first Expressive Arts and Culture input we were asked to explore the potential of evocative objects for teaching and learning. We were required to bring in an object that was significant, and emotive to each of us personally and discuss the item of our choosing. What I soon realised from our discussions and reflections is that any object, from anywhere, has the potential to be evocative and spark memories, provoke thoughts, and evoke feelings and emotions. The class brought in a huge variety of items including photos, coins, pieces of jewellery, a violin, books, and keys… Every single object came with it’s own unique story to be told.

“Thinking about the uncanny, about thresholds and boundaries helps us understand these objects with their universal powers of evocation” (Turkle, 2011).

I chose to reflect on an old copy of my favourite book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.  It is a book that I have had for a number of years and it holds great sentimental value. The Philosopher’s Stone is one of the first novels I can remember being read to as a child, and I have avidly turned it’s pages many times since. I believe this story is what sparked my love of books, fantasy as a genre, and also why I was so enthusiastic and engaged with creative writing at school.  This book has moved houses with me three times, been on various holidays, and I have now started reading the Harry Potter series to my younger sister. It therefore has so many connections to my childhood, hobbies, and my family.

As this object holds such value for me, it is the perfect inspiration for a piece of writing and/or art. Inspired by the book “26 Treasures” Diarmund asked us to produce a piece of writing in 62 words or less themed around our evocative object. Below is my piece, through which I would later combine text, image, and sound to create my final, multi-sensory piece.

This activity could also be completed in a classroom. Allowing children the opportunity to be creative using an object that they find powerful gives the work meaning. It lets them reflect on their thoughts and emotions and ensures that the learner and their ideas are at the heart of the creative process.  As stated by Cone (2009), one of the most powerful opportunities educators can provide is allowing learners to express themselves through the Expressive Arts, letting children create their own ideas.

References

Cone, T. P. (2009) Following Their Lead: Supporting Children’s Ideas for Creating Dances. Journal of Dance Education. pp.81–89.

Turkle, S. (2011). Evocative objects. 1st ed. Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press.