Hello from the Hudson Street Art Studio!

It’s hard to believe that December is almost over and 2021 is coming to an end! What a pleasure it has been to work with the children in the art studio. They have been enthusiastic, curious, creative workers who are committed to their classes every week.

Each class has been introduced to different materials and new processes that offer the children opportunities to build on skills and ideas. They have used markers, crayons, pencils, chalk, tempera paints, frozen paints, water colors, Q-tips, clay, clay tools, model magic, sharpies, and pencils. They have also worked with natural materials, such as: stones, acorns, rocks, salt, leaves, and sticks. We have also used craft materials like buttons, pipe cleaners, feathers, foam stickers,  glue, glue sticks, rubbing sheets, stencil, sand and glitter.

Early in the year, we learned about primary colors and color mixing. The children painted with frozen paints and enjoyed melting them with their hands and  mixing them to make other colors. We also added a science component by conducting a rainbow activity with water and a flashlight. The children then observed the refraction of light through water as they made a rainbow on black paper.

Next, we focused on different kinds of lines like vertical, horizontal and zig zags, and the children used them in their drawings. We worked with bleeding tissue paper which leaves deep colors behind on paper when saturated with a paint brush of water. We learned about pointillism as the children painted with Q-tips and watercolors to make fall trees and other subjects of their choosing. Many classes then ventured into the Washington Market Park herb garden where children made binoculars out of paper rolls which they used to observe, and zero in on the many plants they found.  I used an app that photographed and identified everything they saw. Many children later drew what they saw on clipboards.

As the fall progressed, we explored clay and the children made sculptures with wires, popsicle sticks and corks. The children also used paint sticks to draw wall murals to decorate the school and the WMS Pumpkin Gallery outside in Staple Alley.

The children began to think three-dimensionally by arranging, and building in loose parts. We set up black lights in the art studio with glow in the dark building materials, paints and crayons. The children loved building, drawing and painting under the black lights as they made crayon resists with watercolors and neon crayons.

As the weather grew colder and the trees changed, we started exploring the outside world more and more. Some classes went to the park to collect leaves, and the children used them to make leaf rubbings. They also used the leaves we collected to make nature collages in the classroom with acorns, twigs and glue. The children painted leaf rubbing plates to make prints.  Some followed up with  making our own styrofoam printing plates by carving them with a crayon and printing with metallic paints and breyers.

We have also been celebrating fall ending and the celebrations of various holidays. The children painted with liquid watercolors and finished their paintings with salt. These wonderful creations now adorn our Hudson Street Entrance. They have also worked on open-ended craft projects like turkey centerpieces for Thanksgiving, and gingerbread cookies with sand, glue, glitter paints buttons, feathers and pipe cleaners.

Throughout these past few months, the children’s energy has been infectious. I overheard one student recently say, “Why is art so cool?” While another child, who was working on a printing project remarked, “This is the best thing, when can we do it again?” All of us are looking forward to coming back from the winter break so that we can, “do it again.” Now that the children have experienced a variety of techniques and materials, we look forward to doing a deeper dive into the collective interests of each of the classes. We are so grateful to share these experiences with your children, and I look forward to discovering where their curiosities will lead.