Back at Laurel Highlands School

After so much snow, and many days missing school, we are back to our mosaics. The students are progressing so well and it is amazing to see scrap glass made into such beautiful art. I have been working on getting photos of the finished pieces so that no student work will be missed on the blog.

In the course of our work, we have custom made colored grout to make each piece a real work of art. The grouting is messy work and requires lots of clean up and effort. The overall effect of the finished pieces is a profusion of color to dazzle the eyes.

In some of more advanced classes we are incorporating our own clay sculpture along with the mosaic approach. I have even had time to create my own piece that will remain at the school. My piece is an interpretation of a Franz Marc work from the Expressionist era of the early 1900's.

The varied work of the students will be on display in a great exhibit in March. Not only will this work be on display but we could even have some of our metal sculpture works ready to show as well. It is exciting and wonderful to be part of this process at Laurel Highlands....despite our time off with the snow!

We are now experiencing over 31 inches of snow

In my excitement with our two hour early dismissal on Friday due to the upcoming snow, I forgot my camera. My intent was to download more of the finished mosaics but that will have to happen early next week. I must say I am simply amazed at the quality and effort of this student body. There is not one art project that has not turned out really well. I am excited to have the finished pieces put on display for the exhibit that is coming up in March.

On a different note, the snow last night and today has been delightful. For those of us older adults, there has not been such a great snow since about 1974. We spent about 4 hours shoveling our drive and chasing our dogs into huge piles of snow. With the sun finally coming out this afternoon, it was truly a beautiful place to spend a good day. Even an inevitable trip to Wal Mart (or as I fondly call it...Satan's House) was easy enough with no one in the parking lot or store. We got over 31 inches of lovely snow and I will attempt to cross country ski tomorrow.

In the meantime, look forward to our beautiful artwork being on display here on the site and eventually at the school.

Fun at IUP

This week at IUP the students were given some collage materials and facial expressions. With very little encouragement and some teamwork, each group created a "face" with foam and also a word to describe the facial expression. Reading facial expressions in real life can prove a daunting task and to realize the expression of a student who simply does not comprehend or "get it" is very helpful for anyone.

After this simple exercise, we then went through magazines, picked our favorite expression and found words to create a collage and cinquain poem. Next week we are working in clay and creating tiles with words in our effort to get some practice in before working on our own mosaic collage.

New Metal Works from Waking Bear Studio

Works in Progress at Laurel Highlands

Here are some examples of the work the students are doing at the end of January, 2010!

Glass and Clay Mosaics at Laurel Highlands

As our work progresses in the mosaic areas, students are learning techniques of mosaic. The first three classes are strictly using the recycled glass and using basic cutting and nipping tools to shape their glass works. The art room has several stations set up with tools to use plus two very nice glass grinders. One aspect of this project that is good for the first three classes is the use of color combinations to suit their original drawings. Often there are changes in use of color from the drawing to the mosaic. Composition becomes key in the success of the pieces as well as careful and calculated placement of glass.

The three advanced classes are using clay in combination with the glass. Because these works are strictly decorative items, we have chosen to skip the bisque process and are simply glazing the greenware pieces. Some students, myself included, have chosen to make all their tile pieces match original drawings. Use of texture, shape and color will make these pieces quite different from the drawings. Again, composition and glaze choices will play a large role in the final success of each piece.

Mr. DeFazio (before my residency commenced) had initiated drawings with the early morning students incorporating graphed drawings that are then distorted. The quality and technique of these pencil drawings is shown on this site to show the diversity of the lessons that Mike initiates in his classes. Critique of the student work is encouraged and the student body is very accepting of this. We have no breaks in our day as our prep period and lunch are filled with students continually working on their pieces. This is just a testament to the enthusiasm the students have for their works!