All About Me: More Faith Ringgold Story Quilts

The other day I started a new series of classes called "All About Me" which is, sigh, not actually about ME, but has children creating artwork inspired by THEM: their portraits, their names, their interests.

With the first project I wanted to do something that would get their imaginations going, so we created quilt squares inspired by Faith Ringgold's "Tar Beach." I had originally posted this lesson here.

This project is great because the main character of the story is the same age as my students (about 3rd grade). In this lesson, the children are asked "where would you fly if you could go anywhere, real or imagined?" This project is a wonderful way to get to know my students--they come up with the best places to fly to! This project originally took two one-hour class sessions with my homeschool kiddos, but I only wanted to devote one class to this project with my after school kiddos. So, I downsized the project a bit. Here's how:

• For the background, we used 8" x 10" rectangles of mat board 
• For their drawn image, we used a 6" square of white paper
• For the area they wrote on, we used a 2" x 6" rectangle
• The patterned paper pieces, we used 1" squares (as in the other post)

How'd it go?

I was very happy with the process! The prep was easy and the project very portable (that's important since I am an "art-on-a-cart" teacher. We had time to read the entire book, discuss it a bit and then take our time drawing where we would go if we could fly. After the initial discussion, the children just worked along. This was a bit of a larger group than the last time I presented this project (we had 13 Daisy Girl Scouts visiting the classroom), but it was a smooth-running lesson. Some of the children finished about 10 minutes early (we meet for an hour and fifteen minutes). Early finishers could look at quilt-related books or work on quilt coloring pages.

When they were done, I put all of the quilt squares together and magically our finished quilt appeared. Enjoy! 

If I could fly I would go to...
the moon, Atlantis, Hawaii, out for ice cream,
to the beach, to Chihuahua Land, to a horse farm...

Faith Ringgold Story Quilts

I had been planning to create story quilts inspired by Faith Ringgold's "Tar Beach" with my homeschool students, but couldn't think of the right angle for it. I didn't want to have them spend a class writing a story--we are too limited on time. Then I saw the post for Story Quilts done by Ms. Gram. She posed this question to her students: "If you could fly anywhere in the world, real or imaginary, where would you go?" Ah-ha! Just what I needed! 

Our completed quilt (I have a much smaller class this semester,
check out Ms. Gram's site to see this on a larger scale).

Check out the specifics for her lesson, here.

Here are our quilt squares...

I'd fly to a meadow; I'd fly to Cabela's

I'd fly everywhere; I'd fly to outer space ad touch the stars

I'd fly to some random Tokyo mall; I'd fly to L.L. Bean

I'd fly to Moscow, I'd fly to Australia to see bats

And here are some other books you may find helpful for a project like...

"Cassie's Word Quilt," by Faith Ringgold (The main character of the "Tar Beach" book stars in this picture book full of words).

"Dia's Story Cloth: The Hmong People's Journey to Freedom," by Dia Cha (This is more of an embroidered quilt, but it chronicles the journey of these refugees from Southeast Asia and their search for freedom).

"Talking With Tebé: Clementine Hunter, Memory Artist," Edited by Mary E. Lyons (the quilts and paintings of this self-taught African American folk artist pair well with Ringgold's textile art).

"Tar Beach," by Faith Ringgold (this was the specific book I used for this project--the children had me read it to them twice).

"The Keeping Quilt," by Patricia Polacco (this shows a quilt moving though generations of immigrants coming to the new world).

Enjoy!

Burlap Weavings (Class #2)

My homeschool art class also did burlap weavings this week (just like my after school class, see the original post here). 

The project was slightly different since the class is shorter (only an hour) and my class is made up of students in 2nd through 5th grade. I brought out my samples from my original post, but did not have the paint element this time. The burlap was also cut into smaller pieces and I did not mount them to mat board, but affixed a layer of masking tape on the back of the top edge so the piece didn't unravel while the children were working in it.

Done this way, the project makes for an inexpensive project for a group. Many of the children were able to complete their pieces in this session, but two sessions could be used. This really got the children thinking and working with their hands in a new way!

Here are some examples of the finished pieces:

Beadwork and straight stitches to create an image.

Exploring color, texture and stitching.

Love that variegated yarn!

Beautiful! Great Job Everyone!

Burlap Weavings

This week I wanted to introduce my after school students to the art of weaving. Weaving many times makes people think of the Native Americans, but I pointed out to the children that almost every culture has some form of weaving: Africa, Mexico, South America, China, and Japan as well as Europe in the Middle Ages.

I gave each student a piece of burlap that had been hot-glued to a piece of mat board. Burlap is great because it has a nice open weave, so it is easy to see the WARP (threads that run vertically) and WEFT (threads that run right to weft, er, I mean LEFT).

The students can weave yarn into the spaces of the fabric or can gently pull on the weft threads of the burlap and remove them to create spaces where the exposed warp threads can be tied together or larger ribbons can be woven in.

I created an example board for the students to view during my discussion. It shows the following:

First Example:

1. Yellow thread: Single strand woven in one row.

2. Purple threads: Single strand woven into three rows (multiple rows).

3. Multi-colored Fuzzy Yarn: Single strand using large "stitches" so that the fuzzies can be easily seen.

4. Dark Purple Eyelash Yarn: Single Row, large stitches.

5. Burgundy Yarn: Single row with beads and a fuzzy yarn stitched along with it. Stitched in an open area of the burlap where the weft threads have been removed.

6. Burgundy Yarn (2):  Single row stitched into the plain burlap

7. Pale green: Single strand woven in a pattern. You could also do X's or other patterns.

Burlap Weaving: First Example

Second Example:


8. Ribbon woven into a section where the weft threads have been removed. Ends are tacked down with hot glue on the back of the piece.

9. Section where weft threads were removed and remaining warp threads were gathered and tied. Some with yarn and one with yarn with bead added.

10. Stamping with acrylic paints. Diamonds, squares, etc.

11. Fringe: Fringe created using yarn and an example of fringe created by removing the last few weft rows.

Burlap Weaving: Second Example

The possibilities are endless with this. I also provided some acrylic paints and stamps with Navajo motifs that the children could add to their pieces. Here are the step-by-step directions:

Supplies Needed:

• Burlap (I bought ours at a fabric store)
• Mat Board, optional (I glue to top edge of the burlap to the board to keep the whole thing from fraying apart as the children work. The final piece looks more finished this way)
• Hot glue gun & glue sticks
• Assorted yarn and ribbon 
• Beads (I used plastic pony beads)
• Scissors
• Plastic needle (easy to thread the yarn through and won't poke little fingers)
• Acrylic Paints, brushes, craft foam, optional

Directions: 

1. Cut the burlap to size: ours was 10"x13." The students I have are 3rd and 4th graders and we have an hour and 15 minutes to work, so that size seemed appropriate. Younger students and less time would require a smaller piece of burlap to work with. When cutting burlap, wear eye protection since the fibers may scratch your cornea.

2. Cut a piece of mat board slightly larger than the burlap square: ours was 11"x14."

3. Hot glue the burlap to the mat board along the top edge of the burlap (leave the bottom edge unattached so that the child can work with it).

Stamps Include a starburst-like shape, diamonds and squares.

4. If you would like to use the paints to stamp Navajo motifs, do so now. I cut a motif from craft foam and had the children apply paint to the shape with a brush and stamp it onto the burlap. 

5. While the acrylic is drying, plan the rest of your design. Choose a few different types of yarn and ribbon to complete your design. Weave the yarn into the fabric using the plastic needle, adding beads if you'd like. If you would like to use ribbon, remove a few of the weft threads first to create an open section. Instead of the plastic needle, we used a safety pin to weave the ribbon into the fabric. You can also sew around the stamped designs, if you'd like.

6. Create fringe at the bottom of your piece by removing the last few weft rows and/or using yarn knotted into the fabric.

This piece is very open to the student's individual creativity. Have fun and encourage self-expression. Here are a few of the examples from today's class. ENJOY!

The student said this is an "Elvis-inspired" weaving!

The student said this is a Christmas-inspired weaving.

Lovely Beading!

Painting and eyelash yarn create a nice symmetrical image. 

Memory Pillow and Artist Talk

I visited my son's first grade classroom a few weeks ago and gave a talk about being an artist. It was so much fun talking with the children about ways to make art as well as the different careers an artist can have. We then did a project where the children made memory pillows. It was a wonderful way for them to remember the school year and all of the friends they made this year!

The Memory Pillow--what a masterpiece!

What is an Artist?

In preparation for this project I looked in the dictionary to see what being an artist meant. It said that an artist is someone who creates art. Well, that didn't seem like a very good explanation!

We discussed different kinds of art/ways of making art and we came up with this list:

Drawing
Painting
Photography
Sculpture
Fabric Arts (like knitting embroidery, quilting)
Computer Arts (like web design)
Mosaics
Cartooning/Animation (like cartoons on TV & movies as well as in newspapers and in books)

(I'm sure this list isn't complete! I also added that people can be artists if they create music, dance, perform in the theater and write).

Many works of art like paintings and drawings are found in museums and in galleries, but art is all around us every day. We discussed different art careers that are out there such as:

Architect: If you like to draw houses and create buildings with Legos then maybe you could be an architect!

Illustrator/Cartoonist: I told the children they were already illustrators since they all published books for the school's writing festival! If you like to draw pictures to go along with stories you could be an illustrator!

Sculptor/Potter: Do you like to work in clay? Do you like to make sculptures or bowls and cups? Maybe this job is for you!

Graphic Designer: Do you like to make books with words and pictures? Do you like to look at cool websites? Those are made by graphic designers!

Actor/Actress/Dancer: If you love to perform and put on shows--this is for you!

Art Teacher: If you love to talk about art and share different projects with children, then this job is for you! This is what I do and I love it! :-)

Memory Pillow:

This is a wonderful project for a teacher gift, a class project, a birthday party and more! After our talk we worked on this craft.

Supplies Needed:

1 square of white 100% cotton fabric (ours was about 12 x 12")
1 square of printed fabric for backing that is the same size as the front piece (ours was 12 x 12")
Gold acrylic paint
1 4"x 8" piece of craft foam
Scissors
Paintbrush
Paper plate for palette
Newspapers or other work surface covering
Fabric markers (I use Crayola brand)
Sewing machine
Pins
Needle and matching thread
Pillow stuffing

Directions:

1. Wash the fabric to remove sizing, dry and cut to size.

2. Cover your work area with newspaper. Cut a frame shape from the foam. Put some gold paint onto the palette and, using a brush, apply a thick coat of paint to the foam. Stamp the foam shape onto the center of the white square. Let dry.

Choose a metallic gold paint for a little sparkle. The children asked,  "Is this REAL gold?"

3. Trace around the edge of the gold frame with a black fabric marker, if desired, to make the frame's edges a little more crisp and interesting. You don't have to be neat about it--it looks more interesting if the edges are off a bit (I completed up to this part at home so all the children had to do was draw with markers).

4. Using fabric markers, draw a picture inside the frame. If you are doing this with a group, you may want to have the artist sign inside the frame as well.

A dragon being stopped by a super hero

A horse and rider in a woodland scene. Love those woodland critters!

5. Now's the time to have everyone sign each other's pillows. Do not sign inside someone's frame or on their picture. Leave about 1/2" border all around the edge of the white square for a seam allowance.

6. Once the marker work is done, pin the white square to the backing material with the right sides facing each other. Sew around the pillow, leaving a 3-4" opening on one side.

Older children can use the sewing machine with adult supervision, to sew their pillows on their own. My 9-year-old was able to sew his pillow.

7. When done, turn the pillow right side out and gently stuff with pillow stuffing.

8. Pin the opening of the pillow closed, thread a needle with matching thread and sew the opening closed.

Ta-da! A masterpiece (and a memory) has been created! Enjoy!!

Bayeux Tapestry Project: Part Two

Background: The first class day of this project, my students came prepared with their stories. The stories were great! The children wrote about getting a pet, a big move, a Christmas story, about being caught in a rip tide and one wrote about a child he had saved from a dangerous situation. We then divided the balance of the project (see all below) into the next two classes.

The completed tapestry

I started the class with a move indepth discussion of tapestries. Although not an actual tapestry (see Part One), I showed more of the Bayeux Tapestry. I used a wonderful book called, "The Bayeux Tapestry," Wolfgang Grape. While the text is suited for grown-ups, this book has wonderful full-color images of the entire tapestry (all 230 feet!). Pages show a portion of the tapestry and then have a paragraph below each image with the Latin phrase that appears on that section. It then translates the Latin and gives a short explanation of what is going on in that portion of the piece. Wonderful!!

Another great book with actual tapestries in it is: "The Unicorn Tapestries," by Margaret B. Freeman (ISBN 0-525-22643-5). This book has large, full-color pages of each of the 6 tapestries in this series as well as TONS of info in the text about the history of and symbolism in the tapestries. There is also a wonderful section on how tapestries are made with great diagrams and pictures that the children found fascinating.

And finally, I showed them an example of a modern-day take on the Bayeux Tapestry in, "Dia's Story Cloth: the Hmong People's Journey to Freedom," by Dia Cha. The Hmong people use story cloths to link the past and present and provide a visual element to their people's oral traditions and history. The visual elements of the cloth featured in this book as well as the background of how the cloth was made over time and sewn by many hands (by men and women), really reinforced many of the elements that I was trying to highlight with this project.

Information I presented about the Bayeux Tapestry:

Castles back in Medieval times were cold, dark places. They were heated by fireplaces and had few windows so that they could hold the heat in (and for protection). So, some people believe that artisans would create wall hangings, curtains, pillow covers, and banners to make their living areas more comfortable and colorful. It was believed by some that tapestries were used to stop drafts from coming through old castle walls, but now we believe that this may not have been true: many of the wall hangings were thin pieces of material and did not have layers of batting or fur that would truly work to keep cold out.

Tapestries are woven from silk or wool and showed very detailed scenes from the Bible, songs and legends. The threads were colored from handmade dyes that were made from herbs, berries or even crushed up bugs!

The Bayeux Tapestry tells how William of Normandy (William the Conqueror) became King of England and showcases the Battle of Hastings in 1066 AD. The Bayeux Tapestry was created about 1070 or so.


How to Make Your Own Story Cloth/Tapestry:

Supplies Needed:

• Paper, pencil & eraser
• Paper cut to the size of your fabric squares, ours were 8x8" (this helps children better design the pictures for the actual finished space they'll be using)
• Fabric Markers (I use Crayola brand)
• 8x8" squares white fabric (you'll need 4 per tapestry, but have extras on hand just in case)
• 9x45" Backing Material (I used unbleached muslin)
• Straight pins
• Sewing Machine & thread
• About 40" of ribbon (five 8" segments) (can be braided or embroidered)
• Scissors
• Glue gun & hot glue sticks
• Ruler
• Table cover
• 11" long wooden dowel (optional)

Directions:

Once the child has written a short story from his/her life, s/he is ready to go! I had the children divide their stories into 3 parts. Then the child should think of a picture for each section of the story.

1. Creating the cartoon: medieval artisans would plan their tapestries by planning out the placement of the pictures and words of their tapestries. These sketches or drawings were called "cartoons." Using pencils and rulers, transfer the text of the story and then draw any images that will go in each square. Remember to make the images large and clear. Details should be kept to a minimum since the fabric markers are kind of wide and may bleed a bit. Try to think of ways to fill the space: remember to include a ground and maybe some elements that create a background like clouds, swirly lines that show wind, or sun and birds. I discourage coloring in the entire background a solid color because it seems to come out streaky and frustrates the children with the end result.

Step 1: Using a template helps children write in straight lines

2. Transfer the text and images to the fabric squares using fabric markers.

Step 2: Transfer the text and images to cloth

3. Using a fourth fabric square, create a title square with the name of the tapestry or story cloth as well as the author's name.

Step 3: Create a title panel (don't forget your name!)

4. Prepare the background: The background strip is 9" wide by 45" long. Fold the top edge over about 2 1/2" to create a casing to hang the banner by. Sew. Then fold the bottom corners of the backing inward to form a center point (just to make a decorative bottom edge). Sew.

Step 4: Prepare the backing material by making a casing and finishing the bottom edge

5. Then have the children arrange the four squares of their story onto the backing & pin in place. When arranging the squares, have their edges touch.
6. Sew down the left and right sides of the squares.

Step 5: Pin and sew squares onto backing. I just sew down the left and right sides and cover the top and bottom seams with ribbon (next step).

7. Hot glue 8" long strips of embroidered or braided ribbon to the top and bottom edges of the fabric squares for decoration and to hide the raw edges of the fabric squares.

Step 7: Attach ribbon with hot glue. This is both decorative and it covers the top and bottom seams of the fabric squares.

8. Insert a dowel into the casing of the tapestry, hang, and enjoy!

Note: Because portions of the banner are hot glued on, they are not washable. These could be made higher-quality if you had the time and money. They could also be made solely from paper if you are doing this on a very tight budget or with a large group of students.

Bayeux Tapestry Project: Part One

Background: I teach art to a group of homeschoolers in 3rd-5th grade. In previous semesters, I've taught grade levels 1st through 6th. My art ideas are geared toward the middle of that range--I use my oldest son, who is 8 and in third grade (in public school), as my test subject. I have a relatively small art class and I have 1-2 grown-up helpers per week.

My art students and I just finished a wonderful project based on the Bayeux Tapestry.  The Bayeux Tapestry is one of the more famous textile pieces from Medieval times. Although it is called a tapestry, it is not really. A tapestry is woven on a loom--the design is actually woven into the fabric using different colored threads, but the Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidery. The pictures and words are sewn onto a backing fabric.

I showed the children a couple of portions of the Bayeux Tapestry in this introduction, and showed them how it tells a story with both pictures and words. I explained that we were going to be doing the same.

The books I used for this quick intro were:
"Picture That: Knights and Castles" by Alex Martin (this is a great book that makes many wonderful connections between art and history for children using colorful illustrations, engaging text and a "zoom-in" feature that highlights details that children don't want to miss. There is a brief section about the Bayeux Tapestry).

"Medieval Projects You Can Do," by Marsha Graves (this book has many wonderful projects including cooking and costumes that definitely engage and inspire children while making Medieval times more real to them).

The project is worked in fabric markers on fabric squares and has a short story with illustrations. We then attached the fabric squares to a large fabric banner and added braided cord and/or embroidered trim to "fancy it up."

Part One:


After my very brief explanation of the Bayeux Tapestry, I gave the children homework. They need to write a story for their own tapestries. These were the guidelines:

1. The child should have a personal story from his/her life (it's better if it is personal and true since it will be more special). However, the child can use a poem or story s/he has written, or even something written by someone else if the child is stressing about it. Ideas could be: a family vacation, acquiring a pet, something s/he is proud of such as winning a sports trophy or some kind of award, etc.

2. The story should be written out by the child in the exact way that it is going to appear on their tapestry. I'd like all of the thinking, rewriting & scribbling to be done at home so they can copy and illustrate in class.

3. The story should have a couple of parts to it--or be able to be broken down into about three illustrations. We don't need a novel, but we need enough to work with! Two sentences is probably not going to be enough. DO NOT WORRY ABOUT THE PICTURES! The students can sketch out pictures if they want, but focus on the story.

An example:
Our Awesome Vacation
Last year my family was tired of all of the snow so my mom and dad took us to Coco Key water park. We went on a long drive and watched a movie in the car. When we got to the big building, mom and dad said we were staying overnight and we were excited! For two days I played with my family at the water park. I loved going on the lazy river with my mom. We had pizza and soda too. I would love to go back there every year.