Danielle Slentz's Blog

For my fifth graders I decided to do something fun, adventurous and media rich.  Andy Goldsworthy is a fabulous nature sculptor, photographer and environmentalist who incorporates all of those attributes into a single piece of artwork!  Born in England, but now currently living in Scotland, Goldsworthy travels all around the world creating nature sculptures which he then photographs.  It was my goal as a teacher as it was Goldsworthy’s as an artist, to challenge my students to look beyond the things they walk in and step through every day.  To see the potential in any found organic object as a possible piece of artwork is quite a challenging task! 

After showing a quick Power Point on Goldsworthy and his artwork, I gave a few examples of sculptures, and discussed composition and camera use.  Their assignment was to find one-two types of organic objects outside and create an interesting sculpture.  Once completed they photograph it, rearrange it and then photograph it again.  They may use the same materials or try new ones out.  In the end the photograph of their choice would be considered their final product, just as Andy Goldsworthy does.  All in all the students did a great job considering it was early November, most of the leaves had already fallen and the wind had swept away many of the materials that would have been perfect to work with.  Thankfully there was a little nook on the school grounds where kids found their inspiration.  Alliums (onion family), leaves, pebbles, vines and sticks made way for some very creative sculptures and compositions.  Some students struggled with keeping to just one type of organic object, while others thrived with simple yet stirking materials! (Photos to come soon)!

This coming week, all 5th graders will be in the computer lab selecting their best photograph and working on a Compare and Contrast piece.  For the final project, students will choose a specific work from Andy Goldsworthy and compare and contrast it to their artwork.  After they have done so, each student will critique and explain their artwork.  The final product will be a typed on Microsoft Word 2007 and will be accompanied with an 8″x10″ of their sculpture and a 5″x7″ of the Goldsworthy image.  All artwork will be displayed around the school for all to enjoy!