Day 168 - Students Create Art Answering the Question "How Do You Feel About Standardized Tests?" - Ms. Chang - BHS Art Dept.

This post originally appeared on Ms. Chang's website

Drawing and Painting students in grades 10-12 were asked to create art about how they FEEL about standardized tests. I gave the students some old scantron sheets and offered drawing and painting materials. This is the art that was created:

Day 164 - Art Office Transformation - Alegria Paez - BHS Junior

This post first appeared on Alegria's Blog 

Our assignment was to redesign and make over the art office. Before the renovation, the space was dim, cluttered, and full of furniture that made the room feel smaller.

The first step of the process was to consider the different uses and needs the office would have to serve, and then create a floor plan accordingly. We conducted interviews with the art teachers to find out what needs they had for the office space. From these interviews, we decided that the room would have to be separated into purpose-specific zones: a work zone for students, a large desk for Mr. Ratkevich, a conference zone, a kitchen area, and plenty of storage space. Using these requirements, I designed this floor plan:

After we completed our floor plans, Mrs. Chang came to help us pick a color palette and and give advice about the design. We finally agreed on these colors:

The bright and soothing colors promote productivity and calm, and also help reflect some of the light in the room, since it has no natural light source. We planned out what color we would paint each wall, and had paint generously donated by Benjamin Moore. Then, we started to paint!

I helped paint the large wall leading out towards the math hallway, and all three doors. Of course, prior to painting the walls had to be bare, prepped, and washed. I helped remove the bulletin boards from the wall, wiped down the heater, and scraped off imperfections from the math hall wall.

This is what the office looked like after we finished painting. We are still waiting for some donated furniture, but aside from this the art office is pretty much complete.

This project taught me a lot about designing a space for others. Specifically, I learned about how "zoning" can be used to create order and make the most of every part of a room, because it gives every activity its own space. I also learned a lot about how certain colors influence people. For example, blues are calming, but extremely bright colors on a small space can make people restless. In addition, I learned that when painting a room, you must also consider the exterior of the room, to make sure that the paint doesn't clash with the colors directly outside the room. When we picked our color palette, we had to choose colors that would not clash with the red lockers in the hallway. Lastly, I learned how to make a space that is attractive yet still comfortable, by arranging furniture such as tables and different zones in ways that promote good flow, such as putting the conference table in the center of the room for easy access to the kitchen area for when it is used to eating, yet separate from Mr. Ratkevich's desk to allow him to work in peace. I think that the art office has improved substantially, and I am proud of the results.

Day 147 - Guest Artist Residency Continues.....Students Created Their First Oil Paintings - Christina Chang - BHS Art Dept.

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's Blog
Arnie Casavant has completed four days of his artist residency. He has coached students, critiqued their work and provided a demo oil painting on a dark ground.

Students completed their FIRST Oil paintings! Here are a few of their works:

Day 136 - Guest Artist Arnie Casavant Gives Painting Demonstration - Ms. Chang - BHS Art Dept.

This post originally appeared on Ms. Chang's Blog

The Drawing and Painting students were treated to a great lecture by guest artist Arnie Casavant today. He created a quick landscape painting using complimentary colors for the students. During his demonstration Arnie highlighted key topics and how to start a landscape painting. The students were thrilled and excited to start their paintings.

Day 134 - The Annual New York City Art Field Trip - Ms. Djordjevic - BHS Art Dept.

This post originally appeared on Ms. Djordjevic's site

This year Mr. Mistler and I escorted 49 fantastic art students on a trip to MoMA (the Museum of Modern Art) and the galleries in Soho, NYC. It is one very long day of travel starting at 6:30am and ending at nearly 11pm, but every year it is worth it to watch our students see art that they have studied and looked at on computer screens and actually have a chance to experience the works live and in-person. New York is host to some of the most incredible art museums in the world and that is what prompted the BHS art department to start this annual field trip nearly a decade ago. The exhibits at MoMA are always impressive and this year we were able to see a lot of pop art (Warhol, Lichtenstein, and Rauschenberg), abstract expressionists including Pollock and Kandinsky, works of Van Gogh and Picasso, and many other amazing artists. 

Here are a few images of the trip taken by my students (and a few of my own) that I pulled from Instagram! 

Day 122 - Graphic Design Invitations - Mr. Mistler - BHS Art Department

This post originally appeared on Mr. Mistler's Blog 

Take a look at these gifs created by the graphic design class. They were made to show how their invitations open and close. Students were tasked with creating die cut invitations. "Die-cut" means that it has an irregular cut. Check these out! 

Day 116 - Cool Cardboard Chairs Created by Architecture Students - Ms. Chang - BHS Art Dept.

Introduction to Architecture students were challenged to create cardboard chairs using just cardboard. They could not use any adhesives of any kind. Students worked in small groups and created outstanding and functional designs. The chairs will be on display at the 42nd Annual Art Exhibition tomorrow - Thursday, March 19.

Here is a link to the full assignment: Cardboard Chair Design Challenge