ART@WALTON HIGH

Volume #9

2020.07.07

YEAR 10

Georgia H (WT)

Emily L (WT) Katie (WT)

STUDENT

ARTISTS OF THE

WEEK

Every week art

teachers choose

art pieces that

have stood out to

them.

Well done to our

winners this week!

YEAR 7 YEAR 8

YEAR 9 YEAR 9

Vlad I (BL)

Amelia C (WT)

YEAR 10

Ellie M (WT)

ARTIST IN FOCUS

Frida Kahlo Frida Kahlo was a Mexican painter who’s known for her portraits and art pieces that respond to themes surrounding herself, politics and nature. Despite being creative since a young age, her serious interest in the arts didn’t become truly apparent until after her life threatening accident, which involved being hit by a bus. It was here that she began to create art, in an arguably folk like style, which responded to both her life experiences, such as being disabled due to Polio, and Mexican culture. It wasn’t, however, until the 1970’s that her work truly reached critical acclaim when art historians discovered her work. Kahlo’s work, to this day, provides and provokes significant questions on our preconceptions of identity, gender, class and race. She has become an icon that is recognised both for her individuality, strength and much more! Presently, imagery of Kahlo is often used as a symbol of empowerment and many see her as an idol for women's rights movements due to her challenging past and successes. In 1990, Kahlo became recognised as an important figure in art and the feminist movement and she is now considered a significant historical figure. In response to her vast recognition around the world, her childhood home, in Coyocán, was turned into a museum, which is dedicated to recording and presenting her life and work to the public. Frida Kahlo has been a favourite of mine since I studied GCSE art, a long time ago. Being a female painter, her sense of femininity came across strongly to me and inspired me to research more about her life and Mexican culture. I find that her work both challenges and questions our ideas about the female form and duties, these findings inspired my dissertation at university. Kahlo’s unapologetic self-portraits show so much hurt and yet are beautiful and extremely interesting. I love her use of symbolism, nature, animals and fantasy. Ultimately, I find that looking at her artwork is like reading a book and there is so much depth and story behind each painting that each time I revisit them I notice something new.

Miss Crummy

TRY THE TECHNIQUE

Sgraffito If you thought the only end of a paintbrush you should be using is the one with the hairs on it, you need to think again. The other end is very useful for a technique called Sgraffito! Sgraffito: The term Sgraffito comes from the Italian word sgraffire, which means to scratch. The technique involves scratching through a layer of paint to reveal what’s underneath.

You’ll need:

Oil Pastels TIP: If you don’t have oil pastels you can use crayons.

Black Paint TIP: We find acrylic paint works well.

White Card TIP: We advise thick card as you’ll be scratching onto it.

Paint brush TIP: A flat headed paint brush works well for an even covering.

Scratching tool (Other end of paint brush or Toothpick etc.)

Newspaper or Paper etc.

Palette or plate etc.

Instructions:

1. Set up your materials around you on an even surface, like a table. 2. Lay out your newspaper and place your white card on top. 3. Colour the entire area of your card using different coloured oil pastels or

crayons. TIP: - Don’t use black as it’ll be hard to see through the over coat. - Try to blend the colours together so there are no white streaks. - You could create a pattern on the background.

4. Using your paintbrush, apply a coat of black paint over the coloured in surface. TIP: A couple of coats might be needed to completely cover the surface.

5. Leave to dry. 6. Once dry, using your scratching tool gently scratch the surface until you

see the colours show through. TIP: Don’t scratch too hard. You are just removing the top layer.

For more information and a tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NO3t-LtUad8

GET ARTY AT HOME

Javier Perez

‘I want people to be able to take a break from the saturation of photos in general.’

Can you change the way you see an everyday object? Javier Perez aka Cintascotch, a graphic designer from Ecuador, arguably, does! Perez, combines ordinary objects with his minimalistic drawings to create quirky cartoons. Minimalism: It is basically a posh word for the practice of keeping something extremely simple. Minimalism is an art movement that began in the 1960’s and early 1970’s, in which artists presented basic work that was non decorative.

You’ll need:

Random small objects (e.g seed pod for a boat etc.)

Something to draw on. TIP: Cartridge paper is a professional and durable choice.

Something to draw with. TIP: We would advise a black pen as this’ll make your design stand out.

Imagination!

There are no definite instructions for this one. Just go for it and have fun!

If you’re struggling here is a tutorial:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_quikbX5Gs

To find out more about Javier Perez and his weekly creations follow his Instagram:

@cintascotch

REMEMBER: Please take photos and share your creations in the comment section of this post.

You can create every day, no matter what your skill level!

IN THE ART WORLD

Online Exhibitions:

The Louvre You can search and look at their past and present collections online. https://www.louvre.fr/en/moteur-de-recherche-oeuvres

The Guggenheim Discover the Guggenheim Museum’s collection in New York City by simply visiting their website.

https://www.guggenheim.org/at-large?gclsrc=aw.ds&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiIvosPmt6gIVC9

OyCh3_1AJFEAAYAiAAEgLNoPD_BwE

The Metropolitan Museum of Art You can view the metropolitan’s latest virtual exhibitions and past collections on their website.

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection

Competitions:

MK Parks Trust Photography Competition 2020

The Parks Trust has launched a photography competition

looking to find the best photograph of Milton Keynes’ green

spaces.

The 2020 Photography Competition aims to highlight the

‘beautiful and diverse landscapes, wildlife and communities

of Milton Keynes’.

This year’s competition prizes are:

1st Prize: £100 worth of Amazon vouchers

2nd Prize: £50 worth of Amazon vouchers

3rd Prize: £25 worth of Amazon vouchers

The photos submitted also have the chance of featuring on

the Parks Trust’s and Willen Lake’s social media channels.

Key Information:

Open to all ages

Photos must be taken within the 6,000 acres of land

that The Park Trust manages across the city.

Deadline: Friday 31 July 2020

Enter on The Park Trust’s website:

https://www.theparkstrust.com/get-

involved/photography-competition-

2020/#:~:text=Our%20photography%20competition

%20aims%20to,100%20worth%20of%20Amazon%2

0vouchers

Workshops:

Textile Artists.org: Weekly Stitch Challenge

Textile Artists. Org has created a community stitch challenge, which allows both professional and amateur textile enthusiasts to access tasks and stay in touch with one another.

Every Monday since 25 March 2020, a different textile artist has delivered an inspirational task in the form of a short video, which presents a workshop and a hand stitch based challenge that you can be done at home.

For more information and to get involved: https://www.textileartist.org/category/stitch-challenge