AP/Advanced Art: working on developing art with meaning

 

I am not afraid to show my enthusiasm for the natural world and wildlife, as well as share what knowledge I have about bees and other plants and creatures. I believe that this enthusiasm helps students recognize their own connections to their environment. 

 

For example, one Advanced art student was creating a piece about a turtle being caught up in trash in an ocean covered with oil. I started talking about the reality of animals eating garbage as they mistaken it for food--especially in the cases of turtles eating plastic bags because they look like jellies. Her awareness on the subject and her concern for wildlife was a motivating factor as she continued the process of painting and collaging.

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I sat down with another AP student and we talked through her ideas for her concentration about bees (a set of 12 artworks that focus on expressing one specific idea). I read her written ideas about it and then asked her questions about her inspirations. I then shared resources and personal experiences with bees. I brought in books for her to look through and we discussed different approaches she could take to the subject--such as the daily life of a bee, colony collapse disorder, or pollinator conservation. The end result of our conversation was an internal drive to get started making things for her concentration!

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Moving forward I will continue to  develop my own curiosities in other disciplines as well as find ways to encourage students to take what they are learning in other subjects and use it as possible inspiration for the art that they make. 

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