Visualization Project- CURRINS 545

Link to Artsteps virtual gallery: https://www.artsteps.com/curate/60903758ab2f8515ecfefe80/3

For my visualization project, I focused on the idea of community. I love my job and the community that I belong to and that same love translates to my neighborhood community

as well. Community is so important to me and my artistic practice and teaching students how to appreciate their community is one of my favorite things to do! My text set for this class was focused around local Milwaukee artists and makers so for this project I decided to focus on the idea of community and what that means to me. I decided to use Artsteps as a platform to display the work the community at my job created over this semester (I teach K4-8th grade art). The outside of the gallery is representing K4-5th students and the inside gallery is exhibiting 6th-8th grade work. Using this digital platform helps tie together all the loose ends of the semester. A virtual gallery is a perfect way to show your students all their hard work and accomplishments! Usually this would be an in person exhibition, but since COVID is still prevalent I decided on a virtual gallery instead! Seeing all of the work lined up in this format helps me understand what my thinking was centered around this semester; community resources, recycled materials, and thinking outside the box! This type of visualization learning is so helpful for many kinds of learners. This is also an amazing way to motivate students to get their work done. Seeing their work in a professional setting like this is something that students strive to achieve, and having that motivation is what carries them through the more difficult projects!

The projects on display are as follows...

Facial expressions with found objects! Students knew they were successful when they collected a variety of found objects from around their house and compiled it into a facial expression on a plate.

Earth Day inspired "stained class"! Students knew they were successful when they used blue, green, and black markers as well as a coffee filter and a little water to create a beautiful globe inspired stained glass.

Recycled object bead paintings! Students knew they were successful when they created an abstract design using beads, glue, and recycled containers.

Clay! Students were guided through some Peruvian Ceramics history with Milwaukee artist Chris Davis Benevides! Students knew they were successful when they created a clay "guardian" by using score and slipping techniques and finished it off with some acrylic paints!

Zines! Students learned all about the history of Zines from local maker Melissa Mursch-Rodriguez! Students knew they were successful when they created a zine by using Ms. Burrows' "cut & roll" method. Students then filled their zines with whatever kind of content

they wanted.

Fibers! Local maker Tania Espinoza Bonilla showed us how she uses fibrous

materials in her art practice. Students knew they were successful when they sewed two pieces of cloth together creating a "plushy heart." Students also learned how to make a coiled coaster!

Graffiti and Street Art! Students were taken through a tour of some graffiti that Ms. Burrows sees in her neighborhood everyday! They got to hear from local maker and designer Payne Coonihan and learned how he incorporates this style into his work. Students knew they were successful when they created a graffiti inspired design in their sketchbooks and then completed their spray painted garbage cans!

Self Portraits! Students got to virtually meet artist Maddie Nicholson who specializes in portraiture specifically using the stippling process for shading. Students then created their own "self portrait" representing themselves on paper in whatever way they felt was right to them. This could have been a figure that was fully human, half human half plant/animal, or something completely different.