Programming an art club may seem like "no big deal" to those who aren't artists. "Just give them some crayons and paper" someone once told me. Sure, occasionally kids want to just draw freestyle, but you don't join an art club to do it. You join an art club because you have artistic curiosity. Kids want to try something new and/or different, something they haven't thought of or didn't know how to do on their own. Here's a display of some activities we did at last year's Art Club trying out some new techniques.
Activities included scratch art on old CDs, collaborative printmaking using unusual objects, and 2 Dave Chihuly "glass" art projects (coffee filter Macchias and a water bottle chandelier). It was a blast!
I love the "lesson planning" process for art programming. It is an exciting adventure itself. First question, what would the kids like to do? Looking at art, and searching books, art sites, Pinterest for ideas. Second question, do we have the budget, time, and facilities for the activity? The second question usually drives what can be done. But as I learned in art school: you first come up with the idea and then figure out how to make it happen.
I want to make art happen for kids in the community. There just isn't enough art around. Above being an artist myself, I consider myself an art advocate, so I will continue to push for art education whenever I can. For now, back to my adventure of lesson planning and searching for the perfect art project that'll get their creative curiosity flowing. (I'm thinking next up will be Zendoodles, collaborative altered puzzles, and selfie collages.) Make art an adventure!
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