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ARTandHANDICRAFTS
Feb. 10, 2008
Art Appreciation - Part I: Preparation
Charlotte Mason deemed Art Study to be a necessary part of every child's life. She felt that "the artist ... has indispensable lessons to give us". [Volume 4: Ourselves, p. 103] Spending time viewing great pieces of art provides each participant with immeasurable beauty for his or her personal ponderings.
For those new to following CM's educational philosophy, it may seem overwhelming to do Art Appreciation with their children. I've heard some people claim, "we just aren't artistic" - as if that has relevance or will affect their ability to spend time viewing an artist's works!
As you can probably tell, I believe that everyone - young, old, child, youth, adult, elder - can spend time studying artwork and enjoy it! Over the next few weeks I'll share what we do in our home for Art Appreciation. I hope it provides encouragement for parents to begin doing Art Study with their children - or new ideas, for families already enjoying it.
PART I: PREPARATION
- Choose an artist. This, being the first step, can sometimes be the most difficult one! ...Not just because it's hard for some people to get the impetus to begin (you know who you are!), but due to the sheer number of accomplished artists throughout history! If you are stuck for ideas, the Ambleside Online curriculum website has excellent suggestions.
- Find art prints. Images are available online*; print these in colour at home or have your favourite digital photograph developer do it. One can also purchase a discounted calendar or art print book. I try to find at least two works from the artist's early period, two works from his/her middle years, and two works from his/her last productive years. Six is the minimum of works that I'd use for art study. We usually have eight to twelve different art prints.
- Parents learn about artist. The adults may choose to read an autobiography by the artist or a biography about him or her. While doing so, it's good to make a brief list or mental note of items that would be of interest to your children. (Where did he/she live? Did he/she have children? What were his/her interests, etc.)
*In another post I'll share some of my favourite online sources for free, legally copyable artwork images.
This initial legwork is something to be done by the parents, when they have time. Try to keep the art prints a surprise; each week, a new print should be unveiled to the children for their viewing enjoyment.
Keep watch for Art Appreciation - Part II, coming up soon!
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Feb. 8, 2008
My introduction to Redwork
Thank you, all of you, for your wonderful comments about the Victorian Bouquet wall-hanging I made. I appreciate your kind words, very much!
A comment was made about wanting to learn more about Redwork embroidery. I'm so enthusiastic about Redwork that sometimes I forget the whole world doesn't know about it! Isn't that always the case with our interests? 
It was at Costco, perusing the magazines, that I first learned of Redwork embroidery. There was an article in the August 2003 issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine. I was so intrigued by it that, strict budget or not, I bought the magazine right then and there. Once home, I read the magazine closely and learned that the article and patterns were available online. Ah well! It's nice to have the patterns that were my introduction of Redwork, or, in this case, Bluework (Redwork in blue).
Here are the links to the articles and patterns that were the beginning of a satisfying activity for DD and I:
Bird Embroidery Projects (Martha Stewart website)
Bird Embroidered Quilt (Martha Stewart website)
State Birds outline embroidery patterns - PDF (Martha Stewart website)
Later, I'll write more later about Redwork / Outline Embroidery. Also, I'll post web links to online articles and our favourite free patterns. We plan to share photographs of our Redwork projects with you.
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Feb. 7, 2008
Victorian Bouquet
I'm a member of my local quilters' guild. I joined, not because I know how to quilt, but in order to learn how to quilt from ladies who love it.
The guild had an optional 'Brown Bag Challenge'. We put two fat quarters of fabric and a note with our name and suggestions (favourite room, colours) into a brown paper bag. The coordinator exchanged the bags between the participants.
Upon receiving the brown bag, one had to create an item for the recipient, using her fabrics and any additional supplies. This is what I made:
I love vintage outline embroidery (Redwork) designs! This floral bouquet is from the Ladies Home Journal, circa 1880's. I hand-embroidered the picture, pieced the top and backing, machine-quilted it with 'trellis' quilting, and hand-sewed the binding. For a final touch, I sewed on a dragonfly charm.
The recipient was thrilled with her wall-hanging, which made me very happy. (This is the third pieced and quilted project I've made.) DD didn't want me to give it away, because she loved it so much.
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Feb. 7, 2008
Welcome!
Welcome to our new family web log! We hope to share with you some of our art appreciation experiences, art expression explorations, and our handicraft endeavors. If you like what you see, check the suggested web links for further information.
Don't be afraid to try your hand at creating. As I always tell my art students:
"Everyone is artistic and creative
in his or her own way.
So have fun!"
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