After a very busy school year and teaching summer school I was looking forward to a time where I could spend a whole week, (forty hours!!) exploring a new medium, Kinetic Sculpture in a workshop by the Artist/Teacher Institute. I alway look forward to experiences where I can work with other artists/teachers, spending time making art, sharing in the art making experiences, learning and sharing from other artists. I find these art making experiences, these workshops, these classes to be a PLC, professional learning community for me. It is a place where I grow, become more of who I was meant to be, be an artist among other artists. I find these experiences to be extremely rewarding, fulfilling.
I was looking forward to this creative experience, as next year I am introducing new courses in 3D art and also will be working with a 3D printer. I hoped this workshop would give me the experiences, ideas that I could draw on to create new and exciting experiences for my students. I recently, in the spring attended a one day workshop, combing Art and Technology, by aTi and I found that experience to be very exciting and eye opening. I was so excited by what I had discovered, I worked with an innovative device, the Makey Makey and I also worked with a 3D printer that when I shared my experiences with my principal, he immediately provided support to create a new class, incorporating the skills and knowledge I had gained at the aTi Art and Technology workshop.
If the spring workshop was any indication of what new experiences I would be exposed to, then I felt sure this week long workshop would be great! I was not to be disappointed as aTi brought in a sculptor, Ben Pranger to teach and lead the workshop. Ben, a working artist was a great teacher, mentor and I felt lucky to have signed up for this workshop. Also, my class mates were all artists in their own right and I learned from all who attended.
The week before the class started Ben Pranger emailed all of us, detailing, describing, informing us of what the class would cover. He very clearly spelled out; what we would do in the workshop, describing the sculpture we would be creating, explained that the class would be open to all levels and that he would show how to use power tools and reassured us that we would "have a good amount of time to work (40 hours + open studio time) to learn and make awesome projects". Ben also attached a syllabus stating the; Description, Objectives, Materials and Tools, Project Description, and Project Schedule. Ben even provided a list of Recommended Texts and a link to a Pinterest board he had created and a YouTube site. It was all very thorough and professional. Needless to say when I received Ben's email I was psyched!
The workshop was held at Stockton Unversity in South Jersey. The facilities at Stockton were superb! The workshop was held in the Arts and Sciences Building, designed by renowned architect, Michael Graves. Other workshops; printmaking, painting, drawing, photography and poetry writing were held in the same building and I was able to visit the classes during the workshop. Also, the food was excellent and all those in my class ate lunch together. During this time we were able to talk and share experiences of our lives. It was very nice to get to know other artists.
Ben started the workshop by showing us examples of kinetic sculpture he had made. Our challenge would be to design and build a portable sound-making device, powered by a hand-cranked mechanism that would trigger different activities and sounds. In a sense, it would be an automaton, that would creatively demonstrate six simple machines; an inclined plane, a wedge, a screw, a lever, a wheel or axle, which included cranks, cams and gears and a pulley. The focus was to incorporate Art into STEM to move it to, STEAM.
I was looking forward to this creative experience, as next year I am introducing new courses in 3D art and also will be working with a 3D printer. I hoped this workshop would give me the experiences, ideas that I could draw on to create new and exciting experiences for my students. I recently, in the spring attended a one day workshop, combing Art and Technology, by aTi and I found that experience to be very exciting and eye opening. I was so excited by what I had discovered, I worked with an innovative device, the Makey Makey and I also worked with a 3D printer that when I shared my experiences with my principal, he immediately provided support to create a new class, incorporating the skills and knowledge I had gained at the aTi Art and Technology workshop.
If the spring workshop was any indication of what new experiences I would be exposed to, then I felt sure this week long workshop would be great! I was not to be disappointed as aTi brought in a sculptor, Ben Pranger to teach and lead the workshop. Ben, a working artist was a great teacher, mentor and I felt lucky to have signed up for this workshop. Also, my class mates were all artists in their own right and I learned from all who attended.
The week before the class started Ben Pranger emailed all of us, detailing, describing, informing us of what the class would cover. He very clearly spelled out; what we would do in the workshop, describing the sculpture we would be creating, explained that the class would be open to all levels and that he would show how to use power tools and reassured us that we would "have a good amount of time to work (40 hours + open studio time) to learn and make awesome projects". Ben also attached a syllabus stating the; Description, Objectives, Materials and Tools, Project Description, and Project Schedule. Ben even provided a list of Recommended Texts and a link to a Pinterest board he had created and a YouTube site. It was all very thorough and professional. Needless to say when I received Ben's email I was psyched!
The workshop was held at Stockton Unversity in South Jersey. The facilities at Stockton were superb! The workshop was held in the Arts and Sciences Building, designed by renowned architect, Michael Graves. Other workshops; printmaking, painting, drawing, photography and poetry writing were held in the same building and I was able to visit the classes during the workshop. Also, the food was excellent and all those in my class ate lunch together. During this time we were able to talk and share experiences of our lives. It was very nice to get to know other artists.
Ben started the workshop by showing us examples of kinetic sculpture he had made. Our challenge would be to design and build a portable sound-making device, powered by a hand-cranked mechanism that would trigger different activities and sounds. In a sense, it would be an automaton, that would creatively demonstrate six simple machines; an inclined plane, a wedge, a screw, a lever, a wheel or axle, which included cranks, cams and gears and a pulley. The focus was to incorporate Art into STEM to move it to, STEAM.
We Start in the studio
We gathered in the studio at Stockton University in Galloway, NJ. All of my classmates were art teachers, Jen a middle school art teacher in a Jersey shore town, Sara a high school art teacher in north central New Jersey, Tara an elementary art teacher in a town not to far from Stockton, myself Leonard a middle school art teacher in Springfield, NJ and the instructor Ben Pranger, a working artist who has worked extensively as a visiting artist, working with art teachers in public and private schools in New Jersey.
Ben shared experiences, how he has worked with art teachers as a visiting artist and told us that the work we were going to do is directly related, answers efforts in education to address S.T.E.A.M. incorporating Art in S.T.E.M., Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. He took a minute to spell out, so to speak our assignment on a board.
Ben shared experiences, how he has worked with art teachers as a visiting artist and told us that the work we were going to do is directly related, answers efforts in education to address S.T.E.A.M. incorporating Art in S.T.E.M., Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. He took a minute to spell out, so to speak our assignment on a board.
I was very impressed with my classmates, all were accomplished, knowledgeable artists in their own right. Although, Jen expressed a concern that I believe many had. Jen said that although she was an artist, came from a background in painting, she had never done anything like this before, building kinetic sculpture. But that wasn't holding her back, Jen was looking forward to getting the total experience from the workshop. All members felt the same, no one hesitated, or held back when it came to start the assignment. Although, we were to later find out that Sara was more that capable in building anything and I believe all would agree that Sara was an inspiration for all of us throughout the whole workshop experience.
We visited, through the use of a projector, the Pinterest page Ben had set up for us and we later visited his YouTube site. Ben brought several books, which he made available for us as visual resources. We marveled at the examples on both of the websites, and asked many questions. This session was a great primer for our start in making kinetic sculpture. Ben suggested I add the links of the the websites to my blog.
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/benpranger/rude-gold/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs1E25vTTlqqwGHYsS9ugRBgUpBx3tt1n
Next Ben did a demonstration, showing how to build the project he wanted us to construct. First he showed us a completed piece and operated it. It has a series of cams, cranks, and gears, levers, a pulley, all kinds of simple machines that we would use to animate our sculpture to make it a sound-making machine. It was a delight to see it in action and to hear the clinks and clanks it made as it animated.
We visited, through the use of a projector, the Pinterest page Ben had set up for us and we later visited his YouTube site. Ben brought several books, which he made available for us as visual resources. We marveled at the examples on both of the websites, and asked many questions. This session was a great primer for our start in making kinetic sculpture. Ben suggested I add the links of the the websites to my blog.
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/benpranger/rude-gold/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs1E25vTTlqqwGHYsS9ugRBgUpBx3tt1n
Next Ben did a demonstration, showing how to build the project he wanted us to construct. First he showed us a completed piece and operated it. It has a series of cams, cranks, and gears, levers, a pulley, all kinds of simple machines that we would use to animate our sculpture to make it a sound-making machine. It was a delight to see it in action and to hear the clinks and clanks it made as it animated.
Designing, drilling, buzzing, sawing
Ben gave us the signal to start and everyone jumped right in. Tara started sketching, Sara was drawing inspiration, visualizing a sculpture she would create with gas containers she had cut at school, Jen had already moved forward and was starting to drill. Everyone was at their table working, before we knew it Sara had constructed two gears and was seeing how they would it work. Wow! I think seeing Sara gave all of us insight, visually showed us the possibilities of what we could do.
Throughout it all Ben was always near, answering questions, giving feedback, observing. Ben was the model teacher, he only gave his feedback when asked, most of the time he quietly observed. I found this to be quite effective, he did not interfere with our creative process, made an effort, a practice to let us create, go down a path of our own direction. Sometimes when we asked a question he would hesitate to answer, waiting as if he was pondering his answer. Often, in the process we would answer our own question, determine our own direction. He then would give an affirmative nod, or quietly say, "yes". I kidded with my fellow classmates about Ben's process of teaching, and once when we were at lunch Ben said he wanted to let his students come to their own decision. He felt it was important for his students to learn on their own, learn through their own experience.
Throughout it all Ben was always near, answering questions, giving feedback, observing. Ben was the model teacher, he only gave his feedback when asked, most of the time he quietly observed. I found this to be quite effective, he did not interfere with our creative process, made an effort, a practice to let us create, go down a path of our own direction. Sometimes when we asked a question he would hesitate to answer, waiting as if he was pondering his answer. Often, in the process we would answer our own question, determine our own direction. He then would give an affirmative nod, or quietly say, "yes". I kidded with my fellow classmates about Ben's process of teaching, and once when we were at lunch Ben said he wanted to let his students come to their own decision. He felt it was important for his students to learn on their own, learn through their own experience.
At first I was disappointed, I felt if we were all to make the same sculpture Ben had made, how could it be an individual creative experience, work of art? However, I soon saw that his prototype was a starting point, and although we all started front the same place, all of our artworks when off in their own individual, creative direction.
I was inspired by the wire screws I had seen in Ben's sculptures. I liked the way they moved when rotated, they undulated, the moved in a serpentine wave that I found fascinating and intriguing.
I was inspired by the wire screws I had seen in Ben's sculptures. I liked the way they moved when rotated, they undulated, the moved in a serpentine wave that I found fascinating and intriguing.
I wanted to my sculpture to move in several different directions. I had spent time during the summer at the shore, I remembered the carousel my son use to ride when he was little and I was a young father. I wanted something that evoked the feeling of movement, the swaying of the rides, the sweeping movement of the carousel. I imagined a large turning wheel and the horizontal movement of gears. The movement, the undulating of the wire screw reminded of the waves of the ocean, near the boardwalk amusement park rides.
OBSTACLES and Set backs
I always tell my students, whenever I work on an artwork, it always seem to go wrong about one third of the way in. It never seems to go in the direction I had envisioned, what my initial idea was for the artwork. I tell my students this is where the creativity lies. I tell them not to start over, but to work through it, work through the road block. Often, you will come up with a solution, a direction you had never envisioned. This is where an artist discovers, where the artwork reveals itself. Where the artist becomes aware and why one creates. It is in the unknown where the artist operates, where the artist lives. This is why, I tell my art students art is such a power force in the artist's life.
Well, about day two into this process of making kinetic sculpture all of us were having problems. Jen had brought a Chinese paper accordion, she had attached it to her sculpture, but it was not working in a way that made noise. Friction was keeping it from operating. Jen was working, with suggestions from Ben to work out the kinks. Tara was stuck and Sara had made this fantastic machine but nothing was working. We were all working full days, 8-5 and we were all running into problems. At the end of the day Sara said she was going to call it a day and sleep on it. At one point she said she was going to take it apart, bring different wood and start over, but I think that was just frustration talking. Although, Jen kept running into roadblocks, she kept positive, just kept working through it. But by the end of the session we all were ready to quit for the day. Take a break and restart tomorrow.
Well, about day two into this process of making kinetic sculpture all of us were having problems. Jen had brought a Chinese paper accordion, she had attached it to her sculpture, but it was not working in a way that made noise. Friction was keeping it from operating. Jen was working, with suggestions from Ben to work out the kinks. Tara was stuck and Sara had made this fantastic machine but nothing was working. We were all working full days, 8-5 and we were all running into problems. At the end of the day Sara said she was going to call it a day and sleep on it. At one point she said she was going to take it apart, bring different wood and start over, but I think that was just frustration talking. Although, Jen kept running into roadblocks, she kept positive, just kept working through it. But by the end of the session we all were ready to quit for the day. Take a break and restart tomorrow.
It's a new day and the sun is shining
The next day all came into the workshop bright and smiling. I kidded Jen, saying I didn't think she was coming back. Sara came into class with renewed energy and dove right into work. Tara had made a turn and was starting to assemble her sculpture.
That day the magic happened. We all naturally started to collaborate. All became invested in each others artwork, we became interested, invested in the success of each other's work. We started offering solutions to problems, we referenced problems we had that were similar and offered solutions that had worked for us. We all encourage each other, and were generally impressed with the progress others were making. Something magical happened, we became one group, instead of a bunch of individuals. A group of Kinetic Sculpture Artists!
Even Jenifer Simon, Director at aTi came in to sample the magic!
That day the magic happened. We all naturally started to collaborate. All became invested in each others artwork, we became interested, invested in the success of each other's work. We started offering solutions to problems, we referenced problems we had that were similar and offered solutions that had worked for us. We all encourage each other, and were generally impressed with the progress others were making. Something magical happened, we became one group, instead of a bunch of individuals. A group of Kinetic Sculpture Artists!
Even Jenifer Simon, Director at aTi came in to sample the magic!
Getting the Ball rolling
When the magic happened we all started to take off. It was as if everyone was on fire! All had solved the problems they were having, we all cheered the success we were having and with this renewed energy everyone's sculpture was taking shape and they were moving on to the next step. All were adding additional components, additional ways to make noise to their machines. During break we all went to lunch together and talked about the impact of art and the sculpture we were making and how it would impact our students.
Ben spoke, during lunch of the importance of working with one's hands. He said with the whole focus on technology, students were losing the skill of working with one's hands, building, constructing. We all said with the demise of shop classes, this workshop sculpture making was the only opportunity students had to build these skills. We all spoke from our experiences in the classroom and how we could bring these opportunities to our students.
I also said that even though this was an important topic, another area of vital importance for students is our ability as art teachers to reach those who don't succeed in school. We all know of students who don't do well, do not relate to the academic process. They are not cut out for school and find little opportunity to achieve success in academics. I said these are lost kids, and I have reached several of these students in my art program. Each year I have several, some who are artists, others who are not, but one thing they have in common is that I can reach all through working, building with their hands. I have a ceramic program where students achieve success, sometimes this is only area in school where they are successful. Through this success students gain confidence, and often this has a global effect, impacting success for the student in their whole student life. On my first day back to school the high school art teacher, who has an incredible program resulting in scholarships awarded to many graduating seniors said students have told her that the only reason they come to school is to come to art class. The music teacher, who was listening in said when she was in high school the only reason she came to school was to participate in music classes. Today, the music teacher is an incredible, inspriational teacher who does the work of ten people. She leads both middle school and high school plays, teaches chorus in both schools and has a large and dynamic music program. She impacts hundreds of students in our district, who grow in confidence, self awareness and are inspired by her example. I believe the work we are doing in this kinetic sculpture classes will help us impact, give our students opportunities to achieve success.
When we returned to the studio everyone started working with renewed purpose and energy. I had finished a big first step in my sculpture and it looked beautiful!
Ben spoke, during lunch of the importance of working with one's hands. He said with the whole focus on technology, students were losing the skill of working with one's hands, building, constructing. We all said with the demise of shop classes, this workshop sculpture making was the only opportunity students had to build these skills. We all spoke from our experiences in the classroom and how we could bring these opportunities to our students.
I also said that even though this was an important topic, another area of vital importance for students is our ability as art teachers to reach those who don't succeed in school. We all know of students who don't do well, do not relate to the academic process. They are not cut out for school and find little opportunity to achieve success in academics. I said these are lost kids, and I have reached several of these students in my art program. Each year I have several, some who are artists, others who are not, but one thing they have in common is that I can reach all through working, building with their hands. I have a ceramic program where students achieve success, sometimes this is only area in school where they are successful. Through this success students gain confidence, and often this has a global effect, impacting success for the student in their whole student life. On my first day back to school the high school art teacher, who has an incredible program resulting in scholarships awarded to many graduating seniors said students have told her that the only reason they come to school is to come to art class. The music teacher, who was listening in said when she was in high school the only reason she came to school was to participate in music classes. Today, the music teacher is an incredible, inspriational teacher who does the work of ten people. She leads both middle school and high school plays, teaches chorus in both schools and has a large and dynamic music program. She impacts hundreds of students in our district, who grow in confidence, self awareness and are inspired by her example. I believe the work we are doing in this kinetic sculpture classes will help us impact, give our students opportunities to achieve success.
When we returned to the studio everyone started working with renewed purpose and energy. I had finished a big first step in my sculpture and it looked beautiful!
BUT! It didn't make noise! It was elegant, operated smoothly, was impressive to look at, but it DIDN'T MAKE NOISE! I was now stuck with a beautiful machine that didn't achieve the assignment. I didn't know what to do, everyone else was shifting into the upper gears, they all were moving forward and I was stuck in park!
The way I work is to look at the artwork and envision in my head what the possibilities are. I move things around, hold up objects imagining how they would work, before I assemble the pieces. I sat and looked at my sculpture for hours. I think I spent one whole day just looking at it. It was not until 4:30 on day three that an AHA struck me. I discussed my idea with Ben, and he seemed excited. That was all I needed, I started with vigor, renewing my focus about 5:00 and worked in the studio into the night. This is one reason why I wanted to take the workshop. The class description said that studios would be open to work into the night. I am a night owl and like to work at night. Sara also worked for a time at night, she was staying at in the university dorms so it was nice to have company.
The way I work is to look at the artwork and envision in my head what the possibilities are. I move things around, hold up objects imagining how they would work, before I assemble the pieces. I sat and looked at my sculpture for hours. I think I spent one whole day just looking at it. It was not until 4:30 on day three that an AHA struck me. I discussed my idea with Ben, and he seemed excited. That was all I needed, I started with vigor, renewing my focus about 5:00 and worked in the studio into the night. This is one reason why I wanted to take the workshop. The class description said that studios would be open to work into the night. I am a night owl and like to work at night. Sara also worked for a time at night, she was staying at in the university dorms so it was nice to have company.
Day four - coming into the home stretch
Everyone came to the studio on day four brimming with ideas, ready to dig in and put them into effect. Most of the sculptures had reached an almost completed form and now the artists were making them more complex. It was exciting to see what everyone was doing. On the first days everyone approached the tools with a little bit of apprehension. Now everyone was working with the tools as pros. Everyone one except Sara, who was already a pro and a master at working with all our tools and even knowledgeable with those we didn't have. Sara was our inspiration and we later started calling her Leonardo Da Vinci, which she admitted was one of her heroes.
I also had achieved a break through and my machine still operated with elegance, smoothly and now made a beautiful, (or at least I thought it was beautiful) sound. Instead of taking it apart and starting over I added a pulley. It used a large wheel, transferring action to a small wheel. This created movement that was very fast. I was also able to keep the large, "carousel" wheel, which affected the visual impact of the sculpture, an element that I felt was very important.
I also had achieved a break through and my machine still operated with elegance, smoothly and now made a beautiful, (or at least I thought it was beautiful) sound. Instead of taking it apart and starting over I added a pulley. It used a large wheel, transferring action to a small wheel. This created movement that was very fast. I was also able to keep the large, "carousel" wheel, which affected the visual impact of the sculpture, an element that I felt was very important.
Getting ready to display our work
We had one day left to finish up and we were getting ready for our show! At the end of the workshop all the artists would tour from workshop to workshop to see exhibits of the work. We all wanted to put our best foot forward, showing all of the great work we had accomplished, and show the fruits of our labor under the direction of our great instructor, Ben Pranger. We discussed how we would display the work, what kind of presentation we would make and in what order our work would be presented. We planned to arrange the tables so that the work would be presented in the middle of the studio. Since our machines made noise, we decided to approach the presentation as a concert, each kinetic sculpture taking a turn, much like a solo in a concert and then at the end all playing at once. We started in, working to complete our work. As we worked the sculptures moved to the final stage of completion.
Sara did a trail run on her sculpture and we were all excited to see it go! Luckily, I was there to shoot video of the event!
Sara did a trail run on her sculpture and we were all excited to see it go! Luckily, I was there to shoot video of the event!
It's Show Time!
Today, we show our work, and I shot video of our demonstration! Be sure you check them out below!!!
It's been a fantastic experience and I am eager to show my administrator my work and to start creating experiences for my students. We arranged all the work in the center of the room and waited for artists from other experiences to come see the work. Just as planned we "performed a concert" for our guests. At the end of the "performance" everyone clapped! It was great! This was a wonderful experience for me. I worked with other artists, is truly was a Professional Learning Community and this experience will enrich my teaching and art making, bringing experiences I could not bring on my own to my students!
It's been a fantastic experience and I am eager to show my administrator my work and to start creating experiences for my students. We arranged all the work in the center of the room and waited for artists from other experiences to come see the work. Just as planned we "performed a concert" for our guests. At the end of the "performance" everyone clapped! It was great! This was a wonderful experience for me. I worked with other artists, is truly was a Professional Learning Community and this experience will enrich my teaching and art making, bringing experiences I could not bring on my own to my students!