Art and Nature go Hand in Hand

Did you notice that the word “nature” has the letters A and R and T in it? ART! 

(This post is meant to be.)

Earlier this school year my students created two nature-inspired art projects that I want to share on my blog. I’m showing the projects now for two reasons. 1) We all need a little boost and some entertainment while we wait out the quarantine. 2) The principal asked me to hold all the art we made this year for our art show this spring. We aren’t able to have a show so I am sorting art to return to the kids (eventually), and I’m getting to revisit the amazing art my students created.

The first project was done by fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh graders last September. They created fall trees, using pieces of Origami paper. I asked them to cut pieces of Origami paper because I thought the trees would look beautiful if they had a patchwork of various patterns. It is a little strange to show this fall-themed project in spring, but that’s okay. (And it is fall in the southern hemisphere, so…) Plus, it’s always fun to see what kids make.

The second project is one that all my students did, from Kindergarteners up through eighth graders. We learned about the famous Japanese artist, Katsushika Hokusai. If you are not familiar with that name, I’m almost certain that you have seen his best-known piece of art, The Great Wave (1831). The three boats in this woodcut print symbolized both danger and opportunity. Japan was facing change in 1831, when Hokusai created his print, because the country was about to end more than two hundred years of political isolation from the rest of the world. 

My youngest students colored in a simple wave shape that I drew for them. The older students created their own waves, and added lots of detail. Some students copied the original print almost exactly (and I was amazed at how close they were to the original). Many students made stylized waves. The assignment was never about copying the original. Our waves were based on the overall shape and color scheme of Hokusai’s work, but I think it’s too much pressure to expect an exact copy. Plus, I want the kids have the freedom to imagine their own wave.

When I first started this blog post, I was not intentionally pairing Origami trees with Hokusai’s wave. These were two projects I had not yet shared in my blog, and I wanted to show the kids’ work. The fact that these projects share a Japanese aspect was a happy coincidence, so I will sign off using two of the few words I know in Japanese.

Arigato (thank you) for reading.

Sayonara! (bye)