Dallas Museum of Art Technology Teacher Workshop

Janine Antoni Lick and Lather 1993 (made of chocolate and soap)

I'm attending a great workshop at the DMA designed to help teachers incorporate technology into the classroom. This workshop is focused on blogging. Blogging is so much fun! I LOVE using it in the classroom and this year I have used it more than I ever have before.

As part of this workshop, we have been exploring the Center for Creative Connections. The museum changes the focus of materials regularly and the space allows visitors to have a more tactile experience with materials that artworks are made from. There is lots of stuff to touch!

The label for this piece says: "Through intimate acts and her choice of materials that will eventually disappear, the artist confronts her relationship with herself." There is a lot to consider here: the body is constantly changing through cellular replacement and the regeneration of organs and systems; we change every single minute of every single day; these materials are common and precious (have you ever NEEDED soap or chocolate and they weren't available at that moment?); both materials are plastic (meaning they are pliable and formable) and can be either inexpensive or expensive; the sculpture uses an additive process (adding the material to create the artwork) and a subtractive process (taking material away to change the artwork); how do we use additive and subtractive processes in our lives; how successful are we in the relationships we have with ourselves? Consider these ideas in regards to your own relationship with yourself - are you:
Nurturing
Expanding
Controlling
Protecting
Questioning

What ideas or questions are generated for you?

One good food art post deserves another

Garden Bento by Sakurako Kitsa

So the Charm City Cakes post was so fun and yummy looking, I couldn't resist finding another fun food post. Really - food art is so groovy! The color, texture and edibility are all so irresistible! I'm posting another blog post that collects different food compositions. Why don't you try to make a creation of your own this coming weekend!

The Art of the Cake

Duff Goldman, Baker/Owner of Charm City Cakes

Ahhhh, the art of food. Lately I've been watching the Food Network and am truly amazed at the creations that very talented people create in the form of dessert. The Ace of Cakes is especially fun and amazing. They create really amazing cakes for all events - weddings, anniversaries, parties, celebrations for people of all ages, young and old. Their Starship Enterprise cake, an exact replica of the ship, is astounding. The post headline is a link to their website.

Their show features a few cakes in each episode and shows each baker in the process of building their masterpiece. There are many things they have to take into consideration as they created their sculptured confections (and a lot of problem solving!): how will they support different parts to keep the entire cake intact, what colors are appropriate, how do they scale the designs to be appropriate to the size of the cake, and what details will enhance the design? These cakes are truly works of art but meant to be totally consumed! In the end, each cake needs to be not only beautiful but delicious as well! Check out this link for their show on the Food Network and see some videos about their cakes.

Virtual tour of Sistine Chapel - Smarthistory

AP Art History students - please use this post to comment on the videos you watched from Smarthistory's website that are the virtual tours of the Sistine Chapel ceiling and the wall of The Last Judgment. Here is the link to the Sistine Chapel Ceiling and for The Last Judgment. Can't wait to hear what you have to say!!

Artist of the Week - Barry B. Doyle

Flamingo at Rest - Image copyright © 2007 by Barry B. Doyle, used with permission.

One of our TAG parents, Barry Doyle, is quite the artist and I asked him if I could include his work in my blog. His son Colin ('05) and Tory ('06) both attended TAG and are also very artistic!

I specifically wanted to feature his photography for my AP Studio Art students. Several are going to use photography for their concentrations this semester. I recommend that my students look at the work of other artists in order to inform their own visual vocabulary. Digital cameras have made taking pictures so exciting! You can instantly see what image you have captured, download it quickly into your computer, move it about easily or modify it with the help of Photoshop. The key element in becoming a great photographer is developing a keen eye and learning how to frame the image for a striking composition. Check out his flickr photostream to see more of his work.

Barry has a book coming out featuring his photographs of Dallas - "Dallas Iconography" will be available to purchase from Amazon soon. Here's what the Dallas Visitor's Bureau says about his upcoming publication: " Just what we've needed and a fitting tribute to our beautiful city. The versatile Dallas Iconography serves as a useful guide for visitors, a valued commemorative gift and the perfect souvenir. And besides its utilitarian function, this impressive work of fine art and design makes an elegant coffee table book. --Jay Burress, VP Sales & Marketing, Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau". I'm excited to see his book - his work is evident that talented and gifted students spring from talented and gifted parents! Kudos, Barry!!