Kusama Pumpkins Sculptures

Ok, official favorite project of the year so far! And a super simple process! 

We used Neon Model Magic clay by Crayola. Each student got a piece that was about a handful. We made a "pancake" shape first, then wrapped that around a ball of tissue to give it some extra "fluff" while using less clay. Then we added spots of a different color.

After the pumpkins were made, we painted a oil pastel and watercolor resist background. We folded and cut the paper to create a 3D room. Such a great effect, love it! 

Textured Hearts

One of my favorite new lessons this year comes from kindergarten! As we explore the elements & principles of art, we created textured hearts on textured paper. I don't have many in-progress pictures of this; kindergarten moves faster than my camera.

We started by using oil pastels on texture sheets to create a textured piece of paper. Then we used Crayola Model Magic to create the hearts. First we pressed them into the texture sheets, then used heart-shaped cookie cutters (yes, this is a literal "cookie cutter" lesson) to cut out the hearts. So this could be adapted to any shape, depends on what kind of cookie cutters you have. The kids were amazed and the results are gorgeous. Can't wait to do these again next year. 

And a bonus surprise: I was going to glue these to their papers when they dried, so I had the kids set their hearts on their papers to keep them together. The hearts stuck to the papers, so I didn't have to glue them! :D 

3D Kusama Rooms

4th grade did an amazing job with these rooms! Im often worried about open-ended projects like this, but they nailed it! We started by looking at images and videos of Kusama's Infinity Rooms and Obliteration Room. We sketched our ideas first, then constructed a room.

Students were given colored dot stickers, mirror boards, and Crayola Model Magic clay for their 3D items such as pumpkins and tentacles. 

Starry Night meets Kusama!

Love how original each room is, while staying true to Kusama's style!