Do you guys know Kimmy Cantrell?
No? Well let me introduce you! He’s a self taught artist from Atlanta, Georgia. He makes amazing clay masks/faces.
Click HERE to visit his website and check out a short video on Kimmy HERE.
One of the coolest things about Cantrell is that he had no formal art training. He took ceramics in high school and went back to it later in life. I think it’s great for young artists to see that it’s not training that makes you an artist- it’s the desire to be an artist. I say if you say you’re an artist- your an artist. No one can disagree!
Although his masks are made of clay, my sixth graders used his work as inspiration for their own masks made with cardboard.
We watched the video and looked at some of his work and then they worked in groups to try to list some similarities they saw in all of his work. They were also encouraged to reflect and discuss if his work reminded them of anything they have seen before.
They used this worksheet to brainstorm:
We had some great discussions that led to the review of important art terms, artists and cultures.
We talked about RELIEF SCULPTURES, Picasso and Cubism, Tribal Masks, and asymmetry.
Next, it was time to take all we saw and discussed and get those creative juices a flowin.’
Time to start developing some rough drafts! I always make my kiddos do more than one rough draft just to stretch that creativity even further. Even if my artists argue “but I love my first one, that’s the one I want to make,” I STILL make them sketch a second one. A lot of times, they will go back to the first one, but just as often, they end up liking the second one even more! And even though I want to, I NEVER say “I TOLD YOU SO” when that happens.
Just kidding.
Of course I say it.
Every time.
When they settled on a draft to use as a starting point, it was time to start cutting and gluing the cardboard. They were encouraged to try to build up some layers on their sculptures and experimented with different ways to do that. Some kiddos had trouble cutting the cardboard but they were reminded to try to cut along the “grain” and to cut small sections at a time. I made some tougher cuts with my exacto blade when necessary.
If you want to try this lesson click here for the link to the lesson plan and worksheets. Click here to visit my entire TpT store!
If you give this lesson a try tag me on instagram @artwithmrsfee, I’d love to check them out!
artwithmrsfee 