Lantern Making Workshops This Week!

It's time to build our lanterns! The earlier you participate the more elborate your
lantern will be! we will supply materials, instruction and snacks!
Hope to see you there!

April 11 mon - begin building framework for lanterns, instructional workshops for different age groups
April 12 tues - continue to build on larger lanterns, newcomers can create smaller versions.
April 13 weds - Finish exterior of large lanterns, newcomers can create a simple lantern
April 14 thurs - Details on large lanterns, newcomers can wither help with the finishing touches or make a   simple lantern.

April 19th tues  Lantern Parade at Ridgway Elementary School's art show 7pm
                        Art Show from 5-7  line up for parade 6 :45 outside the Eagle's Nest.
                        (don't forget your flashlights!!!!!!!!)

The Lantern Parade is Coming!

Lantern Parades have been celebrated throughout the world for 100's of years. The one thing they all have in common is coming together to remember and to celebrate.  In China, the Lantern Festival marks the end of the Chinese New Year, Festivities with the first full moon of the year in early March.  On this brightly lit night, thousands of lanterns line the streets, hung from homes and storefronts, setting the stage for the processions and colorful performances to end the festivities.  In Germany, townsfolk gather in the dead of winter to remember the light of summer.  In Ridgway, we will be celebrating our young artists at their annual art show by creating a parade of handmade lanterns with grade school children!

click flyer to enlarge

This is a hands-on progressive art project making paper lanterns from design to finish.  We need volunteers to keep our little artists focused so come sign up and be a part of the fun!

contact stephanie  for info

Tile Mural Recap

The Color Crew + Steve Woods of the Concrete Couch celebrating the completion of "Foothills, to Mountains to Desert, OH MY!!" installed at the Ridgway Elementary School library hallway in January 2011.

 What do you get when you combine 200 kids and an equal amount of kid made tiles and an empty cinderblock wall? A really cool multi media mural celebrating the ecosystems in our area!
3 years ago, we invited Steve Wood  aka the Concrete Couch, to facilitate a school wide public art mosaic project.
We started with raw lumps of clay, and with our on on going theme of "the valley we live in" for inspiration, guided the children from pre-K to 5th to create creatures and elements representative of our home. Older kids focused on the main event : A Mosaic Eagle for the entry. After a week of hands-on workshops and after school time and energy it all started to take shape.
Months passed, kilns broke, and the tiles ended up in a box waiting for perfect weather for installing.
Weather at this altitude is far from predictable so we came up with a plan: to install the tiles somewhere inside the school instead of outside under the big eagle.
The kids directed the evolution of the project, starting by grouping tiles on the carpet into "families" then ad libbing a storyline.  It is truly amazing to work with children, as they are so free to come up with ideas and open to working with others on a big idea. Their excitement and dedication is contagious!
They got to actually hammer holes in the school walls! (do not try this at home) We had to rough up the walls in order for the mortar to stick. There was construction involved, ladders and scaffolding, tools and buckets,
imagining and illustrating. They designed, troubleshooted, installed and finished their group vision which they voted to call "Foothill to Mountain to Desert OH MY!"
See our gallery link on the sidebar for more pics.

Nesxt up? LANTERN PARADE!

Color Crew Welcomes The Concrete Couch!

Remember this guy? It's Steve Wood from the Concrete Couch! He's coming back to Ridgway to facilitate an awesome mixed media mural outside the library.  He'll be here Jan 10 - 14 , working with kids in art class as well as scheduled after school workshops.  He always makes art an exciting adventure and is sure to make us all laugh alot.  I can't wait to see what evolves! Check back for pics.

Signs of Spring

Eventhough it looks like winter outside, signs of spring are popping up inside at Ridgway Elementary School thanks to the Art Club kids!

Eagle Mural

Eagle Mural, originally uploaded by milady productions.

Sneak preview of the 5th graders' eagle mural project painted with Ralph Lauren Paint. Looking good!

Calder's Circus!

The 4th graders did it again...created a magnificent circus out of old telephone wire, bottle caps and socks. Inpsired by the tinkering of the famous american sculptor Alexander Calder, the kids made magic out of junk. Calder, an engineer turned sculptor, said he "thought best in wire". He could work out the mechanics of his world famous large mobiles with little models fashioned out of wire. The kids had a blast letting their imaginations run wild, solve mechanical problems with experimenting and feel accomplished in sharing their creation as a group at our annual Expressions Art Extravaganza!