Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Scriber Lake High School Mini-Course

Beauty of Water at Scriber Lake High School in the Classroomtranquility / splashy / opaque / beauty / refractive / wet / glowing / soaking / marveling / drenched / promiscuous / strange / pure / pristine / abrasive / bottomless / transparent / wonderful / polluted / creative / loud / majestic / devious / developing / abused / living / powerful / taken for granted / luminous / beautiful / interesting / priceless / refreshing / spiritual / quiet / persistent / sensational / temperamental / graceful / noisy / indifferent / immortal / wild / an influence / moral / lamella / water / art / reflection / vigorous / shiny / ever-lasting / repetitive / relaxing / calming / smooth / awesome / clear / flowing / chaos / fluxuating / questioning / peaceful

Beauty of Water at Scriber Lake High School at the BeachThese words graced the Beauty of Water Mini-Course at Scriber Lake (Alternative) High School, as they were provided by twenty participating 9th through 11th graders when asked to describe water from an artist's perspective. The workshop, which ran from April 19-23, drew inspiration from the learning series we offered through the Raja Ravi Varma College of Fine Arts in Kerala in 2008, curriculum available.

Teacher Mike Carey and I facilitated classroom time combined with visits to the lovely Marina Beach Park on the Puget Sound in downtown Edmonds, Washington. On Friday we were joined by the wonderful Leon, volunteer shown in the top image above. This 17-image slideshow provides a glimpse of our experiences.

Students produced slideshows using their own photos, sculptures, poetry, hand-held collections, and spontaneous practices including skipping stones, which became the launching point for digital videos.

We asked students, "If the water at the beach we visited this week could talk, what would it say to you?" Here are some of the responses:
  • It would tell me 'jump in!'
  • I appreciate your art sculpture you made for me, it was delicious.
  • I'm glad that people appreciate me, I wish more people could see the beauty in me and treat me respectfully.
  • Whaddup?
  • Thank you for visiting me today and studying my nature.
My favorite feedback? "Great!" "Fabulous!" and "Perfect!" It was!