Category: Art Projects

Interactive Portrait Project

December 16, 2013February 8, 2014 Melissa Schilling Art Projects, short story series, Visual Storytelling

We’re always on the look-out for collaborative art projects perfect for kids and adults.
Inspired by Mica Angela Hendricks over at Distractify we give you: The Haiti Portrait Exchange!

Simply mail us an 8.5X11 drawing of a face with room for a body, background scenery and other imaginations and we’ll take it down to Haiti. One of our art students will finish your drawing. We’ll post the results here on the Project HOPE Art blog.

Like us on Facebook to stay connected with updates from The Haiti Portrait Exchange!

Mail to: 2601 Adeline Street, Suite 101A Project HOPE Art, Oakland CA 94607
Deadline: October 15, 2014
Portraits will travel to Haiti in November of 2014. Watch for results in 2015!

Folk Pumpkins

October 25, 2013October 25, 2013 Melissa Schilling Art Projects 1 Comment

We love practicing art projects with local kids using discarded materials. In this case, we made folk art pumpkins from newspaper, scrap paper and leftover yarn & twine. Imaginations unite!

The kids and I had a frank discussion about all the different shapes, sizes, colors, textures and types of pumpkins. It was really sweet for everyone to come to the realization that there is not a perfect pumpkin and each and every different pumpkin had its endearing qualities.

Then we stuck our hands wrist deep in glue and shaped our own special folk pumpkins from newspaper. Once they were dry we used yarn, raffia, crepe & tissue paper to create multi-textured finishes.

I super love getting messy with these little loves.
Be sure to post on our facebook page, photos of your own homemade folk pumpkins!

…

It’s not too late to do this at home!
You will need:
Tissue paper or paper towels
Scissors
Non-toxic glue
Paint brush (to spread glue on the paper and help keep your hands clean too)

Directions:
1. Start by crinkling newspaper into a ball to create your desired pumpkin size and shape.
2. Crinkle newspaper to create a stem shape.
3. With the paint brush, spread glue around the top of the pumpkin and glue the stem part to your pumpkin figure.

Tip: Experiment with paints and glitter to create a more colorful or festive look to your pumpkin. You might try painting the stem or creating patterns and mixing colors.

Voodoo Tire Necklace Class

August 30, 2013September 3, 2013 Art Projects, Haitian Culture/Language, Visual Storytelling

It was very warm in the Oaktown Gallery housed at American Steel this last Saturday (August 17). The sun shone on giant metal sculptures outside. And the clanging of tolls echoed around the cavernous room inside the gallery.

We held a class with 12 people, in order to show them how to turn trash into a work of art. We took car tires that people had discarded and we demonstrated how to repurpose them.

First everyone made a drawing on paper.
Next, we traced their drawings onto the rubber. Cutting the drawings out from the rubber was laborious but triumphant. We used hammers, scalpels, box cutters and heavy duty scissors.
Once freed from the rubber, each design was attached to string and hung around the students neck.

I was very happy with all of you for responding to this invitation to learn Haitian street art. I want to see all of you for another class next year.

Up to the HIGHEST Heights

August 26, 2013August 26, 2013 Melissa Schilling Art Projects

A few of our visiting artists from Haiti flew kites for their first time this weekend in the Berkeley Marina. It was especially windy and the wind carried everyone’s shrieks of laughter.

Today we flew sophisticated kites from REI.
In the metaphorical tomorrow we just might be able to create our own kites from trash and fly them in Port au Prince. In fact there is information about garbage bag kites here.
Innovation is the name of the game. If you have second hand upcycled kite ideas, please let us know about them. And you can always apply for our Visiting Artist Program.

Can Race

July 18, 2013July 18, 2013 Art Projects, Uncategorized

Can Race

1:Pou reyalize yon timachin avèk meteryèl resikle, men ki tip de materiel nou itilize nan atis Rezistans.

Materyèl sa yo nou itilize pou nou kapab fe ti machine yo gen anpil ladan yo ke nou jwenn nan la rue, e genyen ladan yo tou se achte nou achte yo. Mamit nou itilize yo se penti pou douko ki te genyen ladan yo, apre yo fin pran penti ki nan mamit yo, yo jete yo nan la rue epi nou pran yo pou nou kapab fe ti machine yo.

Premye travay nou fe nan mamit lan, nou retire papye ki kouvwi mamit la pou nou kapab jwenn plis fasilite pou nou fe tout sa nou genyen pou nou fe nan nan mamit la.

mamit lan. apre sa nap ouvwe mamit lan, nap bap li ak yon mato pou li kapab vin plat tankou yon fèy tol.

Pati sa se lè mou fin byen plati matit la, kounye a nou pwal trase model machin nou vle fè a, e le ou vin trase model machin nan wap pran yon sizo pou kapab koupe li.

Nan pati foto sa yo nou pwal moutre ou kijan pou fe do machin nan! Le ou fin trase de bo machin nan, kounye a wap pran yon lot fey tol pou kapab trase do machine, ou dwe trase vit devan machin nan ak vit deye machine nan. Le ou fin trase li wap koupe pati ou trase yo pou kapab resoti pati vit la.

le ou fin retire pati vit yo, ou dwe bay tol la fom model machin ke ou te trase a.

apre ou fin trase de bo machin nan, avek do machin nan. Ou pral kole yo ansanm pou kapab kadre machine nan.

le ou fin kadre machine nan, kounye a ou gen pou travay anba machine nan, le mwen di anba machine nan mwen vle pale de reso ak kawotyou machine nan.

Pou kapab fe reso machine nou itilize yon ti fe plat, ti fe plat sa se avek li yo konn klanmse bwat pèpè yo.

1: wap koupe fe a ak yon mezi ki pa dwe depase machine nan

2: apre wap kloure li nan moso blanch lan

3: nou dwe itilize fe sèso ou byen fil alegati ki di pou kapab pase nan reso a pou ka genbe kawotyou yo.