Do you Gyotaku? My FIRST graders do!

Gyotaku (Japanese 魚拓, from gyo "fish" + taku "rubbing") is the traditional method of Japanese fish printing, dating from the mid-1800s. This form of nature printing may have been used by fishermen to record their catches, but has also become an artform on its own.

First graders are learning the art of GYOTAKU!  Check back again for their completed fish prints surrounded with warm/cool colors!

Fourth Grade Self-Portrait prints

Kindergarten Stamped Hearts

Kindergarten learned the "Heart" of symmetry and cut out their own hearts!  Yes, yes, they did!  I introduced Jim Dim's love of hearts, and his artwork and my students stamped until their hearts were content!

Second Grade Monoprints back in February, Jim Dine STYLE

Reductive Printmaking inspired by 2011 Pop Imagery according to FIFTH graders!

I am finally posting my 5th graders reductive prints inspired by 2011 Fifth Grade Pop Imagery!

Third Grade Jasper Johns inspired Collographs

First Grade Warm/Cool Fish Prints

First graders found out all about Japanese fish printing, "Gyotaku"......but we didn't use real fish! Long ago Japanese fishermen would paint a fish that they had caught with black ink and press a piece of newspaper on top of it to create a print, this process was used to record to size of their catch! We also learned all about warm and cool color schemes, fish habitats and even used found objects (corks) to print along the bottom of our artwork to create coral. What wonderful art learning was had by all!

Kindergartners just got finished creating African style mudcloths using neutral colors! The patterns were made by stamping with various found objects like: forks, tops, beads, sponges, marker tops, clothespins and so much more. After stamping, students cut their printed papers and glued on top of the other strips. Students wove their strips together to create a more interesting pattern! I hung them all together as a class to create a even larger piece of artwork for our school to view!

Fourth Grade Printmakers

Fourth Graders learned the technique of creating multiple prints. They were inspired by Andy Warhol's use of repetition. Each student created 4 editions of their self-portrait and used complementary color schemes to enhance their artwork.