Our focus for Art Day was Andy Goldsworthy, a British sculptor, artist and environmentalist. Goldsworthy creates Land or Earth Art, which is art that is made directly in the landscape, sculpting the land itself into earthworks, or making structures in the landscape using natural materials such as rocks or twigs. Haffydown started their art day by warming up their hands by using their pencils to follow a gem around their page to create natural patterns and shapes. We used these patterns to identify and outline interesting shapes. Haffydown used their sketching skills to create a gradient of colour within the shapes and focused on the tone and depth of their shading.
Haffydown saw a range of Goldsworthy’s art and took part in a reflective art conversation. We discussed how the art made us feel, the shapes we could see and tried to work out how the art had been made. Goldworthy’s sycamore leaf art, which made a tree look like it was glowing, was the firm favourite and it took a lot of convincing for Haffydown to believe that this effect was made from leaves alone! Haffydown sketched Goldsworthy’s other designs to get ideas for their own Land Art and used their observational skills to imagine how they could use their natural resources to make an unforgettable 3d sculpture. Luckily, we had collected lots of leaves, twigs, pine cones and stones the day before, because as the day went on, the rain from Storm Ciaran set in and forced us to stay inside.
Haffydown used fantastic imaginations and group working skills to create their sculptures. They took pictures of their art, just as Goldsworthy does, and then evaluated their designs. Haffydown learnt about Ephemeral Art – a term used for art that is not permanent and is destroyed or reclaimed by nature as part of the art journey. Haffydown exhibited their art for Peartree class, other teachers and our families at the end of the day. Haffydown were able to discuss and explain their art journey and ask pertinent questions of their audiences. Conversations such as “What do you think of my art work? How does it make you feel?” and “This is my ephemeral land art – I used stones in a spiral shape. Do you like it?” were over heard as Haffydown presented their designs.
