TEACHING ARTIST SESSION CATEGORIES
Art + appreciation = honor. Students will pay homage to Veterans by creating a landscape featuring the American flag. During this session, students will learn techniques used in landscape painting while gaining a deeper understanding of Veterans’ service to our country. The paintings can be displayed during your school’s Veteran’s Day celebration!
You don’t need a brush to do it, but it is an artform! Discover wycinanki, the Polish folk art of papercutting! Legend states that these creations were once used to decorate working and lower class homes in Eastern Europe, and now, this technique can give students new ways to create with minimal materials.
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a….PLATE? Whooping Cranes are incredible Louisiana birds that need to be protected! Students will learn about these amazing endangered birds, and make their own whooping cranes from paper plates. Let’s make conservation fun and creative!
They say he “painted with scissors!” French artist Henri Matisse created playful compositions known for his use of color and unique style, that he often achieved without paint. In this session, students will learn about Matisse, and discuss how the man who once painted humans and still lifes created an equally important body of work in the medium of cut paper collage late in life. This is not just a history lesson; students will also create their own cut paper collage inspired by this artist’s work.
It’s a starry, snowy night! Students will learn to fold and cut beautiful paper stars or snowflakes (depending on the season), glue them onto a background, and add sparkly glitter. The teaching artist will manage glitter to reduce the mess in your classroom!
As you may have experienced, younger students are increasingly struggling with scissor projects. This class aims to give them a good basis for this important coordination and creative skill! The teaching artist will give basic instructions in scissor usage and safety, introduce different kinds of cuts, and allow students to complete a simple cut-out project. This session is tailored to the skills of that age group. No one will come out of this looking like Edward Scissorhands, but instead, with better scissor coordination!
Maybe Jean-Michel Basquiat never met a dinosaur, but he had a dinosaur-sized vision and new take on the world! This session invites students to explore emotion, symbolism, and color while learning about a groundbreaking artist who transformed the art world! Students will create expressive dinosaur artworks using oil pastels and watercolor.
Join Crawfish and friends for a toe-tappin’, hand-clappin’ Zydeco adventure straight from the heart of Louisiana! In this interactive session, kids sing, dance, and laugh their way through fun YouTube hits like “Zydeco 123,” “Crawfish Shuffle,” “Don’t Eat My Fruit Loops,” and more. Each song brings a mix of rhythm, storytelling, and movement, while teaching children about Louisiana culture, Creole roots, and the joy of Zydeco music.
Ready for a needle drop? This session takes a deep dive into the beginnings of DJing and its contribution to culture. Musicality and music theory are discussed from a DJ’s point of view. Various Turntablism techniques that include mixing, scratching, beat juggling, and body tricks will be demonstrated live for the audience! This unique program can be scaled up or down to fit the space provided, so please communicate with the artist about tailoring your presentation to your needs.
The drum has always been used to communicate, and everyone has a story to tell! In this session, students will learn first that the most important thing in communication is really learning how to LISTEN! Once students know the importance of how to play together and be silent when others are playing their part, they will learn the three basic rhythms on the djembe. There will be lots of teamwork, but in this class, participants will also look at how a solo performer can tell a story and make it come to life.