batik- removing the wax

drying the fabric

batik - waxing and dyeing

Batik tables are covered in newspaper first then paper off the roll from the paper cart. Batiks are pegged to drying lines strung underneath.There are two tables set up in the studio with two electric frying pans each. The wax is an even split of bees wax and parrafin melted to about 250 degrees fahrenheit.

This is the second waxing. Areas of color are preserved in wax before the next dye bath. The fabric darkens when the wax penetrates it properly. We use only primary colours, but a wide variety of colour combinations are possible. Analogous colour schemes are encouraged.


Complementary colours need to be painted on. THis design calls for green grass as well.

batik preparation

what students say

March 11, 2008

Dear Ewa,

I would like to thank you for educating me on how to do gesture drawings and learn about the shape of our bodies. I did not like art very much before and thought it was very hard but your talent and kindness inspired me to do more art and see how easy it was…The sculpture process was really cool. My favorite part about it was painting the sculpture. At that part we got to think outside the box about what role we wanted our sculpture to play. I really liked it when you showed your process and tricks to drawing because most artists just show their work. You taught me a lot and inspired me, so I hope to see you again,

Sincerely,
Liam


…My favorite part was you modeling. That really caught my eye.
- Emily

…doing contour drawings. it was fun and funny how they turned out.
- Lexi

…At first I thought art was really boring and not that exciting, but now I know that art is funner than I thought. What motivates you to go to other schools and share all your work with people?
- Spencer

…Thank you for teaching me that when you’re working on art it doesn’t have to be perfect. I enjoyed the time we worked together…Modeling, I always thought, was just about walking down a hallway and looking good. But I learned that modeling can be used in art in so many ways. And blind contour, who knew that drawing without looking could be so fun…
- Emily Z

…We had a wonderful time. People around the school such as the students and teachers are commenting on the beautiful sculptures you helped with. You are a great artist and you should never give it up. Thank you for walking through my classroom door!
- Kylie

…I loved to do the wire sculptures with you. My favorite subject in school has always been art but I don’t think I have ever had so much fun. You inspired me to do more art and take more time to be better at my art. I think the other kids will love to have you in their classroom.
- Christal

the figure in plaster

wax resist and dye

Designs were broken down to basic shapes, manufactured into cardboard blocks, and then printed with melted wax onto prewashed 100% cotton broadcloth. Each person brough their own shapes to the table to use. Inevitably they were shared.

The remaining egg dyes, (composed of vinegar and food coloring), were set up with paint brushes and we painted in our designs. Color theory played an important role in keeping the colors true in the jars.

Primary colors were painted directly on the fabric or mixed to secondaries by moving from lightest to darkest, in order to prevent contamination. The wax resist contained the dye and controlled the spread. Areas of color mixing become more deliberate: I want this to be green, so yellow goes down first, then blue...

wax resist

We recalled shapes and symbols from the various countries through which students had travelled in studies curriculum. Most recently, we'd been exploring the Ukraine, ( as well as my own stories of growing up Polish in Calgary), through the process of creating pysanky. The remembered patterns and symbols were broken down to fundamental shapes and then created in folded cardboard blocks.

The blocks were heated in bees wax and then stamped on the cloth. In this case, groups of 5 are decorating the tails of a kite. Each participant created cardboard shapes in response to their own cultural study. As a group, students decided on a repeating pattern of symbols along the length of their kite tail. There are 5 tails in total.

body ornamentation

The coil, if properly fulled, makes fabulous beads. We snipped them of in small pieces revealing their layered construction. I found some elastic cord for stringing.

The taperstry needle is sharp enough to penertrate the felt - sometimes with a little wiggling. And the elastic cord is easy to thread. We all sat together on the carpet and made these bracelets from our felted ropes.

soft sculpture

Our felted elements included a coil, a ball and a vessel. Using, scissors, needles, threads and some found objects, we transformed them into sculptures.

Tapestry needles and yarn were used for sewing the elements together. The vessel can be turned inside out to aide in attachement. The coil is being stitched to the inside of the vessel.

Various notions were brought in including feathers, buttons and fine needles and threads.

Participants felted two or three elements that they then were asked to put together in some way. Many created containers. Some created body ornaments. A few created characters.

figure continued

Rebar tie wire is black and greasy. Lengths were cut and each person had two pieces to work with to create an armature for the sculpture. We tried to keep in mind the proportions we'd noticed during our drawing sessions. The wire was shaped by hand - twisted and woven to the desired arrangement then attached to a base.

working with artifacts

In Grade 2, students study the Canadian North. We've been exploring artifacts from the Glenbow Museo Kit, "Inuit: A Living People". We discussed materials, construction and function as an introduction to the objects. Artifact handling was discussesd and each of us had an opportunity to have the object in our hands, look at it up close and imagine its purpose, feel its weight and design... Imagine the person that used it last...

Later, we drew the objects.

felting

the figure

wax resist

pysanky