Thursday, January 29, 2009

Seventh Graders Celebrate Their Creations









Seventh graders at MS 223 in South Bronx really took it to heart when I challenged them to let their creativity shine through into their mask creations.



Inspired by the masks of Africa tribes as well as sculpture from Native Americans in Alaska created a tour de force in 3 dimensional masks. Made from found materials and paper clay, they depicted scarification and other design elements to enhance their masks. The artists celebrated with guests, family, teachers and visitors as they shared their inspiration for their achievement.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Karen Friedland Artwork Featured At Connecticut Muffin In Clinton Hill

My artwork is being featured at one the most popular cafes in Clinton Hill, Connecticut Muffin. Located at 423 Myrtle Avenue (corner of Clinton), the show, entitled "STOPS ALONG THE WAY", is comprised of paintings based on the artist's travels. The heat and colorful personality of Morocco is clear in the paintings, "Delivery," "Tourists" and "Waterseller". A large acrylic painting called "Waiting For A Fare" the Moroccan way - by camel - injects humor into the show. Other pieces were inspired by travels to Hawaii, Italy, Turkey and Ireland.

All work is for sale and has been specially priced to make it affordable to my neighbors, especially during these tight times. So, go in, have a cup of coffee and enjoy the artwork. If you are interested in buying, even if you can't afford it now, contact me (karenart99@yahoo.com). I'm sure we can work it out.

"GLAM" -- New Addition To "Magical Minis"


"GLAM" is the newest addition to my new series called "Magical Minis." This piece is a composite of ink, collage and painting. It's size is 8" high x 5" wide, elegantly framed to 14" x 11". Special Price $100.

It is executed on watercolor paper with additions of rice paper, acrylic, watercolor, ink & metallics. A trendy beauty, this young sophisticate knows that brains are even more beautiful than what you see on the outside. But a pop of color & some bling never hurt.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Sixth Grade Makes Grecian Artifacts






MS 223's students from 601 & 606 took an artistic journey into the past as they portrayed Greek vases called amphora, during art sessions with me in the Fall. Giving a contemporary twist to four different styles of the urns, students drew inspiration from this past summer's Olympic Games in Beijing. The Olympics began in Greece.

Students drew pictures of olympians playing sports and competing in the games, oon their vases. Some put them in arenas with spectators in the background. Then they added embellishments to their vases, many in the forms of Greek design. After all the design & color were added, students covered their entire piece in black paint. Scratching through the paint to magically reveal the colors was like making a find in an ancient archaeological dig.Guests came to our art showing and celebration, including several of the students' parents.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

HAPPY 2009!

Wishing you a creative new year!

Thanx to all of you for reading and commenting on this blog. It is an exciting endeavor and I hope to continue showing you my work and that of my students in the coming year. I will look forward to hearing from more of you in this coming year.

Eighth Grade Celebrations At MS 223


Eighth graders at MS 223 in the Bronx, celebrated the completion of their visual arts rotation with me as their Resident Teaching Artist. Students from 803. 804, 805 & 877 spent the Oct. - Dec. working on personal identity collages and learning how to draw. They made contour drawings and learned about portraiture as they drew their own self portraits. They learned about self portraits created by Vincent Van Gogh and Schmidt Rutluff and Picasso's portrait of Dora Marr. They worked as "modern artists" to create stylized and abstracted portraits of themselves. Their teachers, Ms. Flood, Mr. Thompson, Mr. Trust & Ms. Concepcion were highly supportive of all their efforts. During the celebrations of completion, visitors including principal, Mr. Gonzalez, as well as teachers & other school personnel, came to view the artwork and leave comments for the artists. All the students felt a great sense of accomplishment.