It is Results Day!
How did your characters turn out this month? Did you have fun or did you get stuck? One shape was especially tough for me to crack (I’ll share why a bit later)!
For now, let’s talk about shape inspiration! Since February is Black History Month, I really wanted to learn about a person we don’t hear about often. If I could discover a place or piece of artwork created by a Black artist new to me, that means YOU could learn about them too!
This month’s inspiration comes from the work of Charles McGee. Charles was a devoted artist who lived in Detroit for more than 80 years. His body of work includes dynamic murals and abstract sculptures you can find sprinkled throughout Detroit. Not only did Charles make art, he supported other Black artists too (he opened his own gallery to showcase their work in 1970). The more and more I learned about him, the more his committment to being an artist resonated with me. Here are 3 facts that struck me…
He did not go to school until he was 10 years old.
He opened the Charles McGee Art School and gave free lessons to students.
He valued community: “The community aspect of it (art) drives my work. If you look at my imagery, it talks about connectivity, how all of these elements come together.”
You can learn more about Charles McGee here (he’s a recipient of the Kresge Foundation Eminent Artist Award too!). And if you live in Michigan you can find his work at the DIA, Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History and Beaumont Hospital (to name just a few!).
Once I discovered Charles McGee, I made a list of places his sculptures and murals reside today. We used a Sunday afternoon to track down as much as possible. It felt like we were on a scavenger hunt and I loved it! If your family is craving an art adventure, I recommend curating your own field trip! You could even search for the artwork featured below. Can you spot Activity #141’s shapes?
TOP LEFT: “United We Stand,” TOP RIGHT: “Unity”, BOTTOM LEFT: untitled mural at 234 W. Larned Street, BOTTOM RIGHT, “Progression” Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak
On to characters! Here is a Before and After peek at my activity sheet…
I changed up my approach this month and used a…brush pen!
My theme (being February) was finding or spreading…love. Let’s take a closer look!
Shape 1…
Shape 2 was a challenge! Was it tough for you too? I had to add some parts for my character to make sense. Can you come up with a name for this mysterious creature?
Shape 3…
and Shape 4! What do you think this furry, winged creature is planting?
Thanks for checking out today’s post! I hope you enjoyed creating characters with your child or on your own! A new CREATE A CHARACTER Activity sheet will be available to download Monday, March 6th.
See you then!