Gary Jackson: Fire When Ready Pottery » summer camp

Summer Camp Already?!… Really???

Gary — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 17:00:08 +0000

Yes, it’s true.
It is still the first week of January and I’ve already submitted my Summer Camp
Schedule to the folks at Lillstreet Art Center. It’s going to be another great summer
of making art with the kids… but I REALLY can’t believe that we had to make our
schedules so early in the year. I had to sketch out my entire summer schedule,
making a lot of assumptions along the way, to incorporate art fairs, kiln firings,
bike rides, vacations, family obligations and everything else! So I’ve now “planned”
my entire summer around art fairs I haven’t even applied to
and bike ride dates that aren’t even published yet!

Out of the Kiln: Chess Camp

Gary — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 20:17:39 +0000

So the kids put in the work… the creativity… the fun…
They worked right up until the Friday end of camp. Painting underglaze colors.
So when the kids were gone, and camp was over, we sprayed all of their chess pieces
with a low-fire clear glaze. And then fired them to cone 06. All of the pieces just came
out of the kiln… all mixed up! So Brian and I worked today to separate them back
into their thematic sets… and pack them up for the kids top come back to pick them up!
And then… let the games begin!!! Chess games that is…

Bittersweet.

Gary — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 04:31:01 +0000

Today was my last day of Summer Camp.
Bittersweet.

But please don’t tell me that Summer is already over?!

A Sincere Thank You

Gary — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 04:28:45 +0000

So as to top off today’s final day of camp, one of my “favorite campers” from this week
brought in a special Thank You note she had made for me. It was very sincere,
very creative and so great to be thanked! So there’s a thoughtful note on the front
and well-drawn still life on the back. Thank You Maya!

My Summer Camp “Gallery Show Opening”

Gary — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 04:21:24 +0000

Today was the final day of “Gallery Artists: Learning From The Masters.”
And as my kids worked frantically to complete their paintings, we started to
put together our “gallery exhibit” and “opening reception.” The kids were quite
excited and our “show” and it all came together nicely. So while some of them were
putting their handmade clay frames on their paintings… others were still painting
“in the style” of Georges Seurat. Using Q-Tips for the dots instead of paint brushes!

As 3:00pm was quickly closing in on us, the kids were putting their finishing touches up,
making signage for their exhibit and setting up their refreshment station. And then soon
enough, the kids had a roomful of guests admiring their hard work & masterpieces!
Including “in the style of” paintings ala Georges Seurat, Piet Mondrian, Jackson Pollack
and Andy Warhol… just to name a few!

My little artists were all very excited by the turnout. We had a lot of kids from other
Lillstreet camps stop by, as well as some of the adult students. But I think they were most
proud when their family & friends came to view their works. They welcomed their guests
and showed them around the instant “gallery.” Everyone was so excited & pleased
with their masterpieces!

And hopefully, they all learned a little something along the way…
Whether about themselves, a new technique or a famous artist in history!

More Camp : Today & Tomorrow

Gary — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 03:26:10 +0000

Today.
The kids continued to work “in the style of” some more famous artists!
Including Georgia O’Keefe, Piet Mondrian, Georges Seurat… and practically
every kid’s favorite… Jackson Pollack. They even worked on memorizing some more
famous artists like Marc Chagall, Andy Warhol, M.C. Escher, Jasper Johns, Frank Stella,
Norman Rockwell, Peter Max, Wasily Kandinsky and even Theodor Seuss Geisel…
yep, Dr. Seuss!!!

Tomorrow.
We will be celebrating the end of their “Gallery Artists” week of summer camp
with a “gallery-style” show & reception to highlight their new masterpieces.
Today they decided to call their show “ARTAPALOOZA” and made show posters!
If you are available tomorrow afternoon, we would LOVE to have you stop by
Lillstreet at 3:00pm to share in the festivities on the third floor in Painting Room C.

Inspiring New Artists at Summer Camp

Gary — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 23:07:17 +0000

Back at summer camp, the kids are focusing on some of the master artists they saw
during their field trip to the Art Institute on Tuesday. I created a beautiful still life
for the kids to work from. We first had them draw the still life in their own style.

Then, we had a great discussion about some famous artists. There were ten new names that
we discussed and the kids started memorizing some good art history. All the while thinking
it was just fun… and not an art history class! We covered classic masters like Pablo Picasso,
Claude Monet, Vincent Van Gogh, Georges Seurat, Salvador Dali, Paul Gauguin… as well as
more contemporaries like Frida Kahlo, Georgia O’Keefe, Piet Mondrian & Roy Lichtenstein.

After sharing some art history & anecdotes, the kids switched to their first painting
“in the style of” Georgia O’Keefe. So we discussed some of the identifiable characteristics
of an O’Keefe painting… and then they started off sketching & painting their own version.

More artists… and more painting tomorrow…

Summer Camp at the Art Institute

Gary — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 02:45:27 +0000

So it’s another week of Summer Camp (my last for this summer)…
and this time it’s a week all based on famous artists & famous paintings!
Throughout the week, the kids will all be making their art “in the style of”
famous artists. It’s going to be a crash course in art history… they’re going to learn
a lot this week, and they’ll never see it coming!!!

Today we all took a field trip to the Art Institute downtown… after too many Mr. Pibbs!!!
So my busload went downtown, spent some time in Millennium Park, visited The Bean,
and ate lunch in the park. The into the museum to expose the kids to a LOT of art!!!
Many of them were surprised when they finally realized that everything in the museum
was “real” and not a fake… as well as how old many of the pieces are!

Thank You Mr. Pibb

Gary — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 01:39:16 +0000

Just a quick “thank you” to the broken Coca-Cola machine just outside the room
where I’m teaching my summer camp this week.

And I would just like to “thank” them for giving us a broken machine!
Let’s just say the kids love it more than I… as every time they buy a can of Pibb Xtra
(yes, that’s extra sugar & extra caffeine) the machine gives them TWO cans!!!
Yes, two cans for the price of one!!!

Just what the summer camp kids need… more caffeine & more sugar!!!
Especially when we were headed off to the Art Institute for the day!

Check… Check Mate… And Done.

Gary — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 03:33:50 +0000

So there it is… another week of camp done. Check… and check mate!
And the kids were all working feverishly to finish their sets by the end of camp!
Plus, I brought in some music “to calm the savage beasts” and give us all a little
more vocal entertainment throughout the day. Especially Andrew who not only sang
along with a lot of the songs… but also decided to “bust a move” frequently too!

So they tackled the day head-on with a lot of work on the docket. They had pretty much
finished building all of their pieces. A few more here & there, but generally finished.
We pulled out the underglazes and they started painting… all the while being very careful
not to break of their fragile greenware pieces. Okay… so we had a couple mishaps,
but nothing that couldn’t be rebuilt in our spare time.

So they kept painting their pieces with colorful underglazes all day. Which really brings
them all to life. It’s always so much fun to see their “vision” come together!

By the end of camp today, every camper had completed their entire Chess Set.
They were very excited, as was I… always so impressive that they can finish a project
this large in just five days! Plus, we finished with time to spare… so we all shared in a
huge ice cream social with potluck toppings brought in by the kids! I always love filling
the kids with sugar at the end of the day and sending them home all jacked-up
to Mom & Dad!!!

Thank you again to all of my campers for making this another successful week.
They were all so energetic & entertaining. I laughed with them all week long.