KEYWORDS

Your students will learn to “draw” without pen, crayon or pencil! Using just scissors, glue and torn paper, they will create expressive collages, murals, banners or assemblages. Sylvia establishes a rich and stimulating environment, infusing elements of art history, literature, current events and mathematics into the exploration of positive and negative space, color theory and composition. Students can take their individual works home or combine them into a large-scale work suitable for permanent installation in the school.

Pick your own subject matter or select one of the following theme-based options:

Animals at the Zoo

Follow up a field trip to the zoo with a mural guaranteed to reinforce what students learned about the habits and habitats of the animals they observed. Collage materials match the subject matter with choices ranging from construction paper to fine art papers to feathers, recycled fabric scraps, magazines and newspapers.

Dream Pillows

We all have dreams, daydreams, and wishes. Students will create pillows in which to put them. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s stirring and powerful “I Have a Dream” speech and the stunning collage techniques of Romare Bearden will inspire students to create a vivid visual display of paper pillows stuffed with their individual hopes and aspirations.

Animal Cutouts

Students recreate the howler monkeys, boa constrictors and toucans Sylvia encountered when she lived in a tree house in Costa Rica! She transforms the classroom into a tropical rainforest with storytelling, music and sound effects to set the mood and get everyone’s creative juices flowing.

Portraits are People, Too!

Using pastels, scissors, newspaper, aluminum foil, construction paper and glue, students will create portraits of literary and historical giants from Shel Silverstein to Benjamin Franklin. Including quotations and excerpts of their subjects’ works reveals the personalities behind the faces.

When Picasso Met Matisse

World War II Paris and the Spanish Civil War form the backdrop for an examination of the distinct styles of two of the most important figures in 20th century modern art: Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso. Students’ compositions will reflect their understanding of Matisse’s cutouts and Picasso’s impeccable line. Discussions and critiques make this a complete learning experience.

Sylvia Cross

Sylvia Cross feels as passionate about teaching as she does about writing and painting and has been doing so for 50 years.  It is a collaborative process between the student and herself. 

She has won awards at IMAX.Atlanta Arts Festival, produced and performed multi media events at 7 Stages, Center for Puppetry Arts, and Knitting Factory.

She has worked at The Children's School and has owned Sylvia's Atomic Cafe, Sylvia's Art of this Century, and currently Sycamore Place Gallery & Studios. She has lived and painted in Costa Rica, Martinique, and Verona, Italy.