Earth Art Projects

It seems so appropriate to write about the Squam Earth Art class I taught now that it's fall. The weather changing day to day and the all vibrant colors. It's like nature's big hurrah. Below is the worksheet I handed out to begin the class. It pretty much sums up the idea of the class and the objectives for that day.

The class projects that came out of this idea were brilliant. Every one of them was just so stunning and well thought out. It was a wonderful day. Not everyone has sent me info on their projects, but I'd like to share with you those who have, so you can swoon over them too. :) Here we go:

* * * * * Earth Art, Project 1 - Jennifer's "Wings"

Jennifer chose "Wings" as her word to meditate on for the day. Wings, for her, represented a way to start to fly... take off... soar into the art she wanted to make a part of her life. She started off using green leaves and tied them from a tree branch to give them height and air. She created a bright red heart in the middle to represent the core. I love that she chose the color red because it's the passionate color. Bold and furious. And I think it fit in nicely with her concept. Small words were written on each of the green leaves to remind her of what she was trying to accomplish.

I loved this piece and thought it was a brilliant success!

Check out Jennifer's blog here and more flickr pics of her project here.

* * * * * Earth Art, Project 2 - Laurie's "Kindness"

Laurie's word was "Kindness" and I think what she came up with for her concept is so appropriate. First she found a small protected area in the woods... surrounded by sparkly rock (quartz?). And from that safe place she built her sculpture. She found a leaf that was in the shape of a heart as the center. And then had other elements radiating out of it... green leaves, pine needles in green and brown, yellow leaves. It felt perfect because kindness starts with yourself. Feeling protected and mama-beared by your own self. Then radiating that kindness out to others. Isn't it great?

Find more of Laurie's stuff here and here.

* * * * * Earth Art, Project 3 - Kirsten's "Space"

Kirsten's word of the day (and beyond) was "Space" and what she came up with was SO powerful. After thinking of her word, Kirsten proceeded to sit herself down smack dab in the middle of a giant field all by herself. She laid out a blanket and sat with the sun almost all day -- journaling, napping, reading. She gave herself the space she desperately needed. Then in the afternoon she asked me to help her create an outline of a bird in sticks in the middle of the field where she'd been lying, which she filled in with flowers later. The bird was huge and gorgeous, with a whole field of space around it. She shared with us this quote, which inspired her:

"She decided to free herself, dance into the wind, create a new language. And birds fluttered around her, writing "yes" in the sky." ~Monique Duval

Brilliant, yes? Check out Kirsten's blog here. (Kirsten later told me that she was indeed creating more space in her life now that she was back home. I am overjoyed for her!)

* * * * * Earth Art, Project  - Christine's "Light"

Christine chose the word "Light" because she needed to lighten her load and lighten up. She started off gathering a bunch of pretty things from the woods and soon found herself overwhelmed, wanting to create something spectacular out of all of it.... which totally defeated the concept of her word! So she lightened it up and did something simple (and it turned out spectacular anyway!) She spelled out the word "light" on a fallen load, with the color ranging from dark to bright white. I love how simple and stark it is. It really embodied the concept.

Christine wrote a post about her experience here. And you can check out the rest of her blog here.

* * * * * Earth Art, Project 5 - Amanda's "Acceptance"

Amanda's sculpture was one of my favorites visually. I just have a thing for suspended things and circles (no clue why). But Amanda's piece was about how much she has going on at once... different kinds of art and design... mediums and project... along with life stuff like fun baking and friends and knitting groups. The girl does a lot. (And she's good at it all... don't you hate her? hee hee). And her piece was about having all that suspended in the air, juggling it all, and accepting that that is how her life is. Not forcing herself to give any of it up because that's what she's hearing people tell her she should do. Lovely!

Go see more of Amanda's awesomeness here and her blog here.

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Earth Art, Project 6 - Nina's "Centered"

Nina is pregnant with baby #3 (oh my! -- I am struggling with baby #1) and has a ton going on as well with two little beans, one just starting school. So she also wanted to do something simple... a piece to remind her to be centered in herself while she deals with the beautiful chaos that kids and life and art hand her. And oh man, her installation was a big hit. Everyone really resonated with her word and wanted to take turns sitting in the circle to center themselves. :) Love that!

Check out Nina's blog here and her new etsy store here.

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Ok, I think that's everyone who emailed me or sent me info on their projects. (If you did my Earth Art class and want to be included in this post, send me your stuff and I'll add it!) I hope you enjoyed reading about them as much as we enjoyed the day making them! Writing this post makes me want to get outside and do another project asap. :)