The Kindness Project

This year for Valentine's Day I thought I'd get my Picassos into a piece that was a bit more meaningful. They each had to find a quote about kindness and bring it to class or come up with one on their own! We then created 1/2 face portraits of them holding up a sign with their words written on it. Of course they all gawked that they couldn't possibly draw themselves... but as usual they put their trust in me (bless them lol) and we took it one step at a time. I showed them how to sketch a basic face and brought out mirrors so they could really look at the shape of their faces and their eyes and eyebrows... since that's what we focused on today. But this art piece is much more than portrait making...

We discussed how art can be more than just a beautiful picture. Art can be a form of expression for the artist to make a statement about social issues. I used the example of the role of the calypsonian in our own culture and how the calypsonian through music brings to light things that are both good and bad about our society. I think especially with the violence in our nation's schools and society in general it is a good opportunity to make our children focus on kindness and in essence encourage them to be the change they want to see... a phrase borrowed from another great leader Mahatma Gandhi.

I couldn't think of a better message for Valentine's Day and it was also loaded with great art principles in portrait making! Win, win!