As a class assignment we were encouraged to find 1 inch of beauty and bring it to class. My object came immediately to mind when we were given the assignment. My great great grandmother's engagement ring is one of a kind and over 120 years old. My great grandma, the daughter of my great great grandma, passed it down to me as a Christmas gift about 6 years ago. I wear it frequently because it is so precious to me and I love sharing its beauty with people.
When everyone arrived to class, we were instructed to bring our object to the front table to share with the class. As we all placed our valuable items on the table there was a certain silence that took over the room. It was as if we were all being vulnerable and brave as we placed our item on the table. Everyone gathered around the table and stared at the objects. Was my object beautiful in the eyes of others, I wondered. Then, we began to discuss our objects: what it is, what it means to us, and the story behind it. My classmates were sharing some of the most brilliant stories. At one point I think we were all in tears. I didn't share about my object but I know that all of my peers and I had great attachment and love for our objects. Something so small, just 1 inch, can mean so much to a person. Beauty is relevant and beauty is about how it makes you feel. I looked at the objects in front of me and once I heard their stories their beauty began to shine. As teachers, we are conditioned to believe that every task needs to have an ultimate clear objective but in art the line becomes blurred. Students need to be creative to understand all areas we teach in whether that be science, social studies, reading, etc... and in a world where everything we do serves a purpose we need to be making sure we give students a chance to connect with their inner self and be creative. Art is a great way to do that and integrating the arts is a lot simpler than you think. Check out my blog about integrating the arts that's coming in the near future. In the meanwhile, I encourage you to watch this short video called Beauty Is In The Eye Of The Beholder (click here). We all see things differently. We even see ourselves differently from how others see us.
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This piece was painted by moi while listening to the song Hello / Lacrimosa by The Piano Guys. The purpose of this activity is to explain certain features of the brain. When a stimuli, such as music, is introduced to your sensory receptors a message is sent to the brain. Your brain deciphers the message; therefore, the mood (that my brain interpreted) of the song is conveyed in this painting. Individuals who have a genetic anomaly called synesthesia, experience a quite remarkable effect in their brain when stimuli is introduced. For example, artist Melissa McCracken sees color when she hears noise. This is caused by the production of a sensory impression that relates to one sense of the body that stimulates another sense of the body. Many of my peers also did this activity and no two paintings looked alike. Our brains all came up with different images to represent and encompass the emotion of the song. Just as we all created vastly different looking paintings, our students will also decipher things differently. Sharing, acknowledging and cherishing these differences is helpful in bringing you and your students closer together. You are able to see the inside workings of your brain and compare how two people might interpret something differently. How remarkable! In the links down below I have included a blog where people who have synesthesia can share about their lives. It is quite an interesting peculiarity. :) Also, check out the beautiful artwork Melissa McCracken has on her site. I encourage you to view her artwork and listen to the song while you take in the piece. Do you feel the color, texture, space, etc... that she uses in her artwork conveys the same feeling and images that your brain came up with?
https://www.melissasmccracken.com/ http://syndiscovery.com/blog/
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