Adinkra Symbols

A little time in the sun, before we started our project, drawing with sidewalk chalk.

A full class!
    
One of my favorite sources for art projects is Adinkra. These west African symbols are meaningful and fun to draw. I ask the kids to pick 4 symbols that represent traits they admire or aspire to be.
 
  
They drew four symbols in pencil, then oil pastel, then watercolored. They also chose one of the symbols and traced it, transferred it to fun foam and cut out a stamp. We did rubbings of the stamp, on cloth.

Bill Wechter, a photographer from the North County Times newspaper, visited the class and took photos. Click here to see his photos.
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I had the kids write the African word and the meanings of each symbol on their artwork.





Adinkra surface design! (They used their stamps and oil pastels to do rubbings on cloth)

Woven watercolors

Draw and paint two landscapes.





Cut one vertical and one horizontal and weave together



Thanks Daisy for helping out!















and if you have time, make a second one.

Prayer Flags

I'm facilitating a prayer flag project over at The Prayer Flag Project, so I wanted to get the kids involved.




  
I described to them how these flags would symbolize their affirmations or wishes and that the breeze would spread their hopes all over the world.
   



     
 


We hung them in the outdoor garden area behind the studio where are classes are held.