Fundraiser for Art Competitions

Hello! Tis the Season for giving...

https://www.gofundme.com/makingtheirmark
I teach at  Title 1 school where most of my students are at risk and qualify for free or reduced lunch.

About 25 of my most talented and dedicated young student artists have just completed some amazing work for the upcoming Scholastic Art and Writing Awards and the Junior Visual Art Scholastic Event. They have been working for months, stayed late after school, and sometimes come in during other classes because of their passion for their craft.

However, we need your help in purchasing supplies such as mat board and frames to help display their work in a professional manner.

Any amount, large or small, would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you so much for your consideration and please feel free to share this link.

Best wishes,
Jennie Tudor Gray

 

 

First Annual Jerry's Art a Rama High School Art Competion!

Thanks, Jerry's, for all you do!

Success at Jerry's Art-A-Rama Middle School Art Exhibit and First Annual Ojeda MS Fine Arts Showcase!

It was another exciting week here in and out of our Gator Art Studio. Over 30 students have work on display at Jerry's Art A Rama for their annual Middle School Art Competition. Congratulations to Daniela Segovia one of my 8th graders who won 3nd place award for best Sculpture and a gift certificate to Jerry's.

Thanks also to all our students and fine arts teachers who made our first annual Ojeda MS Fine Arts Showcase a success!

Debanhi Gonzalez has been hard at work for past several weeks on her self-portrait for the upcoming Junior Visual Art Scholastic Event.

First Place Region 20 and Region 13 Winner Anti Bullying Poster!

This is Marisela and she is AWESOME and I am a better person for knowing her. Her "Bully Free Zone" poster submission to Texas Association for Pupil Transportation was selected 1st place for Division III at our local meeting with Region 20 & 13 yesterday. Marisela's poster will now go to state competition in Dallas Texas.

Jerry's Art-A-Rama Middle School Art Show and Competition

You are cordially invited to join us at Jerry's Art-A-Rama  in Austin this Sunday from 3-5 for the opening reception of their Annual Middle School Art Show and Competition. Over 20 works by my students will be on display through May 31st. More photos to come!

100% Exhibit and Fundraiser at the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center

I am delighted to announce that one of my artworks and four artworks by my students are currently on display at the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center as part of their annual 100% Exhibit and Fundraiser. Many other works by other talented youth and adult artists on are on display as well. Exhibit runs through May 2nd.

My Students' Civil Rights Leaders portraits are also still on display for viewing during regular Museum hours.
https://www.austintexas.gov/department/george-washington-carver-museum-and-cultural-center

Kara Walker Inspired Social Justice Issue Collages

 Social justice issues are a great way to tie in the everyday experiences and concerns of personal relevance to students. After brainstorming various social justice issues and introducing the work of contemporary artist Kara Walker, students created their own meaningful collages based on her work. I was very moved by the content, thoughtfulness, and power within each of their works. My students never cease to inspire me in their capacity of concern for others. Student work also tied into Black History month and their social studies TEKS and was built onto a Civil Rights Leaders portrait series inspired by MLK's birthday.

We learned about the art element shape and the design principle contrast, positive, and negative space. Very interesting and compassionate discussions resulted in response to this lesson and many of the same social issues concerning students today kept coming up such as body image and eating disorders, bullying, cyber bullying, racial issues, violence, Civil war history, homelessness, gender equality, slavery, LGBTQI rights, domestic violence, Veterans, poverty, food stamps, and immigration which was a window into the concerns my students have in their personal lives. Art can be a transformative method of healing and used as a way to express thoughts and feelings in ways words cannot. I reinforced concepts of creating a narrative from their ELAR classes as well and how could they use their artwork to tell a story with images instead of words.

This was my first time teaching this lesson and I cannot wait to teach it again in the future.

STEAM: Science Technology Engineering ART and Math

Interdisciplinary lessons are essential for providing a well rounded and holistic curriculum for any child. I do believe that Art is important for Art's sake but enjoy being able to incorporate and reinforce TEKS in students' core subject areas to help them find real world applications, support their STAAR performance, as well as give them hands on project based learning opportunities. Creativity and problem solving skills in my art studio laboratory carry over into all subjects and help give students a foundation in learning 21st century skills through science, technology, engineering, art, and math to create new generations of makers.

Recently, my 8th graders explored topography in their science classes and I have been reinforcing and scaffolding upon these concept in a current collage lesson where we explore and create our own topographical maps. Inspired by the work of contemporary artist Jen Stark, students have successfully been creating collages using texture and form.

For more information about artist Jen Stark, you may visit:
http://www.jenstark.com


Many of these works will be on exhibit at the upcoming Jerry's Art A Rama Middle School Art Exhibit-stay tuned!

Success at the University Interscholastic League Event!

I am SO proud of all my students who participated in the UIL event in January! My 8th graders swept  1st place in three of the four categories for their grade level.

8th grade 3-Dimensional 1st place Marisela Gonzales  DRAWING 4th place Alondra Carrillo  PAINTING 1st place Melissa MAcedo  MISC MEDIA 1st place Makaylah Hernandez  2nd place Debanhi Gonzalez