MEADOWEDGE ART

Philosophy and Practice
    At the core of the Meadowedge program is a sequence by which children enjoy  a variety of sensorial  (aural, tactile,visual, literary and motion based ) experiences based on a broad theme of interest, such as fantasy, natural objects, nightime, water, etc. 
     After this motivating exploration, and expressions of intention, they set to work on a 2 or 3D projects that visually reflect their inner and outer responses to the initial spark.  Following this project, each child documents what he has discovered or created in a sketchbook. Sometimes, the first project is a 2 D project such as  drawing or painting, followed by a 3D manifestation or translation of the drawing or painting.
      This sequence is modified for different age groups- younger students often work quickly through 3 processes a day, older students sometimes taking 2 or 3 weeks to complete a cycle of projects.


 

      Although seeing and drawing are an important part of each student's experience , clay work, fabric wire, plaster and wood construction, stone and clay sculpture, printmaking and collage  deepen  and expand a student's field of possibilities.
     While younger children enjoy exploring and controlling the sensorial qualities of materials, older ones, adept at basic skills, explore the options available to them through more advanced techniques.

   Students work at their own pace. When a child is ready to learn a new skill or technique to integrate into her work, she is given  enough information to begin to solve a problem on her own. There are no right or wrong solutions at Meadowedge, just engagement and lots of fun.

"What is needed are recipes that give the child tools for achieving the effects he wants, that open up rather than foreclose possibilities. He should have some questions to ask and some ways for trying to answer them, and an incipient acquaintance with standards and criticism. "

-Howard Gardner Art, Mind & Brain