Artist Triada Samaras Mentors High School Teachers at Central High School in Trenton, NJ Part 3

                      Drawing in the Visual Arts Classroom

with Triada Samaras, Artist and Art Educator LINK   LINK

and Young Audiences of New Jersey LINK

and Michelle Marigliano, Senior Director of Education and Equity

and Trenton Public School School District LINK

and Elizabeth Rose Zwierzynski, 

Acting Supervisor of Visual & Performing Arts and Partnerships

Session 3

May 15, 2024

Creating a Hand/Text Drawing with Sepia and Graphite Pencil



In this third coaching/professional development workshop for high school art teachers at Trenton Central High School, New Jersey, YANJ/PA Teaching Artist, Triada Samaras, introduced a new drawing material: sepia and a new concept for the day, creating a hand drawing with text.  The hand is a symbol of humanity, a wide variety of gestures, several emotions, and is recognized by every culture.

"The human hand has been the subject of many famous artistic works across the ages. This interest in the hand form dates as far back as the early prehistoric ages. Findings of art depicting hands has been documented and preserved in multiple locations in South America, Asia, and Europe.  These are typically a form of cave art, made by placing a hand on the wall of the cave, and blowing pigment at it, forming a characteristic uncolored (negative) image of the hand surrounded by the pigment. The painting may then be decorated with lines or dashes."  LINK

Triada Samaras chose the hand and text as a theme as it addresses self, individuality and identity.  These themes are natural in the Culturally Responsive Teaching. pedagogy.  Having students speak in their own voices on an art work of their hand is a natural fit.

"Culturally responsive teaching incorporates and centers unique student experiences and identities, supporting educators to build learning partnerships that result in increased student engagement and ownership of learning." LINK

Above:  Hands at the Cuevas de las Manos (The Cave of Hands), Santa Cruz Province, Argentina.

The paintings in these caves paintings are dated from 7300 BCE to 700 CE..

during the Archaic period of pre-Columbian South America..

Above:  Teachers and Elizabeth Zwierzynski working on a large-scale hand drawing using brown paper 

to resemble a cave drawing background.

Above:  Entrance to the Cave

Above:  Entrance to the Central High School in Trenton, NJ

Above: Triada Samaras often features the hand in her artwork.

Above is her drawing of her hand and a poem she integrated into the drawing.  

Art teachers can also build

art lessons around their own art practices.

Above: Hands from Cave of Hands

Above:  Central High School Teachers use their own hands to create drawings.

In a second part of this drawing lesson:  Triada Samaras proposed

the students begin a list of positive and self-affirming statements about themselves, things they are comfortable with or proud of e,g,:

"I am" statements like

"I am kind to my friends."
"I am smart and believe in myself."

Another prompt might be:  "I stand for..."

They could use graphite pencil (2B or softer) to add these words on the lines in a 

stream of consciousness fashion. This part of the art lesson will affirm their individuality, their identity, and their voices.

Above and below: Triada Samaras provided an example drawing to the teachers as a loose idea or a "lesson "skeleton" but not as a prescription for the teachers.  Teachers are encouraged to create their own unique lesson plans from this idea.

Samaras also suggested students can draw or collage pieces of tree branches or seeds to match the lines of their hands to another living thins  such as a plant or tree outdoors.

This extension of the project would also make this lesson an

EcoArt lesson, connecting the human hand to the environment of living things outside of the human body.

Other extensions of this art lesson might lie in studying Mehndi or Palmistry.

Above:  The Art of Mehndi

Above:  The Art of Palmistry

Artist Triada Samaras Mentors High School Art Teachers at Central High School in Trenton NJ Part 2

 Drawing in the Visual Arts Classrom

with Triada Samaras, Artist and Art Educator LINK

and Young Audiences of New Jersey LINK

and Michelle Marigliano, Senior Director of Education and Equity

and Trenton Public School School District LINK

and Elizabeth Rose Zwierzynski, 

Acting Supervisor of Visual & Performing Arts and Partnerships

Session 2

May 1, 2024

In this second coaching/professional development workshop for high school art teachers at Trenton Central High School, New Jersey, YANJ/PA Teaching Artist, Triada Samaras,  

introduced a new drawing material:  water soluble graphite and a new concept for the day, using a grid to enlarge a photograph.  The grid has been used extensively by artist, Chuck Close, who had several learning disabilities he spoke about often, saying his disabilities were at the heart of his work. LINK

The water soluble graphite was added to the charcoal from Session 1 where some home made charcoal was introduced to the teachers.

.

Triada chose a photograph of  a dark cloud symbolizing the clouds before a tornado.  Central High School has the Tornado as its school theme.  A large striking tornado sculpture hangs in the front lobby.

In the future teachers might choose this topic for a photograph or many others, based on the interests and needs of their students.  For example, students may wish to photograph their local bodega, a familiar neighborhood location.  Or students might enjoy finding a Trenton landmark to photograph such as the Yardley-Wilburtha Bridge. Or a shared common food such as a slice of pepperoni pizza. This project is flexible. In addition teachers might use clay tiles or canvases for the individual squares instead of paper if they wish. 

Culturally responsive teaching engages students with subject matter they can relate well to.  This leads to higher success for students in other academic areas too, not just the arts classroom.

"Culturally responsive teaching (CRT) attempts to bridge the gap between teacher and student by helping the teacher understand the cultural nuances that may cause a relationship to break down—which ultimately causes student achievement to break down as well."  LINK

Other possible uses of a grid from Triada Samaras:

A cube made from a six square grid

A long wall hanging grid that extends onto the floor (relief grid)

Grid squares attached to a public object or place in the building for example:  The Tornado Sculpture! (only kidding, teachers);  A chain link fence outdoors?  (Laminated grid square pieces attached with wires?

A bench indoors?

Where else? How else?