Enduring Ideas

● Eco-Art
○ Ecological Art/Eco-Art is a practice to preserve, remediate,
and revitalize the environment. It can be created by applying
principles of already existing ecosystems and can be
composed of found objects in nature, as well as man-made
objects placed precisely in nature. Also commonly referred to
as “Earthworks”, this art form has been around for centuries,
with its earliest examples dating back to the neolithic era.
○ Possible Artists and Movements:
■ Jean-Claude & Christo
■ Florentijn Hofman
■ Andy Goldsworthy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LP_-P7ZcWZU
■ Nancy Holt
■ Land Art Intro: stop at 7:45
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STW0eZDsKVg

○ Project: “Eco-Cupcakes”
○ “Since the chapter we focused on
was Wet Materials, that’s what we relied on for our lesson, yet we
restricted it to everything but paint. We included resins, glue, water
(especially since it rained that day) and other liquid materials. I found
the hardy cupcake holders and spoons and thought they were an
efficient vessel for the class to use while exploring outside for their found
materials.”
■ For this project, students receive a sturdy cupcake sleeve
and a plastic (or recycled spoon). The beginning of the
lesson starts outside where the students spend their
entire class time picking found materials. Some are more
 naturalistic such as leaves and twigs whilst others are
mostly composed of litter and trash depending on the
student and what they are visually drawn to. Day 1 is
foraging and an introduction to Land Art and Eco Art.
Day 2, the students will have the opportunity to create a
piece of art with their found materials and wet materials
such as: resins, glues and water, watercolors, food
coloring etc. these pieces will be “Non-Site” works while
the other projects will be made outside. One their piece
or pieces are complete, they'll have the opportunity to
place their works either around the room or in the
hallway. These can be hidden in the corner of a hallway
or hung up on the wall. At the end of this process (3
Days) their will be a gallery tour.
■ The second project is a group project, where the
students will choose their group, brainstorm and create
an Earthwork inspired from one of these 4 artists:
● Jean-Claude & Christo
● Florentijn Hofman
● Andy Goldsworthy
● Nancy Holt
■ The majority of this project will be held outside and
students are free to use what materials they need. For
the most part, this project is mostly laissez faire, and will
only require a small write-up on the artist(s) they are
inspired by and a mid-way point review of themselves
and their group members. This project may last for 3-5
days depending on the student’s enthusiasm and work
ethic.