Art Education Daily

Thursday, October 20, 2011

"icebreaker" artist trading cards

Although the concept of this trading card icebreaker is relatively self-explanatory, the amount of success and effort involved with it is not. I've included it here because I feel it to be a uniquely ambitious idea for building community and interests around the arts. Young people love to collect things, as do some of their parents but, to collect something small that is original, without expense is not frequently done in public school environments. The additional fact that the creations are also the result of a fellow art enthusiast adds even greater interest to their collectibility. If your students take so much time and interest in collecting stamps, sea shells and baseball cards, just think of what they could collect in terms of genuine friendships through ATCs. I think their family members would find the activity fascinating as well.

Go to the Home of the Artist Trading Cards: A Collaborative Cultural Performance, to review the history of ATCs and some design ideas too.

ATCs may be produced under a wide variety of categories and with almost any medium. There are a few rules, however.

"Artist Trading Cards (or ATCs) are miniature works of art about the same size as modern baseball cards, or 2 ½ X 3 ½ inches (63 mm X 89 mm), small enough to fit inside standard card-collector pockets, sleeves or sheets. The ATC movement developed out of the mail art movement and has its origins in Switzerland. Cards are produced in various media, including dry media (pencils, pens, markers, etc.), wet media (watercolor, acrylic paints, etc.), paper media (in the form of collage, papercuts, found objects, etc.) or even metals or cloth. The cards are usually traded or exchanged rather than sold." Wikipedia.com

Art teachers or even other faculty members may wish to establish a trading card club or an event that hosts trading card sessions twice to three times during the school year. It would be a unique way for students to maintain friendships over the summer break or to meet new student artists during the first week of school. Make sure your students sign their cards on the back, date them, and include a bit of interesting information about themselves on the reverse side of their cards.

ACTs are kept in 9-Pocket Trading Card Pages that tuck neatly into a large three ring binder. Collect cards from your peers, your teachers, church youth group and local artists. The possibilities are endless.
Card Swaps for adults are now hosted at the Red Lead shop in Webster Groves. Sharon and Chris are the paper artists who sponsor these events.

More links about ATCs and ACEO cards:

ArtTrader Magazine: Free online Magazine

Art-Cards.org : Information about ACEO's and Gallery of artists

ATCsForAll.com: Trading Site

IllustratedATCs.com: Trading Site

Altered Arts Magazine

ATC Quarterly

Artist Trading Cards at The New Gallery, Calgary, AB

LTCs

Original Art Trading Society (OATS)

atc artist

aceo Figure Artist

HUGE gallery of ATC examples

Art Cards of the Timeless Woman

mingle madness icebreaker game

"Mingle Madness" is played a bit differently from "Sort of Fun" because the students are expected to participate more in the discussions. You might call this exercise an advanced form of "Sort of Fun." In this icebreaker exercise, the teacher calls out categories of discussion. These topics often include the kinds of interests that students might talk about during a party. In fact, the teacher may choose to circulate about the room with a tray or two of "appetizers and punch" during this icebreaker as well. As the teacher calls out the topics of discussion, he or she will point to the area of the class where these topics will be shared. The students will then move to that new location as the party progresses. It is up to the teacher to determine when topics become boring or "over discussed" and change them. There may be four or five topics being discussed at the same time. However, the rules should be observed to prevent straying from the purposes of the game. Rule #1. Once a student selects a topic of discussion, he or she must remain in that location until a new topics are called out. Rule #2. Students must also remain "on topic" for as long as there is more than one person present at the location. Rule #3. Students must also prove to be polite and sociable during this icebreaker event. I've listed some fun topics to begin your next Mingle Madness event.

the last sporting event played at your school

the greatest event of your life

the person you admire the most

the time period that you are thankful to have not been born in and why

the greatest artist that has ever performed

dumb dog stories

touching moments with your true love

I'm worried that my boss may fire me

I can't believe we are talking about this during art class

I can't believe he or she tweeted that...

My parents just don't understand me

how will you study for the next test in...

who will win the next championship game?

the people that I really like in this school are... and why

staying out of trouble

there isn't enough time in the day to...

I would be afraid to be the last person to leave this place

What will you wear here?

the best camp trip ever

our school play (theater)

the best field trip ever

when in Rome...

what I hope to do this weekend

I can't believe I saw this at the mall.

expert opinions

the latest facebook post

have you seen this movie...

"sort of fun" icebreaker game

"Sort of Fun" children shift back and forth across the room in accordance to their preferences. This icebreaker gives them ample time to talk to one another and communicate what they share in common. The teacher calls out two ideas, things, places etc... and the students stand either to the left end or right end of the classroom according to their preferences. For example, the teacher may point to the left end of the room and say, "If you prefer to eat popcorn at the movies stand in to the left of my desk," and then she would point to the right side of the room and say something like; "If you prefer to eat chocolate candy bars at the movies stand to the right of my desk," and so on. This game includes all students in the room, there are no right or wrong answers to worry about and students learn new information about their peers. Teachers may even have third or fourth categories as the game progresses. Listed below are just few suggestions for the teacher to call out in order to get the game started.

you have brothers vs. sisters vs. brothers and sisters vs. no other siblings

you live in a house vs. apartment vs. a campsite

you prefer to snack on carrots and celery vs. pretzels vs. candy

your friends like to play basketball vs. video games

your favorite subject in school is art vs. gym vs. lunch vs. recess vs. math vs. reading

"lost inside this painting" icebreaker

Divide your classroom up into small groups and give each of these small groups a photograph of a unique painting. Ask students to discuss, among their peers, what each person would do if they were to be "lost" inside of the painting. After ten minutes, have a large group discussion about each artwork. Give the students more information about the artist while sharing the ideas that were generated during their small group time. I've included below a few artwork suggestions for this icebreaker below.

Salvador Dali's "Les Montres Molles" 1968

"An experiment on a bird in an air pump" by painter Joseph Wright, 1768

"Mill Hand's Lunch Bucket" by Romare Bearden

By Giorgio de Chirico

"The Sierra Divide" by Edgar Payne, died 1947.

"improve this collection" icebreaker

The teacher divides up his or her classroom into small groups of about four to five students and then gives each small group either a handful of objects or 3 to 4 pictures of objects. Then the instructor asks the students to improve their collection by finding additional pictures, collecting additional objects or by drawing additional suggestions. Give each group class time, a visit to the library, a visit to a computer lab, or additional drawing paper with drawing tools to complete the assignment. Give students a generous amount of time to complete this icebreaker activity. After the students have improved their collection, share their results with the rest of the class and have a constructive discussion about their choices. Give students time enough to explain why they chose to improve the collection with the items they either discovered or imagined.

icebreaker questions for the art classroom

If you could be any artist in the world, who would you choose to be?

If you spent all day working with your hands, what would you do?

If you could have a super hero power, what would it be?

If you could visit any place in the world, where would that be and why?
What is the one kind of art you would collect from that place and why?

What is the one substance you would like to build a home out of?

If you lived the life of a cartoon character, which one would you select and why?

What kinds of hobbies do you have and how could these relate to the subject of art?

What is the most artistic hair style you have ever seen?

If you could redecorate your room, in any way you wish, what would it look like?

What is the one thing that surprised you about visiting someone else at their home?

Who is the most artistic person in your family and why?

What is the strangest piece of artwork you have ever seen?

If you had to write a magazine article about an artist, how would you begin to do it and why?

If you had to build a tree house to live in, what would it look like?

Let's pretend that your parents or guardian is going to give a big party. He or she is expecting you to decorate some cupcakes and to set up a decorated area. What are some of the ideas you would use?

What is the one activity that you hope to do before you turn fifty five years old?

If you could have any job in the world, what would it be?

If you woke up tomorrow morning and found that your hair had changed color, what color would embarrass you so much that you would wear a hat on your head during the entire school day?

If you have a pet or if you were to have a pet and you had to dress him in human clothing, what would he or she wear?

If your parent had to make artwork to sell from your home, what do you think they could create in order to survive as an artist?

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

art class icebreakers index

Icebreakers are exercisers designed to help more than one person participate in activities that promote: introductions, new partnerships, community spirit and successful team accomplishments. I have developed the following icebreakers for my own art classrooms.