Chinese Brush Painting

Two new resources have been added to our Chinese classroom. Students will enjoy taking a little quiet time out of their day to try out some Chinese brush painting. Following instructions in this easy kit (Discover Chinese Brush Painting) will open up a new world of Chinese art. Students will be able to further their skills by browsing around in the new book The Art of Chinese Brush Painting.

Drop by the classroom before school starts to check out the new stuff! Hope to see you soon!

Summer Reading!

Ni Hao Summer Readers!

Check out this fab book called Paper Cutouts. The instructions are very easy to follow and the patterns are lovely. There is also a very interesting section about the history of paper cuts. Give it a try. But sorry, this book is not at the Hawaii State Library. You will need to visit Border's or Amazon.

Happy 4th of July! Did you know that fireworks were invented in China? Some say fireworks were invented quite by accident. Really! The story goes that a field cook was cooking, got something a little wrong and BOOM! Fireworks! Actually, that is only one of the many stories about how fireworks were invented. It is also widely credited to Marco Polo for bringing fireworks (in the form of gun powder) to the West.

I know this...fireworks are certainly a lot of fun!

Laoshi's Paper Cuts 老师的剪纸

大家你好！ 这是我的剪纸！你喜欢不喜欢？

Hello Everyone! These are my paper cuts! Do you like it?

Summer Paper Cuts

Summer School Crafty Kids have been learning more about creating paper cut shadow puppets. Crafty kids experimented creating bats, clowns, cats, crabs, trees, and even anchors. I love the way as the week progressed and student's skills enhanced how they began to add more color, new shapes, and shadow puppet stories blossomed. I even got to enjoy lovely shadow puppet shows presented by the student artists.

Ms. Decurtis has took time out of her busy schedule to draw more templates for cutting. I can't wait to finish her lovely Chinese bonsai tree for our shadow shows. What a treat kids will have when they return to school!

More Paper Cuts Please!

Summer Fun 1st graders had a good time creating their own paper cuts. After students created their masterpieces we hung it in the window. Even Ms. Tori had a good time trying her hand at a paper cut.

Paper cutting is not just a Chinese art of the past. Modern day artists all over the world create a variety of paper cuts to wow and charm your senses. Check out this list of websites to learn more about the many, many varieties of paper cut art:
http://www.suzy-taylor.blogspot.com/
http://www.ruralpearl.com/
http://papercutting.blogspot.com/
http://www.papercutters.org/

When are you going to try making your own paper cut? It is easy to get started. Simply print a stencil (I like to use Google Images and type in "paper cuts"). Once you have copied your stencil grab your scissors and cut away!

Stand by for detailed instructions.

Chinese Paper Cutting

Summer Fun grade 1 and 5 students have starting paper cutting. Ms. DeCurtis (LJA Artist and Physical Plant Manager) created lovely symestrical designs for us to start with. We cut butterflies, turtles, tigers, bears, fish, and traditional Hawaiian flowers. Students enjoyed Ms. DeCurtis drawing difficult designs for us to tackle! Getting started in paper cutting is easy. All you need is a nice pattern and a pair of scissors.

The ancient art of paper cutting orignated in China. The Chinese word for paper cutting is 剪纸 jian3 zhi3. 剪 jian3 means scissors or to cut with scissors and 纸 zhi3 means paper. To this very day Chinese people are very fond of decorating their doors, windows, and classrooms with lovely, original paper cuts. The artist uses red paper to create the design and then mounts it on a white background to display and enjoy. And everybody knows the Chinese invented paper! They certainly found a lovely use of their invention!

While paper cutting is widely attributed to the Chinese culture, many cultures around the world have beautiful forms of this charming art. Some countries are know for the use of vivid colors (Mexico and Poland) or folding the paper before cutting (Japanese kirigami), you may even find watercolor splashed in a paper cut. Take a look at Angie Pickman's modern American paper cuts at http://ruralpearl.com/blog/. Her work will dazzle and inspire you!

Paper cuts can come in all sizes and shapes and you can make one, too. Try making a bookmark, a wall hanging, a greeting card, or even an invitation to tea. The possibilities are endless. Hey! Maybe Ms. DeCurtis would give Keiki Chinese artistic license to publish one of her designs for you to print and cut at home. Don't forget to show me your finished product!

Sorry...no student photos today. Stand by, the pictures will be ready soon.