Aesthetic Choices

At the beginning of this class I asked the students to finalize their Kindness Action Ideas.  I explained that today we would incorporate the ideas into their finished piece of artwork.  I also read them the next part of the story Zen Shorts.  This traditional Chinese story is about how we choose to view and respond to events in our lives.  In the story, an elderly farmer experiences what his neighbors describe as "bad luck", but each event turns out to have a positive outcome.  Instead of dwelling on or worrying about something that seems negative, the farmer is open and accepting of each event and the possibility of something good coming out of it.  It is easy to dwell on "bad luck" in our own lives; this story challenges us to see the good in a seemingly bad situation.

We also reviewed Gabriel Orozco's artwork My Hands Are My Heart, pictured below.  

We discussed how our hands are the part of our bodies that usually perform kind actions in the world.  Our hands become an extension of our hearts in this way.  If you'd like to know more about Gabriel Orozco's work, here is a video about him from the PBS series Art:21.

Moving into relaxation time, the students listened to the singing bowl and counted their breaths until they couldn't hear the sound of the bowl anymore.  I asked them to place a hand on their stomachs when they could no longer hear the bowl singing.  This activity invites the students to focus attention on two things: external sound and internal breath.  It is a great way for them to find calm in stressful situations, both at home and at school.

For the movement part of the class, we began by warming up the vertebrae with Sufi Rolls.  The students rotated around their center point while sitting on the floor.  We also warmed up the neck and shoulders, and did some side stretching.  Working to strengthen the muscles of the lower back, we balanced in tabletop pose and alternated picking up our left arm and right leg, and the right arm and left leg.  Then, after a few sun salutations, the students practiced Lion's Breath again.  One student who has experience in other yoga classes taught everyone (including me) the Eiffel Tower, a partner pose.    

Artistically, the students had many things to do before completing the project.  Many students needed to finish painting and cutting out their hands.  Some students still wanted to layer more color into the watercolor portion of the work.  Everyone needed to write their Kindness Action Ideas onto their artwork.

My vision for this piece was for the Kindness Action Ideas to be written onto their finished artwork, along with incorporating their hand drawings into the piece.  That way, this artwork would combine words and images to depict a message about kindness.  It would also serve as a reminder that what we do in the world is important.  Combining thinking and talking about kindness must be paired with actions taken.

Many of the students don't share my vision for this piece!  Most of them wanted to keep the hand drawings separate from the watercolor painting.  And this is OK!  I am happy that my students have their own artistic ideas, and are choosing to make their own aesthetic decisions about their artwork.  I'm proud of them for this.