Irvington's 7th graders are getting to know Yaacov Agam and his amazing Agamographs! We looked at many pictures of his sculptures, which change depending on how you look at them. Because your perspective changes what the artwork looks like, his Agamographs are considered Optical Art. Agamographs are a type of Lenticular Imaging, which is used in some billboard advertising and graffiti. Yaacov Agam grew up and studied art in Israel, mentored under a couple artists in Switzerland, and eventually became super famous in France. He later went on to design large-scale sculptures, fountains, and buildings. At 87-years-old, Yaacov is still alive and creating artwork in Paris, France. Watch the (slightly lengthy) video below to see the process for building your own Agamographs!
Irvington's 8th graders are getting to know Alexander Calder and his amazing sculptures! We looked at many pictures of his mobiles and wire portraits, gaining inspiration for the students' own contour portrait wire sculptures. While Calder's parents were both artists, he actually studied mechanical engineering and mathematics when he was in college. After working as a hydraulic engineer for a short while, he went back to college to study art. His first big sculpture was "Cirque Calder", which was a collection of miniature circus-themed sculptures, made from wire, cork, rubber, and other found objects. So cool! He would even keep the set in a couple suitcases, so he could set it up anywhere he wanted. Later on, he became famous for his mobiles, wire portraits, and large-scale sculptures. Watch the video below to see the process for making wire sculptures! |