Kelsi M Anderson
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Kelsi  Anderson

Ecological Art, Design, and Education

Youth Celebrate Local Watershed with School Beautification Mural

7/12/2016

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How can art deepen our learning and understanding from a science class and how can it inspire stewardship/connection for our local ecology?
I had the privilege this Spring to facilitate a multimedia mural that engaged an entire student body at a K – 3rd grade elementary school in Petaluma with this question. Further questions followed: Why create art? Why care for our environment and our local species? What are some names of local species? What is the relationship between a butterfly and steelhead trout and why does this matter? And what do these questions have to do with our school??
My hope for the school and students through the creation of this mural: To inspire and create beauty, stewardship and pride for one’s local ecology – the ecology of the elementary school, surrounding community neighborhood, and natural watershed landscape.
The students, teachers, and I explored these questions and answers while collaboratively dreaming up, designing, and creating a multimedia mural that would celebrate the local Petaluma watershed. Choosing this theme was easy, the students were luckily learning about steelhead and environmental stewardship in their classes. Collectively, we realized that the austere and boring 300 foot long chain link fence in front of the entrance of the school desperately needed color, beautification and a welcoming attitude. Materials and mural design came next – surplus factory fabric was collected for weaving strips of color to create the landscape background, donated wood was shaped and cut into steelhead trout, monarch butterflies, and trillium flowers, and paint generously donated by Friedman’s Home Improvement was used to paint these local species.
Weaving the connection between art and ecology
So back to the original question – how can art deepen our understanding and connection with science and the local ecology? Art allowed and demanded that the students engage their classroom and local knowledge of the watershed landscape on creative, physical, and intellectual levels. While weaving, they physically created and felt the motions of a flowing river and the peaks and valleys of the rolling Petaluma hills.
The students had freedom towards how to paint and represent the local species – ranging from very realistic to extraordinarily magically – learning color mixing techniques, observational skills, and pattern recognition. Throughout the project, they worked in pairs and small groups, learning how to successfully work as a team and collaboratively make choices. The students experienced an environmental art project – learning with just a few surplus resources what a team can do to transform a boring fence into beautiful color piece of art. Finally, they transferred classroom knowledge to the outdoors and had fun!
I am grateful that such an art creation can offer such multidimensional learning opportunities for the students and community. The excitement, joy, and intelligence of the students was so influential towards the success of this project. The result? Students finished the mural feeling pride and connection for their school and its beautification, their local watershed and its species, and inspired to further care their place of home.
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March 15th, 2016

3/15/2016

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The Community Earth Art Mural is installed in Fairfax!

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The Community Earth Art Mural, created last November by a group of youth ages 4 - 14, is now installed at the Fairfax Community Center, 16 Park Road. Come on over and visit!

The mural is a celebration of the local animals, plants, and natural landscape of the Fairfax area composed within a mandala design. The mural was painted with local earth soils and natural pigments on top of an earth plaster and created through collaborative group process. 

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Earth Art Community Mural

11/19/2015

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Day 1 of the Earth Art Community Mural at the Fairfax Community Center was full of learning, exploration, soil investigations, paint making, and earth painting with a group ranging in ages from 4 years old to supportive and enthusiastic fathers. We played games, made a beautiful collaborative design featuring our favorite nature elements, and completed the majority of the mural. Big thank you to Brinkley and Miracle Girls and fellow earth artist Xander (www.xanderweaverscull.com) for their support during the event. A follow up day to complete painting the mural and to install the piece will occur on Dec 6th. Thank you to everyone who supported my vision and fundraiser campaign to facilitate community earth art projects.

Some of my favorite quotes from participants during the day:

" I just thought that you bought paints from the store."

"I am grateful I got to be here today because before this I was in my room with my ipad and I would have still been there."

"'What is an earth mural?' 'An earth mural is of the earth with the earth materials.'"

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Community Sand Art Paintings

11/19/2015

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The rain poured all morning and then the sun broke thru the clouds as I joined earth artist Andres Amador (www.andresamadorarts.com) and a collective group of people to explore the collaborative and creative art making process. Together, we raked personal and collective mandalas to connect with the beach landscape. A beautiful afternoon of movement, art, and connection.
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    Creating experiences that bring communities together to artfully regenerate local landscapes

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  • Home
  • About
  • Wild Earth Art
    • Beach Paintings
    • Paintings
    • MURALS
    • Installations >
      • Yoni
      • Apple Tree
      • Reflection Pool
      • Orbs
      • StreetTreeChair
    • Store
    • Classes & Workshops
  • Services
  • Yoga
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Contact