Friday, May 12th

On Friday, we had fun completing the final step of the mosaic making process which is grouting.  We reflected on our Agora week experience and the joys and challenges of this artistic medium.  The Mosaics group is very excited to share the “Create” mosaic with the rest of the school community when it is installed at St. Ben’s.

We were also very fortunate to be able to sit in on a mosaics workshop with Maestro Verdiano Marzi who is one of the world’s most highly regarded teaching artists in the contemporary mosaic art world.  Verdiano enjoyed sharing artistic insights with the St. Ben’s students and answering our questions. We communicated via an Italian interpreter but, as Verdiano lives in Paris and works at the Louvre, he was also able to speak with Marie Claire in French.

Thursday, May 11th

Wow, what an amazing day at the Chicago Mosaics School.  It was all hands on deck to complete the backgrounds for all of the sections of the “Create” mosaic.  Everyone is looking forward to our last Agora day because we will be grouting the entire piece and finally able to see the finished product!

Wednesday, May 10th

Today, the goal was to finish the detailed images in the foreground before lunch at 11:30.

Students worked diligently to meet that goal.  We had a choice of tacos, sandwiches, ribs, chicken or rice for lunch. Then, after lunch, students started cutting glass for the background areas.  The “Create Mosaic” is taking shape and we can’t wait to show you the finished artwork!

Tuesday, May 9th

Students jumped back into their designs today right away. Students used scoring tools, nippers and pliers to cut glass.  Students had quest lunches and had a walking tour of the neighborhood, including checking out the Mosaic Mural at the Red Line L.

Monday, May 8th

The Mosaics Agora group is off  to a great start.  Today, the students were able to practice some of the techniques and skills they have learned during their field trips to the Chicago Mosaics School.  The design that all of the students collaborated on looks amazing.  They got right to work cutting and shaping pieces of glass for the foreground of the mosaic.

We also explored the neighborhood for a few minutes after lunch and discovered a beautiful mosaic in a lake front park!

Agora Mosaic 2017 Design

Here is a link to the design for the Mosaic the students will be creating:  AgoraMosaic_cartoon

Here is the Mosaics Agora permission slip for the week of May 8th through May 12th: Agora week+Permission+slip+16-17.update+by+EM copy

 

Welcome to Mosaics Agora 2017!

We’re looking forward to Agora week!  We are making our final preparations with a parent meeting on Thursday, May 4th at 6:30 in the Art Room.  At the parent meeting, we will collect the final Mosaics permission slips, which are required and due that night in order for students to participate in the Mosaics Agora!

During Agora week, which is May 8th-May 12th, all students are responsible to arrive at the Chicago Mosaic School by 8:30 am and will be dismissed at 3:00 pm.  The Chicago Mosaic School is at:  1101 W. Granville Avenue, Chicago, Illinois.

Quest will provide sack lunches for students on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.  Students had the opportunity to sign up for their choice of sandwiches at a prior Mosaics Meeting.  On Wednesday and Friday, students should bring a sack lunch or money to purchase lunch at a nearby fast food restaurant. All students should bring a water bottle daily.

Students should wear clothing that is appropriate for working at the Chicago Mosaic School.  T-shirts are fine, as long as they are not low cut or revealing, since students will be bending over to work on the Mosaic mural.  Jeans and sweat pants are acceptable, but no yoga pants or skinny jeans and no tight clothing.

From the five school pillars, students chose “Create” as the theme of the 2017 Mosaic Mural for St. Ben’s.  They included images that portray visual art, music, drama and dance.  They created sketches and had a design discussion with instructors from CMS in order to plan the mosaic design.