Category: Free Inquiry

J. Riddell Matte (2020). Sad Poem. [mixed media]

The first thing I want to do is address the fact that, during my free inquiry, I never illustrated ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’.  This felt like a failure for a hot minute, as though because I had not done what I set out to do my entire inquiry was a bust. A write off.  A  head-in-the-palm-of-your-hand type moment.

But I’ve thought about it a lot over the past couple of weeks, as the term comes to an end….and this is what I have realized;

I may not have illustrated the story that I had planned on illustrating but I did illustrate, narrate and make a video of ‘Porridge, Porridge’ by The Brothers Grimm.  I took two illustration classes through the online education platform ‘Domestika’.  I  experimented with materials and I made art. I learned about the Public Domain and read many, many Brother’s Grimm stories through an online archive.  I discovered that children’s books generally have 32 pages. I discovered new illustrator and looked at their incredible art and I practiced storyboarding. I participated in a zine workshop through the Vancouver Art Gallery with Cole Pauls and a drawing webinar, of the Southern Mountain Caribou, offered by the Sierra Club.  I grew my personal learning network. I learned how to make screen  recordings and voice over (this might be my tech super-power). I read children’s books. I blogged. I played Minecraft. I tried two on-line graphic novel programs, and I made a couple of short comic strips and a few graphic organizers with them.  I learned  from our guest speakers about privacy,  inquiry based learning, accessibility and assessment.

Time during  the pandemic has had the tendency to drag on (it’s not just me) and I’ve heard the saying ‘time is an illusion’ more, over these past three months, than at any other point in my life. But, for me, time has passed quickly in the mess of my free inquiry + the term.  So, I guess I ran out of time and I didn’t get around to my big project, but those people who say  ‘time is an illusion’ also say, ‘it’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey’ and although they say this in reference to Life, I have come to believe that it also applies to inquiry based learning.

One after noon, back in January, as I tried to figure out my free-inquiry and while  waiting for middle-school to let out,  my youngest son & I re-imagined ‘Goldilocks & the Three Bears”.  I think that our story is kinda magic, and I am very much looking forward to illustrating it sometime in the near future.

Thank-you for being here.

Warmly,

Jen

As part of my inquiry project, which I am starting to worry I will never be able to wrap up …I participated in the Vancouver Art Galleries “Space Comics” workshop with Cole Pauls.

During the 1 hour on-line  workshop Pauls talked about his creative process, shared how his Tahltan heritage influences his work and what has surprised him most about being an author/illustrator, all while showing participants how to build and illustrate a Zine!!

J. Riddell Matte. ‘Porridge Porridge’ Zine. 2021

The zine was done on a single piece of paper, divided into 6 illustrated pages, plus the cover and end pages. It was  incredibly satisfying attempting to tell a story within such narrow parameters, and I think that this design could also be applied to a more free-form art making process.

This would be a great activity for older students (grade 3 +) and could be applied to themes across the curriculum.  I wonder if there is a way to construct one, with the same template but using a digital platform? Or upload for further editing/enhancement using a digital program?  Something to think about….

Resources::

Vancouver Art Gallery:: Art At Home project – a fantastic complication of comprehensive art lessons!

J.Riddell Matte. Goldfinch & The Three Bears (2021)

Truth?

This project still  feels a bit like a free-fall, even with Mr. Scheffler’s trio of tips, which have been extremely helpful in keeping me on track, I am often overwhelmed about where to even begin with interpreting a children’s story.

In an effort to find more guidance  (+ a smidge of calm),  I decided to take Adolfo Serra’s course on Domestika, “Introduction to Children’s Illustrations”.  I am almost done, and it has been amazing!! In his course Serra breaks down the process of story illustration.  He provides tips and homework that  encourage both creative thought around your chosen story,  as well as experimentation with different mediums, and the art he makes as demonstration is fantastic!

Doing art for this project is happiness for me right now, which is not something I am taking for granted.

So far, I have discovered that I like having the framework of a familiar story. I like considering which are the most interesting bits and how they should be illustrated. I like thinking about whether to layer images on a page, or not. I like reminiscing about the books that I loved reading to my boys when they were little, and I adore thinking about & making art.

This week, I am starting to illustrate Goldilocks & The Three Bears. I am not sure how successful I will be but…I am also not sure that matters so much anymore.

Additional Resources

Adobe Spark

Note: In order to share my art for this post, I wanted to find a collaging program/app that would allow me to combine my paintings into to one image. I looked into a number of programs &  settled on the Adobe Spark. It’s a free, online program that allows you to add your photos and provides a number of options for design – it was fun & very easy to use.