Friday, July 20, 2007

Natural Activity

Here is a really fun activity to try this summer with the little ones. My kid has been studying the artist Andy Goldsworthy at school. Goldsworthy uses natural and found objects (leaves, twigs, ice, among others things) to create temporary sculptures in the environment. At school the kids made their own sculptures using found objects and took photos of them.

Andy Goldsworthy Sculpture

We have been replicating this activity on our visits to the beach this summer but I also imagine this would be fun to do on a hike too. I love the fact that you don’t need to lug around any supplies - just what nature supplies - and you get to leave a little bit of "art" for the next passerby.

Andy Goldsworthy Sculpture

4 comments:

Katherine said...

Just found your blog -love it! Love eco friendly ideas and it's always better to brainstorm and share with a girlfriend. Come visit me and my girlfriends @ fourfriendsandablog.blogspot.com as we too share ideas for a healthy planet.

Emily said...

if anyone reading this is in the UK - there's a great Andy Goldsworthy exhibition at the Yorkshire Sculpture PArk, off the M1 near Skipton.

Great fun for kids, this.

Tracy said...

thanks katherine!

emily - wish i were closer!

Green Wellies said...

A contact left a comment on a photo of mine that showed a stack of rocks that I'd collected from the beach and she thought it reminded her of Andy Goldsworthy's work. I decided to try it in style and I attempted to replicate a stone spiral with flat pieces of basalt. I placed a heart-shaped rock in the center of mine. I posted a photo of it last week on flickr (green wellies). Andy split his rocks and the cracks follow a continuous line around the spiral. Someone suggested how I could break my rocks, but no matter how hard I hit them, I couldn't make a dent, so I'm in the process of scratching lines to try to achieve the same effect. Now my brain is swirling with natural art ideas. How wonderful that children are being exposed to the creations of this talented artist!
Cheers, Barb