So this is a project from ages ago, but I was recently organizing my iPhoto, and it appeared. I was very happy with the way they look displayed. Ah the good old days when I actually had time to hang up artwork in the halls! Ha! I showed slides of Mark Rothko (not one of my favorite artists, but the kids really responded well to the idea of color invoking mood.) After a lesson on value, tints, shades, and all that, the kids chose one piece of construction paper. This would be their HUE.
Then they simply cut things from magazines that were in different values of that same hue. Finally I had them cut letters out (ransom note style) and add them to their collage, making a sentence that pertained somehow to the mood of their artwork. These turned out even better the next year when I ran out of construction paper, and instead gave the kids a half sheet of regular drawing paper and instructed them to color it entirely one hue, using the MR. SKETCH scented markers. This not only made the kids ecstatic, but it also filled my classroom with a lovely fruity aroma. I am a believer in aromatherapy, just as a side note. And it may sound hokey but I really think scent has an effect on mood as well. This was something I didn't think to point out to the kiddos at the time, but it would tie in well with Rothko.
After they all finished gluing, I had them coat their collages with watered-down elmer's glue. The year that we started with white drawing paper and markers, the final glue coat liquified the marker a little bit, resulting in an all over subtle color wash. Neither I nor the kids were expecting this, and they were overjoyed. They were tinting their collages themselves. What a nice surprise! This also made the work feel more handmade, as the construction paper backgrounds tended to look a little flat.
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