This week at camp, we packed our creative suitcases and set off on a journey across the globe, exploring art forms from different cultures and across time.
We began in Ancient Greece, where campers glazed their very own amphoras. Amphoras, vessels dating back as far as 3500 BCE, weren’t just practical containers - they were also canvases for storytelling, decorated with intricate patterns and epic mythological scenes. Inspired by these designs, our campers invented their own patterns and narratives, painting stories that stretched across the curved bisque using reactive glazes that changed colors once fired.
Next, we dove into the mesmerizing world of mandalas. We explored their presence across cultures, from Celtic knots and Aztec sundials, to Navajo sand art and Buddhist sand mandalas. Campers learned how Tibetan monks spend weeks pouring colored sand grain by grain into breathtaking designs, only to sweep them away at completion. This practice reminds us of the importance of letting go, of creating for the joy of the process itself. Our young artists created their own mandalas, experimenting with symmetry, detail, and patience.
From there, we traveled to Venice, Italy, to celebrate Carnevale di Venezia. Campers sculpted masks from clay, shaping and smoothing with ribs, then embellishing their creations with bright paint, feathers, gems, and jewels. But we hit a twist in our travels! The clay batch we used turned out to be defective, and the masks became brittle and began to crumble. While disappointing, this turned into two powerful lessons:
- In ceramics, nothing is guaranteed — clay bodies, glazes, and firings can all surprise us.
- More importantly, art is not always about the finished piece. In true mandala spirit, we let go of attachment.
Our campers embraced this by taking hammers to their masks, joyfully smashing them back down to earth. It became a cathartic, exciting moment, a reminder that creation and destruction are both part of the artistic journey.
Next, we trekked over to East Asia to explore Japanese shodō (書道), the art of calligraphy. While we didn’t have traditional fude (筆) brushes, we experimented with creative tools to capture the same flowing spirit. Campers dipped straws in ink and blew across canvas paper to mimic the light, organic movement of brushstrokes. We added delicate cherry blossoms, painting soft blooms around the abstract ink lines. The result was a playful, inventive twist on a timeless art form.
We closed the week with a field trip to Kennedy Plaza for a day of plein air painting. Surrounded by sunshine, fresh air, and the sound of the fountain, campers painted watercolor postcards. Each card became a window to a faraway place, imagined destinations, dream travels, or messages to loved ones.
This week was a great adventure, filled with exploration and lessons that stretched far beyond the studio walls. Our campers learned not only about world art traditions but also about the deeper practice of making, sharing, and letting go. 🌎🎨✨