Return to flip book view
little handsworks of art created by childrena photo essay by Grace Weintrob
Dianne Andrejasich always knew thatone way or another she would end upbeing a teacher. After spending 20years as a professional artist,Andrejasich finally gave into herinstincts, becoming a teacher at age40. Today, she is known as Ms. Art bythe K-6 students at the Academy ofArts and Knowledge, a charter schoolin Fort Collins, Colorado.Andrejasich led students through theprocess of plastering, painting, anddesigning a dragon-themed mask forthe annual Masks Fundraiser &Exhibition run by the Museum of ArtFort Collins. the leaderDianne Andrejasich / Ms. Art / Academy of Arts and Knowledge
TThe Academy of Arts and Knowledge offers an extended-day programwhere students can enroll in additional classes for no cost. From coding toguitar to shop, the school aims to provide these young minds with a widerange of educational experiences. A group of core students volunteered tospend their after-school time helping Andrejasich with the mask. Studentsbroke into three groups and worked on the plastic, the paper, or the plaster. Students in the after-school program at the Academy of Arts and Knowledge in Fort Collins, CO raise their hands to askMs. Art questions on the mask making process on November 7, 2022. the handsK-6 Students / Academy of Arts and Knowledge
the process
plasticThe boys in the group tended togravitate towards the plasticprocess. To create an icicles effectfor the ice side of the mask,students cut down egg crates intopieces and then melted the piecesdown into tight twists using a hairdryer and pliers. From there, thework was passed off to Andrejasic,who used E6000 glue to attach theplastic to the mask.
paperWhile one group of students worked on melting down plastic,another worked on cutting up and shaping the flames for thefireside of the dragon. The pieces of flames were painted by agroup of students in class and then cut up and placed by thevolunteer group.
plasterThe last group of students workedon creating plaster mountains andteeth for the mask. Students firstused cardboard to shape theteeth and mountains. They thencut out smalls squares of plasterfrom larger sheets, dipped thepieces into water, and applied theplaster to the cardboard. OnceAndrejasich looked over the piecesand selected which ones shouldgo on the mask, the students usedthe same technique to apply theteeth and mountains to the mask.
the productThe Academy of Arts and Knowledge mask submission is only one ofover 221 submissions to the Museum of Art Fort Collins Masks Exhibitionand Fundraiser. Their mask, 'In-Between', will go to auction in 2023 toraise funds for the Museum and its mission, “To boldly explorecontemporary society through art–enlightening, educating, andproviding arts leadership for our region. We connect art, artists, andcommunity”. An exhibition will showcase the masks at the Museum fromMarch 3, 2023, through May 5, 2023, with a concurrent online auction.Andrejasich and her students hope that their mask performs as well aslast year but are simply happy to have a final product.
Contact InformationEmail: graceweintrob@gmail.comPortfolio: https://bit.ly/3iL5DUWLinkedIn: Grace WeintrobGrace Weintrob, a senior in Communication studies takes photos of students working on a maskproject at the Academy of Arts and Knowledge in Fort Collins for a photo story assignment in herphotography class at Colorado State University on December 7, 2022. Photo taken by Hazel Cole.