Organized Chaos
Word of the Week
Geometric (Jee-uh-metric): Decorated with regular lines and shapes. It comes from the Greek words gaia, meaning “earth” and metria, meaning “a measuring of.”
Yassou!
Art is all around us. And anything can be made into a work of art if you’re creative. . .even something as simple as string!
But what about the title of this week’s blog? The Russian composer, Igor Stravinsky, once said, “Art is the opposite of chaos. Art is organized chaos.” Organized chaos is essentially a situation that seems to lack organization but ends up surprising you with its great results. Music is a wonderful example! What else? I’d say my closet could also be considered organized chaos! Perhaps a full parking lot? Can you think of another example?
Let’s keep going, and dive in to this week’s project. Grab a paper plate, some yarn, a marker, and brad fasteners. Along the border, poke the fasteners through the paper plate. Once secured, you will wrap your yarn around each brad in any order you choose, creating intricate geometric designs. You have complete control. What’s even better? This project can be as simple or complex as you’d like it to be!
Here’s a fun twist that I chose to incorporate. Label each fastener with a letter from the alphabet. Be sure to shuffle the letters around. Move your string along alphabetically to create a unique pattern. This is tricker than it sounds and is a great way to work on scanning, attention, and sequencing! While you’re busy creating, you’ll also be targeting fine motor skills. Still want an even more unique outcome? Put your own stamp on this organized chaos by spelling out names or replacing letters with numbers. The possibilities are endless!
String art dates back to the early 1900’s, when Mary Everest Boole used it to help teach mathematics to children through curve stitching. That’s a longer story for another day!
Check out this website for some slightly more complex ways to create string art using wood, nails, a hammer, and string. They sky is the limit!
https://babbledabbledo.com/how-to-do-string-art-with-kids-scaled-up-and-down/
I can’t wait to see your organized chaos!
Stay kind. . .
Gram