Happy Birthday to animator Bill Plympton

Today is animator Bill Plympton's Birthday and to commemorate the occasion they are releasing a new documentary film about his life and work titled Adventures in Plymptoons! by local Northport filmmaker Alexia Anastasio. The Simpson recently paid homage to Plympton in the opening couch scene of the recent episode “Beware My Cheating Bart” which is included below.

Painting Research Assignment: Google Art Project

This week we will be using the Google Art Project to work on our research project.  Each group has been given a museum to reseach along with a style of painting to look at specifically within that museum and each group member should choose two paintings that they will present to the class.  The groups will lead us on a tour of the museum next week using the museum view and bring us to the paintings that they will teach the class about.


Demo: Mr.Needles- Metropolitan Museum of Art (Baroque)

Group 1- Art Institute of Chicago (Impressionism)
Group 2- National Gallery of London (Renaissance)
Group 3- J Paul Getty Museum (Flemish)
Group 4- Musee D’Orsay (Art deco & Art nouveau)
Group 5- Tokyo National Museum (Ukiyo-e)
Group 6- Van Gogh Museum (Post-Impressionism)
Group - Tate Modern (Modern)

The Longhouse Reserve

Friday we had a great trip to East Hampton's Longhouse Reserve and we had a chance to create some work for this years student annual which is coming up in June. We have a week to complete and edit the work which was created there and I will be collecting it next Wednesday so it can be judged and submitted. The theme is "Outside of the Box" and there are different categories such as: photography, film, mixed media, painting, drawing, and even media like poetry and dance, take a look at the link above for more information. Here are a few of the photos that I took, I'm looking forward to seeing yours!

Film History: The 1950's

The 1950's were a huge decade in film and television with films like: On The Waterfront, The Caine Mutiny, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, All About Eve, Singing In The Rain, Blackboard Jungle, The Seven Year Itch, Peyton Place, Bridge Over the River Kwai, BEN-HUR, Anatomy of a Murder, and Rear Window.

Before we look at film we'll take a look at television, specifically the Alfred Hitchcock Presents show and we'll watch the Emmy nominated episode directed by Hitchcock himself titled "The Case of Mr. Pelham" from 1955 which stars Tom Ewell.

After the episode we'll learn a little more about Hitchcock and then watch Dial M For Murder starring Grace Kelly. The film may not be one of the most famous Hitchcock films today but it's a great example of how the master of suspense works and after the film you will be writing an two-page typed essay on the following questions:


How does the Dial M For Murder reflect the time in which it was made?

How did you feel about the main characters, Tony and Margot Wendice, as the film progressed?

How do you feel about the conclusion, what do you think happens after the final scene?

See Mr.Needles class on MSG Varsity tonight

Tonight our AP Art class will be featured on MSG Varsity's High School Experience series at 6:58 PM. on channel 14 (and later be available on MSGVarsity.com and on demand channel 614). The class was filmed as they spoke to a student from Tokyo via SKYPE in the classroom and the project was part of The Japan Society's Going Global program which has been ongoing since September.

Here's a link to the video: www.msgvarsity.com

Art House Co-op

Art House Co-op is a great cooperative with an art gallery in Williamsburg called The Brooklyn Art Library that regularly runs creative projects such as The Sketchbook project as well as The Adventure Project which we recently participated in with our advanced film class. They have an online datbase of all their submissions which is well worth checking out, here's one of my favorites: Cody Schibi: Help!

Does a Pineapple Have Sleeves?

I read Anemona Hartocillis's New York Times article on Daniel Pinkwater's story and New York States testing issues with pineapplegate and felt like I needed to add a proper illustration (after all I am a New York State art teacher).

Senior AP Show 8: Natalie

This week Natalie opened her senior show with a huge amount of work in different media and a really well done and timely beach theme. Her display included the design work for which she was recently chosen as a regional finalist in the Scholastic Art & Writing awards as well as her freelance graphic design work that she did for local businesses.

Full Sail visit today

Today the media and business college Full Sail will be coming in to speak with students about their unique media school. We've had a number of successfull students go through Full Sail's program such as Strictly Students Film Festival winner Eric Sibley who's gone on to work on films such as Jackass 3D, Captain America: The First Avenger, Thor, and the upcoming The Avengers for which he was Lead Artist in addition to those currently studying there now such as Dom Aprile and Richie "Cagemach" Vernillo.

Friday's visit to the LongHouse Reserve

Friday we will be traveling to East Hampton to visit Jack Lenor Larsen's LongHouse Reserve and tour its collections, gardens, and sculptures as well as creating work for their Student Annual. The field trip leaves at the beginning of second period so meet outside of Mr. Needles room right after first period ends. If you filled out forms for the trip and are attending make sure I have your emergency contact information and be sure to bring some supplies for creating work!

Smithtown Art Alumni visit: Heidi Younger

Wednesday we had illustrator and Smithtown alum Heidi Younger visit and talk to our AP Art class and Art Honor Society about her experiences in the art work and the evolution of her work. She gave some terrific insight into how to work professionally as and artist and pointed out that if you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life! She showed how her commercial pieces form clients such as The New York Times and Consumer Reports developed and what the time frame was emphasizing that in the world of illustrations deadlines are everything. She also was nice enough to look at students work and give them feedback about their art as well as college and future occupation ideas. Heidi has been teaching at F.I.T. for a number of years and also gave students an idea of what to expect in college.

Painting: Eames & Design

This week in class we are looking at the creative duo of Charles and Ray Eames and their contributions to art, arcitecture, design, film, and their graphics. Above is their well-known 1977 short documentary film Powers of Ten™ done for IBM and in class we will be watching exerpts of the documentary on their lives and work entitled EAMES: The Architect and The Painter.

In learning about the Eames we will also look at the Abstract Expressionist movement, especially painter and Ray's teacher Hans Hofmann and his student alumni from the Art Students League of New York such as: Lee Krasner, Joan Mitchell, Wolf Kahn, Larry Rivers, Helen Frankenthaler, Robert de Niro, Sr., and Jane Freilicher.

AP Studio Art Submission

Today in AP art class we will be signing up for the AP Studio Art Submission in preparation for the upcoming AP test in May. Below is the information you need to know to sign up:

School Code: 335001
School: SMITHTOWN HIGH SCH E CAMPUS
Teacher Key: xwt0100

If you have any questions the College Board has a web demo that gives a step by step run through the process.

Smithtown Art Alumni visit: Heidi Younger

This Wednesday we will host a visit from illustrator and educator Heidi Younger who is a Smithtown alum who has gone on to a great deal of success in the arts. She currently teaches at F.I.T. in New York and has worked with companies ranging from The New York Times to Nestle, above is an example if one of her illustrations on Cricket magazine. Take a look at some of Heidi's fantastic work on her website and see what recent things she's been working on on her blog before her visit.

Film History: Orson Welles vs. Charles Foster Kane

We watched Citizen Kane in class and discussed the amazing story of how the film was made, the technical innovations it brought to film, and the people behind it. The essential question of the film and the subject of your two page, typed essay is:

Who is Charles Foster Kane and what is his motivation?

Look at the decisions the character makes and discuss why he makes them beased on what you learned about the character and what you know about the people behind him: Orson Welles and William Randolf Hearst. The paper is due Wednesday and it's the final assignment for this quarter so make sure it's a good one!

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone had a terrific vacation and holiday and are refreshed for the Spring! Remember the quarter ends this week and the AP Studio art test is right around the corner so we are going to pick up right where we left off with a guest coming into Wednesday's mandatory Art Honor Society meeting followed-up with our field trip out East to the Longhouse on Friday

Photoshop and you, a love story...

This week in photography class we'll be learning a few technical tricks and well begin with stamps and brushes. Each student will create their own brush and make a composition using it. Here is an example that I did for the Eustace Tilley anniversary cover for The New Yorker magazine.

SKYPE session with Japan

This morning we will again be using SKYPE to talk to students in Japan from Waseda University Senior High School. Above is a short clip that I edited from out last session where we talked to Lyo. We had a chance to diswcuss what the schools are like in Japan and the Japan Society's Going Global program but as you can see in the clip we were cut short in addition to our sound issues so today we will resume the talk as well as discussing the tsunami, the election, and our cultural ideas of each others countries.

The expanded Google Art Project

The Google Art Project expanded recently adding a vast number of artworks and museums to their previous offerings. The video above gives some insight on the project and how it's done and well be using it in all of our classes when we return from vacation to virually visit museums and art spaces around the world.

Painting: Plein Air

This week in painting class we will be painting En plein air (French for "in the open air") around the school and the techniques are a bit different due to the limited amount of time we have. We will be using watercolor and ink in order to finish the pieces in time and here is an example from a plein air wiz Tommy Kane from Maine (he travels the world drawing and painting). We begin today, make sure you bring a jacket!

Photography: Black & White triptych

This week in Photography class we will be creating Black & White triptychs (three images assembled together to create a greater work). Above is a wonderful example form last semester which is focused around a general theme. You can take you images in color and then use Photoshop to make them black and white but be aware that the levels and tones should always be adjusted when making this change.

Sean Apuzzo, a Smithtown Graduate

Sean Apuzzo, a Smithtown East graduate who is currently attending the Savannah College of Art and Design will be directing a ten-minute short film about a German Messenger on the front lines of battle during World War I and his film proposal is now up on Kickstarter. It's the story of a brave, artistic German soldier of WWI, who is cared for by French locals and finds love, but turns out to be someone unexpected. You can help fund the project for as little as a dollar but there are rewards for $50, $100, and other increments and in addition to helping support out alumni you'll be part of a film!