Finished Russian Windows

Russian Windows

 I love this students idea of breaking up the window and making a smaller one!

 This student had an eye for texture!

These Russian inspired windows are finally complete!! We started these before Christmas break and I put them on hold for a few weeks to do some holiday art the week before break. The original idea came from Painted Papers blog or Flickr account. (THANKS Painted Paper!) We also looked at pictures of old Russian homes I was able to find online, and the book 'The Snow Maiden and other Russian Tales'.  I really wanted my students to pay attention to the old rustic wood details we found in some windows.  I like Painted Papers idea of using doilies for the curtains. I just did not have any and wanted to use up some patterned paper.

Day 1 (60 min)

1. On a black 9x12 piece of paper students attached 1/2 inch thick and 12 and 9 inch white strips to make window panels. They could make a cross or cut them into smaller pieces to make several sized rectangles. (See pictures above).

2. Using patterned paper students made curtains.

3. Painted paper was used to make pots for flowers and/or plants.

4. The students used tempera paint to paint flowers/plants.

Day 2 (60 min)

1. Students had the choice of blue, red, or green background and panel paper. 12x18 sheets. They then glued down their windows to the background paper.

2. They were given 6x18 strips the same color as their background. We made a 1/2 fold going along the 18 inch side and glued the strips to the background so they could open and close like shutters on a window.

3. We learned how to make a gray scale using white and black paint. Students then used the gray scale to paint wood like texture on the background and panels.

Next Country....China! 

Stay tuned :)