Our View

Lines and letters intersecting, twisting, and coming together in a collaboration between art and poetry; artist and viewers; mother and child. 

 We spent the afternoon at The Hirschhorn circumnavigating Linn Meyer's striking work, "Our View From Here".

Historical Bits and Pieces

We have been spending a lot of time immersed in the Colonial period: visiting a variety of living history parks/ national historic sites; reading journals, texts, and historical fiction; and working our way through the fabulous PBS "reality show", Colonial House. I have always been a voyeur and this recent historical immersion process has really been fascinating.

Time Traveling: Colonial Williamsburg

Yaocomaco and Piscataway Tribes of Maryland

 This year we are plunging into a study of Early American History and planning to take full advantage of the plethora of local historical sites. And that is why Camille and I got up early on a Saturday morning; packed the car with sunscreen, water bottles, a pile of audio books; made two quick pit stops to get freshly made doughnuts and traveling necessities (Twizzlers and Doritos); and hit the road for Historic St. Mary's City. We were hoping to make it in time to participate in their Native American Discovery Day. And as we were making the nearly two hour drive there I found myself hoping that it would be worth the drive. As soon as we arrived, it was clear to see that it was well worth the drive.  

We quickly jumped into doing a variety of hands-on activities: fire building, creating pinch pots with local clay, carving soapstone beads, and making a pokean (Native American hacky-sack made with corn husks, feathers, and beads). We learned about the native plants and food sources. Shot arrows. Helped to build mats from reeds that were collected that morning to add to the rooftops of the re-created Yaocomaco witchotts (longhouses). St. Mary's City, the first capital of Maryland, was established on the grounds of a Yaocomaco settlement. 

One of the highlights of the day was watching the Tayac Territory Singers and Dancers, members of the Piscataway Indian Nation, led by Mark Tayac son of the current hereditary chief, Chief Billy Tayac. It was hard not to be entranced by their beautiful outfits and their voices singing in Algonquin Piscataway while drumming and dancing. The Piscataway were one of the most populous and powerful tribes in the Chesapeake Bay region north of the Potomac. It was an honor to see them sharing their history and culture today. Want to learn more about the Piscataway? Meet Naiche is a good place to start. 

Project Work

It's hard to pinpoint exactly how or when this started. It could have been the fence building. That's when she asked for a hammer and nails and spent long hours in the driveways piecing scraps together. It could have been her interest in Jackson Pollock and the books we read before and after our the trip to the National Gallery to see a few of his pieces. It could have been the lecture we heard by sculptor, Ursula Von Rydingsvard. Or the books we have been reading about outsider artists.

All of these things were happening right around the time we started homeschooling which was also around the time I was taking an on-line class in project based homeschooling. Regardless of how it all started, the biggest lesson for me has been to just give her time, space, and supplies.

She had initially worked so diligently; hammering and constructing in intense chunks of time, but then the final pieces just sat for a week or two in the driveway. I started to wonder if that was the end of it until yesterday when I asked Camille if she wanted to try out some new paint. Without hesitation, she headed outside and returned to her primary piece with an idea already brewing in her mind.

Since last night she has been painting in concentrated spurts of time. Adding layers, deciding she likes the acrylic paint the best, directing me to add a few stripes while she mixed a new shade of green, and leaving things to dry before re-assessing and adding another layer.  

We are not solely project-based homeschoolers. We do have structured learning time and an eclectic curriculum that we use, but this creative work, this on-going project work of hers is so very good. I see her savoring this time to do her own work, in her own way. I see the  ebb and flow of ideas punctuated with triumphs and fails. And it's been a good lesson for me to step back and just let her work.  

Exploring: Burnt Mills Park

Bursts of yellow, kids scrambling up and over rocks, acorn whistles, and lots of sunshine: Burnt Mills Park, Silver Spring, Maryland.