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“Playing with beads stimulates the imagination, builds hand-eye coordination, reinforces basic arithmetic, and elegantly introduces patterning and designing in a way that is tactile and fun.”
-- Jeanne Leffingwell
Jeanne enjoys pushing the boundaries of the beadwork medium, whether creating a 3-story public commission or, with the help of over 2400 students, weaving an exhibit of one million beads, to illustrate important math concepts. The author of numerous articles on bead-working techniques, she has also been artist-in-residence in over 3-dozen schools and communities in the Northwest, Alaska, and Mexico.
In her teaching Jeanne shares intriguing historical aspects of the art form, its many cross-cultural connections, and her own samples from around the world. Through learning to design and create their own works in glass beads, students gain increased ability to focus and a respect for sustained artistic effort. Working with their hands to create something of lasting beauty is the final reward.
Describe a transformative process that has occurred in your own practice
as an artist or in a past residency as a teaching artist.
The culminating event in one of my first residencies was a show of my students’
work at the gallery in their city hall, which incidentally, most of them had never
been in before. When I returned for the opening (after finishing the installation
with parent volunteers and dashing home for a quick shower) I was 15 minutes late.
What I found were rooms already filled with students pulling on their parents’
and grandparents’ hands and racing around to find their own works first, then
their friends’ and then their group pieces. I took this in for a few minutes,
while no one even noticed me (the big shot Visiting Artist!). Then I realized
what a huge success it was because those students had total ownership.
When have you been able to recognize learning taking place?
I recognize learning taking place when a student who has been struggling with
a certain process or concept looks up at me unexpectedly and finishes my sentence.
Or when the room actually goes quiet because the students are all on task! (This
works for elementary age not necessarily high school…) I often recognize learning
has taken place when I compare the second or third beadwoven design a student
has created with his or her first one. When, at the beginning of a residency only
one or two students can thread a needle and by the end all of them can, I know
learning has taken place!
What excites your imagination and in turn how does your work excite imagination
for your audience?
I am excited by scale, the idea of building something wonderful and huge out of
tiny cellular bits (like beads). I find great stimulation in the mathematical
and engineering challenges of design and fabrication, and I’m a born organizer.
I love the synergy that happens when I get to draw on the skills and talents of
others. But it’s the exchange of ideas and energy, while refining and collaborating
that I find most nourishing and exciting.
What characteristics mark a successful collaboration for you?
When I look at the end result(s) and they are better than I had imagined. And
when I have more energy at the “finish” than what I started with.
How do you foster creativity, both in your own work and as a teaching
artist?
I try to breathe deeply. I write, draw, and brainstorm with others, especially
non-artists. Once in awhile I run away, to get some solitude. As a teacher, I
tell the kids they can’t possibly make a mistake I haven’t already made. I also
try to wear bright and interesting clothes so they
will wonder about me.
Three key understandings of this discipline are:
- Beads have been used in every culture in the world. They are among the earliest
artifacts found in ancient graves, and they are used to help trace the migrations
of people across continents.
- In many cultures, beads have been used to count. How long would it take
to weave one million beads?
- How do we design, graph out and execute an original design in glass beads?
Outcomes of the three understandings are:
- Students will know what the beads we use are made of. They will be familiar with different ways people have used beads. They will know what a bead is, and be able to identify many different types of beads. They will learn what the English word for bead means.
- Students will know how to write one million, one billion etc. If making part of a group art piece, they will calculate the number of beads they each contribute toward the project goal. They will help track overall progress towards the goal.
- Students will learn how to design for weaving, using graph paper, colors and/or
symbols. They will learn “Jeanne Leffingwell”s ‘4 Steps to Loom Weaving’” and
they will be able to thread needles by the end of their project.
- Students will be familiar with the three broad categories of beadwork around the world, and be able to identify samples of each.
Three Idaho Humanities Content Standards that correlate with each of the
core concepts identified above:
- Standard 3: Performance, Goal 3.2:
Communicate through the visual arts, applying artistic concepts, knowledge,
and skills
- Learn and apply principles and elements of design such as color, shape, pattern,
line, rhythm, movement, variety and repetition.
- Develop design skills: drawing, graphing, lay-out, working with grids
- Standard 2: Critical Thinking, Goal 2.2
Engage in reasoned dialogue and make informed decisions about the visual arts
- Practice communicating about the technical and aesthetic elements of their
own and their classmates; work in a “critique” or review format.
- Standard 1: Historical and Cultural Contexts, Goal 1.1
Discuss the historical and social contexts of the visual arts.
- Identify the purpose or function of a work of art that was created in the
past.
Vocabulary words that relate to this discipline:
Beading Design Glossary
grid n
1. a network of evenly spaced horizontal and vertical lines on a map, used as
a basis for finding specific points
2. a network of squares formed by horizontal and vertical lines
tem·plate n
1. something that serves as a master or pattern from which other similar things
can be made
var·i·a·tion n
5. an altered version of an original…
outline vt
1. to draw a line showing or emphasizing the shape of something
sym·met·ri·cal or sym·met·ric adj
1. having both sides of a central dividing line correspond or be identical to
each other
2. relating to or having balanced proportions, especially in two halves of a whole
a·sym·met·ri·cal or a·sym·met·ric adj
1. not arranged in a symmetrical way
com·plex n
1. a whole composed of various interrelated parts
Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Subject areas outside of the fine arts that relate to potential residency
work include:
Math
Science
Drafting and technology
Anthropology & Cultural Studies
Economics
References
- Roberta Lavadour, Executive Director or Greggory Dallas, Education Coordinator
Pendleton Center for the Arts
214 N Main Street, Pendleton OR 97801
Phone: 541-278-9201
Email: director@pendletonarts.org
- Jim Gray, Principal Sorenson magnet School for the Arts and Humanities
311 N 10th Street, Coeur d'Alene ID
Phone: 208-664-2822
Email: JGray@cdaschools.org
- Molly Pannkuk, 6th Grade Teacher
Lena Whitmore Elementary
110 S Blaine, Moscow ID 83843
(208) 882-6261
pannkukm@msd281.org
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