November Youth Program Update

Last month students reviewed color theory, exploring ways to transform primary colors into secondary and tertiary blends while using watercolor paints to create colorful depictions of animal brain scan images.

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In November students will continue their journey of artistic and scientific discovery into the microscopic world of diatoms. With over 600,000 species and counting, diatoms have provided centuries of artists and scientists with inspiration that can only be seen through the use of high-powered microscopes and laboratory slides. Their unique glass-like silica shells create clear, ornate exterior borders surrounding each organism. These unique designs, when arranged intentionally, can form striking geometric displays.

The art of diatom arrangement is a nearly extinct Victorian art form. British artist and scientist Klaus Kemp is the only known living practitioner. Kemp’s techniques will be studied and used as inspiration for students to create hand-drawn diatom-like arrays. They will use radial symmetry design to create kaleidoscopes of color while examining the significant contributions these single cell micro algae make to our natural world.

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Watch a short four minute video about Klaus Kemp's art practice by Matthew Killip