Portrait Boxes inspired by Joseph cornell

As each grade level is tasked with creating self-portraits of varied complexity and representational quality, I consider the developmental ability of the students to grapple with abstraction and their technical abilities to grapple with the task of making an object. In fourth grade, students are beginning to understand themselves as individuals and can also begin to work with abstraction in basic symbolism.

With this in mind we have begun to design portrait boxes as a way to show who we are. Inspired by the subtle work of Joseph Cornell, students began by working through a series of questions about themselves that were then turned into appropriate visual symbols to be included inside their boxes. Then students were taught to create a box out of only flat cardboard. This step involves a fair helping of math work as well as some great spatial engineering work. Seeing the students make choices about what kind of box they wanted to create and then think through the practical considerations of how to make such a box was inspiring. The engineering and math thought that was apparent became the topic of good conversations.

After the box was made students were asked to select fabric, ribbon, lacing, buttons, and other textiles to give their box a representational "skin". These choices again were to reflect a part of the students' self. Next comes the inclusion of small and meaningful items both drawn and gathered from the home and in class that can be mounted within the box.

And of course I must take the opportunity to revisit the appropriate proportionality of portrait drawing. There will be a proper, fully representational self-portrait included in each box alongside all of the symbolic portraiture.

Finally, a poem, written with simple and direct metaphors, is crafted and added to the box. Using metaphor allows us to visit again the idea of symbolism in creative art in an obvious way.

Though these projects take a while to complete, they offer a multi-disciplinary, multi-media, and complex problem-solving task that allows for rich, thoughtful learning and self-expression.