Younger Children

Younger Children
silhouette of wire sculpture
Beth Campbell
American, born 1971
Spontaneous future(s), Possible past
2019
PDF icon campbell_education_yc.pdf

 

 

Subject: Moveable Mobile
Activity: Create a mobile using only wire and string
Materials: Wire hanger; yarn, ribbon, or string; pipe cleaners
Vocabulary: Mobile, balance, line, shape

Introduction: 

Artist Beth Campbell makes mobiles out of lightweight materials like wire that hang from ceilings. They are so light they move with just a small breeze. When the air moves the wires, the shape of the entire sculpture changes. 

Questions: 

How did the artist make this sculpture?

The sculpture moves with a light breeze, without touching it, what else could make the sculpture move? 

Activity: 

Using a wire hanger as your base, twist, tie, knot, and loop yarn, string, or pipe cleaners to create a mobile. You can use different materials, or the same material like artist Beth Campbell. Try to loop or tie ends of strings onto other strings and watch your mobile grow longer and longer!

Hang your mobile on a door frame or a fan and watch it sway in the breeze!

 

BTW: 

Beth thinks of this sculpture as a drawing floating in space. She used the drawing in this lobby to help her design the sculpture.

Look Again: 

What is similar about the drawing and sculpture? What is different?

Vocabulary: 

Mobile - A sculpture that is hung from the ceiling and moves freely in the air
Balance - An arrangement of shapes and colors where no part is more important than another
Line - A straight or curved mark that does not connect
Shape - A form like a circle, square, or triangle