Patterns in Urban Settings & Nature [Arts Explorer #4]

ART WORD OF THE WEEK:

Pat·tern [pat-ern]:

• ornate and fancy, or plain and simple
• symmetrical or asymmetrical
• sequnced or alternating
• suggests flow, rhythm, motion, or movement
• suggests regularity and repetition
• can be made with forms, shapes, lines, colors, textures or symbols that move across a surface in a recurring sequence

   

                    1. Sidewalk                       2. Inside the AMC Building     3. Lights above the escalator at the Podium

         I have to admitt, I enjoyed this week's task very much; I had a lot fun snapping pictures of the various patterns that I saw in my neighbourhood. Although I didn't purposely walk down the streets of Toronto and Mississauga looking for patterns, I began to pay a lot more attention to the details of my surrounding. We're surrounded by patterns. From the patterns of my comforter, to my clothing, to the brick tiles on my walk to class. It's intriguing how often we tend to overlook these patterns; we just don't really notice them until we're forced to, and only then do we start to find them literally, EVERYWHERE. The pictures I took for this blog entry were actually all taken in and around campus. Now that I've taken notice in them, I see patterns everywhere I go!

        Children create many patterns of their own throughout their play whether through art, play dough, building blocks or puzzles. They sort objects from largest to smallest, by color, shape and/or alternating them to form a series of different patterns. They're intrigued by patterns (as am I), and it's simply wonderful to watch what they can come up with.

Crosswalk on Church and Gerrard St.

Schirrmacher, R., & Fox, J. E. (2009). Art & creative development for young children (6th ed.). Clifton Park, NY: Thomson/Delmar Learning.