Madeline Rey, Education Teen Intern
April 13th is Slow Art Day! Slow Art Day encourages people all over the world to visit their local museums and look at art slowly, really spending time appreciating the works. Research shows that, on average, people spend less than 30 seconds looking at a piece of art when they visit a museum. With the hours of work that artists put in to their craft, is 30 seconds enough time to fully appreciate a piece? Slow Art Day encourages people to spend more time looking at just a few pieces in their museum. What can you notice when you spend just a little extra time on an art piece?
What can you find in this boat?
If you said anything from a person, to a ladder, to a domino, you would be correct! Among the many tiny details in Bertil Vallien’s famous glass boats are a myriad of symbols as explains that, in his work, he tries to depict our journey as human beings. For Vallien, the boat is just a vehicle to go beyond the horizon, explaining that it has become what a canvas is of a painter.
It’s clear that Vallien is passionate about his art, and has even gone as far as to say that his world revolves around it. I find it really relaxing to look inside the pieces and see what I can find. Vallien hasn’t explained what the individual pieces mean, so it’s left to the viewer’s interpretation. In this piece there are many hidden details; I found a small, white block of glass on the bottom of the piece that reads “bullseye”. Next time you’re at the museum, see what you can find by spending a few more seconds with a work of art and looking closely!
Vallien’s boat reminded me that, when I was younger, I used to fill old water bottles with water, oil, and fun little trinkets from around the house to make a fun little snow globe/I SPY activity. It was such a memorable thing for me that, when I was thinking of a craft I could make, I wanted to share how I made these fun little bottles with you.
What you’ll need:
- Old plastic bottle(s)
- Water
- Oil (baby oil or cooking oil works best)
- Food coloring (optional)
- Glitter (optional)
- Any fun craft items you want to include in your bottle or to decorate your bottle (puff balls, googly eyes, stickers, mini figurines, small pieces of paper, even candy!). Get creative, the sky is the limit!
- Super glue (with your parent’s help!)
- A funnel
Gather all your items! Walk around and find small items you think would be fun inside your bottle. You can make your bottle have a theme like Vallien’s work or just put whatever you like in it.
First, you’ll want to rinse out your plastic bottle, especially if it was a pop or juice bottle. Then, you’ll want to fill it around ½ to ¾ of the way with water, depending on how much oil you want in there.
This is the fun part! Add the food coloring, put the lid on tightly, and shake it up! This will add a fun color to your bottle, just like how Vallien’s boat has a pink hue.
Open it back up and pop in the glitter and trinkets you’ve gathered to put inside your bottle (be sure these are not things you want back as we’re supergluing the bottle shut!). Notice which items sink and which float.
With help from an adult, put a light line of super glue all around the edge of the bottle. This will make sure the water doesn’t come out so you can shake it and tip it upside down as much as you want.
Using the funnel, carefully fill the bottle the rest of the way with oil.
Finally, decorate the outside of your bottle with stickers, glitter glue, or anything else you want. Just make sure you can still see inside the bottle!
Give the bottle a good shake! Notice what sinks fastest and what floats. Watch as the items settle and the oil and water separate again. What details do you notice the longer you look?