Using "outsider art" to inspire a lesson

INTUIT gallery in Chicago is a center for intuitive and outsider art, and is a great resource for art educators. "Outsider artists" are self-taught and have no classical or typical art training. My cooperating teacher at my elementary placement school used the artist Hawkins Bolden for a lesson about using found objects to make scare crows. She told me about an anti-bullying effort the teachers are making within the school, and I thought I would follow these two themes for my lesson. Last week I focused on fiber artist Judith Scott, who spins amazing sculptures using found objects. She had down's syndrome, was deaf, and mute, and was not given the opportunity to make art until the last 20 years of her life, when her sister took her to an art center for people with disabilities in Oakland California called Creative Growth. She is a fascinating artist and I think her work is awesome. Anyway, I just wanted to share some of Judith's pieces we used for inspiration as well as student work!

Here are Judith's:

Here are are some from my seventh grade:

And adapted for kindergarten! We spent a long time learning how to tie a knot, and talking about shapes :)