AGB Kids: TEAM PLAYER
Look closely at the artwork Teamwork 2 by Australian artist Donna Marcus.
What do you think this sculpture is made from?
How do you think it has been made?
What does it remind you of or make you think about?
Inspired by Donna Marcus
Teamwork 2 2001
aluminium and plastic
Purchased, 2003
Activity 1: Paper patterns
Create a collaborative wall pattern using shapes inspired by Donna Marcus’ wall sculpture Teamwork 2. Work as a team with a family member, friend or classmate to create your artwork.
Art element: Shape
Art principal: Pattern
What you’ll need
- Coloured patty pans*
- A piece of paper
- Glue
- Scissors
*If you don’t have patty pans, cut shapes from pieces of coloured paper.
Instructions
- Draw three long, curved or wavy lines onto a piece of paper
- Fold the patty pans in half to make a semi-circle shape or cut semi-circular paper shapes
- Glue the folded paper on top of the lines, making sure each semi-circle overlaps slightly
- Continue adding semi-circles until the lines are covered and your artwork is complete.
Activity 2: Found objects
Create a collaborative wall pattern using shapes inspired by Donna Marcus’ wall sculpture Teamwork 2. Work as a team with a family member, friend or classmate to create your artwork.
Art element: Shape
Art principal: Pattern
What you’ll need
- Pegs or bottle caps
- A piece of paper
- Hot glue and hot glue gun*
*Hot glue is very hot! Make sure there is an adult to help.
Instructions
- Draw three long, curved or wavy lines onto a piece of paper
- Fold the patty pans in half to make a semi-circle shape or cut semi-circular paper shapes
- Glue the folded paper on top of the lines, making sure each semi-circle overlaps slightly
- Continue adding semi-circles until the lines are covered and your artwork is complete.
About the artist
Donna Marcus is a Brisbane based artist who creates sculptures out of objects usually found in kitchens. These objects include kitchen utensils such as plastic and aluminium teapots, jelly moulds, steamers, colanders, egg poachers and bottle–tops. By assembling similar objects together Marcus constructs abstract forms. She is inspired by the stories these objects tell and the memories they hold.
About the artwork
In her artwork Teamwork 2, in the collection of the Art Gallery of Ballarat, Marcus has assembled aluminium teapots into creatures which seem to have crawled and slithered to create a frozen moment on the wall. The teapots that make up the creatures are no longer individual objects but part of a whole. When asked how many teapots make up this piece, Marcus explained ‘being a team player is not about the individual – it’s all about teamwork’.
