Circuitry Project

 For this project, I wanted to experiment with contrast and saturation. I decided to use construction paper (black and green), which I drew over with Posca paint markers to create a starry night sky and rolling hills. I decided to start with creating the basic background. Next, I figured out where I wanted the "brightest stars" to go, and I poked holes into the paper with the prongs of the lights. Once the lights were positioned, I started the circuit on the back of the paper, creating paths from the negative prongs downwards so they would meet and lead to the battery. After that, I positioned the battery, creating a flap.  Then, I created similar paths from the positive prongs to the front side of the battery. I had to dip into some conductive thread (I ran out of the tape) to complete the circuit. I flipped the piece back to the front and decided to turn the flap into a lily pad floating in a pond. Finally, I created an origami frog to jump off the lily pad, resulting in a functional and creative switch mechanism. 

This was a challenge to create. My mind was scrambled in the process of trying to create the circuit and come up with a concrete idea, so I let the materials guide me. By starting with a dark night sky I had enough of an idea to begin creating the circuit. The placement of the battery is what allowed my idea to emerge of creating a pond and lily pads. Adding the final touches in the pond, the grass, flowers, and moon really brought everything together. Creating circuits inspires awe in the maker, reminding us of how desensitized we are to our constant exposure to electricity. In the classroom, concepts such as parallel circuits can be taught to middle and high schoolers, with elementary schoolers starting with the basic concepts of positive and negative poles. There are so many opportunities for circuitry to be utilized in an interdisciplinary manner, bringing STEM concepts into the art room. This opens a door for students to flesh out their ideas in multiple mediums.