Talking Points: Making Drawings With Your Whole Body – Molly Haslund
A collection of imagery and sources designed to introduce children to the work of Danish artist Molly Haslund.
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The Circle Project by Molly Haslund
Teacher’s Notes
“Molly Haslund ventures out into the city wearing grey: a grey suit, grey socks and grey shoes so that she blends in with the tarmac and the pavement. She carries a huge pair of compasses much taller than herself. She stops somewhere and starts drawing a white circle on the ground. She completes the first circle and then moves the pair of compasses and starts drawing a new circle that overlaps the first one. She draws a third circle and stands in her grey shoes in the middle of the circle for a moment before snapping the pair of compasses together and moving on.” https://www.mollyhaslund.com/circles-2013-2
“… The focus is on the physical action, on the movement of the circles, and the patterns emerging and disappearing again – and of course the effect grows with the number of participants. on the other hand, if you want to draw alone, you can just withdraw a little from the rest. A bit like on the dance floor.” Molly Haslund
Watch the video with the pupils, and look at the images below. Find questions to prompt discussion at the end of this resource.
Circles, Molly Haslund, 2015, New York, Peekskill Project #6, Hudson Valley MOCA, Photo by Joe Orangias
Circles (2013), Molly Haslund, Museum of Contemporary Art, Roskilde, Denmark, Photo by Matilde Haaning
Circles, Molly Haslund, 2014, Art Week, Superkilen, Copenhagen, Denmark, Photo by Matilde Haaning
Circles, Molly Haslund, 2014, Art Week, Superkilen, Copenhagen, Denmark, Photo by Matilde Haaning
Questions to Ask Children
How would you feel if you came across these circles in your street or playground, without knowing who had made them or why? What would you do? Would they change the way you move?
How do you think Molly, the artist, chooses where to make her circles?
How could you make similar circles in your playground, using chalk tied to sticks?
How would the circles you make join up with the circles your friends make?
What would other pupils in your school think if they discovered your circles? What do you think they would do?
What other shapes could you make with your body in the playground? Would you need tools?
If music played would you make different shapes? How would the shapes be different?
This Talking Points Is Used In...
using sketchbooks to make visual notes
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