Watts Tow
ers
Ms. B
uchman
Spring, 2020
We can m
ake art for the com
munity and w
e can m
ake art about our com
munities.
Today, I would like to honor the city of
Los Angeles by sharing the w
ork of S
imon R
odia, who built the W
atts Towers
using found objects.
Click the button to read along!
Sim
on Rodia used unconventional
materials to create his tow
ers. Many
artists use things other than typical art supplies to create their w
ork. Do you
have anything in your home that w
ould be unusual to m
ake into an artwork?
The Watts Tow
ers is a both a treasure and a gift for the city of Los A
ngeles. If you could create a gift for our city, w
hat w
ould it be?
Project: You can make a gift for your
comm
unity or create art with
unconventional materials. O
r you can do both at the sam
e time!
I make art about m
y comm
unity out of unconventional m
aterials. A few years
ago, I had an art show and the title w
as The B
irds of Los Angeles.
I use vintage postage stam
ps from
around the w
orld that ended up in Los A
ngeles.
I pick the stamps
that have the right colors and
textures
I keep adding pieces bit by bit.
I stop when I am
happy. This is an
Allen's
Hum
mingbird.
They live all over Los A
ngeles.
I saw this
kingfisher at the LA R
iver.
I spotted this phainopepla in E
lysian Park.
Enjoy com
ing up with your ideas and
making your art, A
ngelenos!
California Visual A
rt Anchor S
tandard 2:O
rganize and develop artistic ideas and w
ork.
Vocabulary
found objectsunconventional m
aterialscom
munity