Fabric/Fiber: Jeanne Akita, Wearable Fiber Art
2:39
Grades: 6 - 12
Video Description: Jeanna Akita uses sustainable fibers to create beautiful and wearable fiber art using the process of felting.
Type of Video: Profile*
Unique Video ID: AandA-JAkita**
Quick Ideas for Using the Video:
- For Discussion: What is student response to the idea of “wearable art?” Do they have anything they wear they think of as art?
- Activity Idea: Students will make their own felt in this STEM lesson. Supplies needed are wool, warm water in bowls, with a few drops of soap. Silk and flax will also work. Provide 4 to 5 inch long sections of wool to the students and encourage them to examine the wool, taking note of their observations. Next, they should start rolling the wool into a ball in the palm of their hands, as they would roll clay or cookie dough, and then dip the roll in the warm, soapy water. Rolling the ball tighter and tighter will squeeze the water out and this can be repeated until the felting is to their satisfaction. Once done, have them write a report on the experience and their observations. The felt may then be painted or dyed.
*Profile videos use a first-person/first-hand approach to highlight interesting people doing interesting things in the area of study.
**The unique Video ID can be used to quickly locate a single video in the ET collection. This search function is designed to let teachers assign students to watch a specific video and have only that video appear as a search result. Just click on Search and choose “By Video ID.” Then type in the Video ID as it appears above. Be sure to include the dash.
