1. Preparation Process The focus of this course was on patterns and stamps, so the preparation mainly centered on designing and selecting the patterns and choosing the materials. Considering the symbolic meanings and representativeness of flowers, we selected four types: Bombax ceiba (silk tree), Bauhinia blakeana (Hong Kong orchid tree), Lotus, Peony, and Orchid. Each flower represents a different country or region, making the designs more regionally significant. For example, the Bombax ceiba is the district flower of the course location, Zhongzheng District. In the design, we maintained a unified style and standard, using smooth and soft lines to create the patterns, with additional linear decorations based on the characteristics of each flower. To provide students with more choices for composition, we created many different angles and variations for each flower, allowing for a more diverse presentation during creation. For material selection, considering the practicality of canvas bags, we tested ink pads and acrylic paint. Ultimately, due to the wider range of color variation with acrylics, we decided to use acrylic paint for this activity. Additionally, we applied a protective varnish to safeguard the designs, making the final product more practical. The canvas bags used for demonstration were designed with four different compositions and creative techniques, such as surrounding arrangement, stacking and intercrossing, masking with white space, and combining hand-drawing. These were provided as references for students. Written examples included color combinations, gradients, and color mixing instructions to help students create more efficiently and creatively. 2. Course Overview This course focused on flowers and included over thirty unique patterns for students to use in their projects. Students could mix various colors using acrylic paint and combine techniques like overlapping, masking, and gradients to create personalized canvas bags that not only allowed them to express their creativity but also resulted in practical works of art. 3. Course Feedback At the beginning of the flower introduction, the students’ reactions were somewhat indifferent, possibly due to the lack of engaging presentation. However, when we introduced the technique of stamping on canvas bags, we were a bit nervous, and our lack of proficiency with the technique showed. As a result, we couldn't make the stamp impressions convincingly in front of the students. Towards the end of the course, one student came over to compliment us on our performance. They mentioned that although we were a bit nervous at first, by the end of the class, we had improved significantly and were more stable. This small piece of feedback gave us a big confidence boost, not just as verbal encouragement but also as a validation of our class. 4. Overall Reflections Overall, the course was challenging from the start. From discussing the course content and flower patterns to liaising with the stamp supplier and organizing the final class presentation and receiving feedback from students, these experiences were things we couldn't learn in university classrooms. Considering that not everyone is skilled at drawing, we chose to use stamps as the medium for students to freely express their creativity on canvas bags. However, we did not anticipate the cost of custom stamps, which exceeded our expectations and consumed almost the entire budget. As a result, we had to make do with existing materials like paintbrushes and cloths to avoid additional expenses. On the day of the class, despite the help from teachers, the three of us assistant instructors were primarily responsible for running the class, which made us quite nervous due to our lack of experience. When students had questions, we did our best to clarify and guide them, allowing them to feel comfortable creating their work. Cleaning the stamps after use required some time, but because of time constraints, some students rushed through the cleaning process. When we were packing up at the end, we initially said students didn’t need to help, but upon reflection, we realized it would have been better to delegate some clean-up tasks to students to reduce the time pressure. We also thought it might be useful to schedule more breaks to better prepare the assistant instructors for the afternoon session. Ultimately, the feedback from students was filled with understanding and praise, and they expressed interest in attending similar activities in the future. The materials we had left, particularly the stamps, were the most costly, so we hope to incorporate these stamps with other practical items in future activities to create personalized, useful small products.

Implemented by Center for Teaching and Learning Development
Date: 2024/07/03