beta carrot teen (gretta) reporting on superhero day

No matter what art class I'm in, I seem to revert back to vegetables. In my fall art elective I made an art book called "Forgotten Veggies". These lovely veggies were produced in my Experimental Art class. In this class we focused on the necessities for life: food, clothing, and shelter. Although some may argue about the clothing aspect, I think we can all agree food is imperative to our survival. Seeing as I love beets and carrots, I made these out of newspaper, masking tape, and paint. The beets are a little larger than life and the carrot is just plain huge.

I learned this simple sculpting style on a trip to Bread and Puppet, a political theater company in Glover, VT a few summers ago. They believe in "cheap art"; art that costs very little make and can be shared for a  low price. I crumpled the newspaper into the shape I wanted and then covered it in masking tape. I painted them the colors you see here. High-tech, eh? The beet greens were kind of a pain, but overall it was worth it.

I have found use for the carrot. Last week, an underclassman at my school organized Superhero Day. We were all supposed to have a superhero outfit prepared, and at some point in the day it would become apparent that supervillains were trying to take over the world. Sadly, only about 6 kids participated, but it was still really fun. I was Beta Carrot Teen, and the giant carrot was my weapon of choice. I could turn people orange so other superheroes could see they were villains and capture them. I wore some awesome suspenders and a shirt I silkscreened with my "Carrot" screen. And of course, a cape. I wish I had a picture to share, but I wouldn't want to give away my secret identity.

Mom says she wants the beets for her birthday. I guess that's progress because usually when I ask her what she wants she replies "world peace". I've had trouble coming by world peace lately, but I guess I'll keep trying! :)