The Shape Game

  • The Game Begins

    First, every player chooses a color.

    Next, each player draws a single shape on their own paper. Then, they pass their paper to the player on their right. At the end of the game we have a picture.

  • Hand Two Ways

    We discovered that even if you start with the same shape, there are a lot of different ways that the picture can grow.

    The only limit is your imagination!

  • The possibilities are endless

    We turned a simple S shape into a plant eating dragon…and what could have been an eye or an almond became a happy plant buzzing with insects and tiny climbers.

  • Stories emerge

    Where do these images come from?

    As the pictures are passed around, each player adds their own dreams and ideas until a collaborative fantasy forms.

  • And then, one day...

    Meet Carl. Carl is a character created by students from San Miguel School in Providence. During a Shape Game, they began laughing at a character who appeared in one of the group drawings. They decided to call him Carl, and created a world of woe for poor Carl on his graduation day.

SHOWTIME!

  • Showtime!

    In this 10 week workshop made possible by the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts, kids of all ages had a chance to create a performance of their own.

  • What do you get...

    The kids at Smith Hill discovered a magic trick! Here is the secret formula:

    Start with colorful masks…

  • Add some Mutant Finger Puppets

    These are the townspeople who inhabited our fantasy world.

  • and some big kids for protection

    Just in case something happens…

    this fantasy world can be dangerous!

  • Throw in some flying saucers

    The kids cleverly disguised theirs as cute baby kittens.

  • and finally (for good measure) Dracula.

    We warned you – this world can be dangerous!

  • And...IT'S SHOWTIME!

    The final result was The Magic Treehouse, a once in a lifetime extravaganza that was so awesome it boggled the mind of our Wise Old Tree.

    Did you miss it? Just wait. We’ll be back.

Carl

  • The Creation of Carl

    Carl began as a shape on a page and grew into the cursed character he is today when the kids from San Miguel middle school in Providence brought him to life in my Drawing workshop at Smith Hill Library.

  • The Day Started Out Great

    Carl woke up happy. He had just passed all his tests and today he would graduate. Best of all, he could choose anything he wanted for lunch and he wanted his favorite food in the whole world– PIZZA!

  • Disappointment Looms

    But when graduation was over and Carl got to the pizza shop, it was closed!!! Frustrated and unhappy, he decided to steal a car.

    Carl was not very good at dealing with frustration.

  • Karma Gets Carl.

    But life has a way of evening the score. Just as Carl was about to get on the highway and drive away, the karma caught up with him – a giant caterpillar decided that he was as hungry as Carl was…and he swallowed Carl whole in a single bite!

  • The Fish God

    After the caterpillar swallowed Carl, he returned home to his garden and turned on the hose. But Carl was complaining so loudly from inside of his belly that the flowers all jumped to escape from the noise.

    The garden was torn and uprooted. All seemed lost – then suddenly, the Fish God appeared overhead. She waved her Great Fin over the land, setting Carl free. The caterpillar had a microwave dinner instead of Carl, and the flowers returned to the now quiet garden.

  • The Pearls

    But Carl was a bit different from the person he had been before. He was a lot nicer. He returned Rusty Wheeler’s car and with the reward money, bought a set of pearls and some stained glass shades from the 60’s. He looked so cool that he decided to go to the amusement park.

    He was well on the way when one of the colored lenses began to shake and then slowly rise out of the wire frames.

  • The Eyeglass Escapes?

    Just then Carl heard a shrill ring that kept getting louder. The eyeglass lens started spinning, then Carl began spinning and the world seemed to flip over like a pancaske .

    When he opened his eyes it was morning and his alarm was ringing. “Graduation Day!” called his Mom. “What do you want for your special lunch?”

    “Anything but pizza!” said Carl.