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best of art class curator

February 14, 2017 Leave a Comment

Interpreting the Power of the Kongo Nkisi N’Kondi

Inside: Have students use drawing and kinesthetic activities to explore the Nkisi Nkondi power figures from the Kongo people.

Can a student connect with and understand an artwork from Africa without any contextual information? One of the biggest struggles in teaching art from other cultures is that it is not so easily discussed and interpreting through our Western lens.

In my recent online workshop, How to Talk about Art with Kids, I asked the participants how their questioning strategy might differ between these three artworks.

 nkisi nkondi

 

The participants said that they would focus more on emotion and story for the first artwork, the elements and principles for the second artwork, and the history and use of the object for the third (nkisi nkondi). Each artwork lends itself to a different type of discussions, but I believe that any artwork has a meaning already in it that we (and our students) can discover through enough looking and discovery.

The nkisi nkondi, while it may seem so different and foreign, can be interpreted by a group of students to determine its meaning, function, and purpose just through close looking and targeted questions from the teacher.

With my middle school students, I have recently begun a unit on African sculpture. We will be looking at all sorts of different sculpture from around Africa before we make one culminating time-capsule-ish artwork that pulls together big ideas from multiple types of African sculpture.

 nkisi nkondi

We started the unit with some of my favorite artworks from any time or culture, the Nkisi Nkondi power figures from the Kongo people of West Central Africa. These nkisi nkondi sculptures are truly captivating and exciting to anyone who sees them. From other teachers catching a glimpse at my copies in the office to the first reactions of the students to subs passing through, everyone stopped in their tracks to look more closely.

 nkisi nkondi
Met Museum

See if you can figure out what these nkisi nkondi sculptures were all about on your own before reading on.

Ask yourself:

  • What’s going on here? Describe the sculpture–its contents, proportion in art, and pose.
  • What do you think the nails are for? Were they placed there by the artist all at the same time or were the hammered in over a longer period of time?
  • How do you think the nkisi nkondi was used by the people who made it? What was its function?
  • What is the personality of this person? What is he doing?

 nkisi nkondi

After discussing the nkisi nkondi and developing ideas about it, I invite my students to stand up and put themselves into the pose of the nkisi nkondi as well as mimic the facial expression of the figure. It’s a pretty hilarious activity, but in all of my classes that did this, at least one student came to a conclusion that is close to the object’s original meaning.

After asking how they felt (after giggling about how they feel like they might be pooping), many students said they felt powerful. One 9th grader said he felt like a teacher getting onto a student, and a 6th grader said she felt like a parent getting onto her child.

I asked the students what it would feel like to be on the other side of that stance. What if this person were standing in front of you like that; how would you feel? Students said they would feel smaller, intimidated, or that they had done something wrong.

 nkisi nkondi

After the activity, I explain to the students the actual meaning and function of the artwork. Nkisi N’Kondi means “hunting spirit,” and its job in the community is to be an enforcer–enforcing laws and treaties, sealing vows/promises, and getting rid of evil. The students who felt like they were a teacher getting onto their students were right!

Important medicines, ancestral earth, and other things were placed in the stomach of the nkisi nkondi to give it the power and bring in the hunting spirit. In most cases, the hole was covered with a shell or mirror. When a promise or treaty was made, community members would drive a nail into the nkisi nkondi sealing the vow. If that promise was broken, the Nkisi N’kondi would hunt down the wrong-doer and punish him or her for his misconduct.

 nkisi nkondi

To spend some more quality time with the art as well as practice drawing skills, I had my students draw the Nkisi Nkondi.

 nkisi nkondi

We also looked at and discussed Congo artist Trigo Piula’s usage of the nkisi nkondi figure in a contemporary painting.

 nkisi nkondi

We will use elements of this sculpture, the Benin relief sculptures, and others to create one artwork that explores what fuels us as individuals in the way that the medicines and other items placed in the Kongo sculpture gave it its life.

Mentioned on the Art Class Curator Podcast…

SPARKworks Lesson: Kongo Peoples, Nkisi N’Kondi Power Figure

This is a full lesson on the Nkisi N’Kondi Power Figures from the Kongo peoples. Students will explore and connect with this artwork through discussion, kinesthetic activities, and more!

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This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

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Filed Under: Art and Artists, Art Connection Activities
Tagged With: best of art class curator

 

September 21, 2016 3 Comments

The Two Fridas – Art Discussion Lesson

The Two Fridas main image 700x1000

During the first week of school, three teachers and administrators at my new school told me, “All of the middle school hated art and music last year. All of them.” And, they didn’t just hate it, they LOATHED it. Let me tell you, that gave me a great confidence boost to start the new school year. Yikes.

I think the students hated it for a variety of reasons – from it being treated like a core class at the school (you can FAIL ART?!) to a lack of resources for the former teacher (no projector, no sink, tiny art prints, no real classroom). I had to come in with a strong plan to change these students’ minds from Day One!

In addition to all of the procedure practice and syllabus blah blah blah, we’re going to start talking and thinking about art!

The Two Fridas main image 700x1000

We started with The Two Fridas by Frida Kahlo. On one side of the paper, I had them write two observations about the first Frida and on the other half of the paper, they wrote two observations about the second Frida. After going over (and practicing) behavior expectations and procedures for group work and for discussions, I led a full class discussion on this artwork. They ate this painting up, and we ended up spending most of a class period dissecting it!

Free Worksheet!

The Two Fridas – Art Discussion Lesson

The Two Fridas, like much of the work of Frida Kahlo, is a great painting on which to practice your students’ art interpretation skills through a classroom discussion.

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Free Worksheet!

The Two Fridas – Art Discussion Lesson

The Two Fridas, like much of the work of Frida Kahlo, is a great painting on which to practice your students’ art interpretation skills through a classroom discussion.

The Two Fridas, like much of the work of Frida Kahlo, is a great painting on which to practice your art interpretation skills. Her paintings are so personal, so real, and so cool. I don’t want you to read anything below until you have clicked the link and looked at the painting on your own (the same goes for your high schooler). Go through these discussion questions and think about it first. Promise?

The Two Fridas, Frida Kahlo, 1939
The Two Fridas, Frida Kahlo, 1939

Questions to ask:

  • What’s going on in this painting? What do you see that makes you say that?
  • Who are these women? What is their relationship?
  • How are they dressed? Why are they dressed that way?
  • How are the two women the same? How are they different?
  • What is different about the two hearts? What do you think that means?
  • What is she holding (look at the close-up shots in this link, scrolling down the page)? Why is she holding that? Why is she using that tool?
  • What do the blood, veins, and heart symbolize?
  • What emotions are present in this artwork? What do you see that makes you say that?
  • How does her use of color contribute to the feeling of the painting?
  • What do you think this artist is trying to say here … What is the meaning or message?

I’m hesitant to give you any information about this because your ideas are just as important as the “real meaning.” But I’ll share a bit to whet your appetite. Did you keep your promise and look/think first? I’m trusting you. Okay, this painting shows two elements of the artist and her mixed ancestry. One side displays her father’s German-Jewish descent, and the other side illustrates her mother’s Mexican roots.

The real story shows her tumultuous relationship with the famous Mexican muralist, Diego Rivera. This link has a great roll-over activity showing key elements of the painting and highlights some of the elements of her relationship with Diego.

frida-kahlo-dialogue

After the discussion, I had some of the students in their groups (3 at a table) come up with a few lines of imagined dialogue between the two Fridas. I really enjoyed having the students act out their lines of dialogue. Overall, this was such a fun lesson for both me and my new students.

Mentioned on the Art Class Curator Podcast…

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Filed Under: Art and Artists
Tagged With: best of art class curator, frida kahlo

 

September 18, 2016 Leave a Comment

Puzzles About Art: The Chimpanzee Painter

I am totally obsessed with teaching art and aesthetics. I use aesthetics puzzles such as the one below to address this fun and engaging philosophical questions in the classroom.

The Art Curator for Kids - Aesthetics Puzzles about Art - The Chimpanzee Painter


Please note, this post includes Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

One of my favorite books that I used to use when I taught college art appreciation was called Puzzles About Art: An Aesthetics Casebook (no longer in print I think). The book has lots of small aesthetics case studies with philosophical discussions about art. It really gets you thinking!

Aesthetics Lesson Bundle

What is art? Get your students in the mindset to THINK in art class and lead fun art discussions with this lesson bundle!

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What is aesthetics?

Aesthetics is the philosophy of art. Every time you say “My kid could have done that!” in a museum, you are engaging in an aesthetics discussion worthy of the great philosophers. Examples of “aesthetic questions” include “What is art?” “What is an artist?” “Why is that art and that not?” “Why did that artwork sell for $4 million?” “Does art have to be beautiful to be considered art?” “Can something be art if it was not made by an artist?” “Are a child’s drawings art?”

The Chimpanzee Painter

chimpanzee at los angeles zoo photo credit Aaron Logan
Photo Credit: Aaron Logan

Recommended Age: Upper Middle and High School

Source:
This activity is adapted from Battin, M.P., Fisher, J., Moore, R., and Silvers, A. (1989). Puzzles about art: An aesthetics casebook. New York: St. Martin’s Press which is no longer in print. I make no claim to the content; I just think it is an awesome resource!

 The Situation:
“Betsy the Chimpanzee in the Baltimore Zoo is given some paints and some paper; with them, she creates various products, some of which might be called paintings. Even if Betsy’s works are not masterpieces, they are undeniably interesting and appealing in their own way. Selected pieces of Betsy’s paintings are displayed for a month at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago then at the Chicago Art Institute. In both exhibitions, Betsy’s works are greatly admired by the viewing public.” — Puzzles about Art

Aesthetics Puzzles Chimpanzee painting_congo_painting.jpg
Painting by a Chimpanzee named Congo

 The Aesthetic Question:

  • Is Betsy’s work art?  Why or why not? Explain.
  • Does the decision to put it in a museum change its “art” status? Why or why not?
  • If it is art, who is the artist? The chimpanzee? The museum? The zoo staff who had the original idea? Explain.

Commentary:
This is a great question with no real answer. It calls to mind questions of intent. Can a chimpanzee intend to make art or is he or she just playing with the supplies? Is art about the final product, or is it about the idea? If it is about the idea, wouldn’t that make the artist the zoo worker?


I just found out you can buy prints of Chimpanzee art here at the Humane Society website! So cool. Proceeds from that sale go to support chimpanzee sanctuaries. This is not an affiliate link. It’s just neat.

What do you think? Is it art? Why are why not? Answer in the comments!

Mentioned on the Art Class Curator Podcast…

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This post was originally published in May 2014.

Filed Under: Art and Artists, Downloads and Resources
Tagged With: best of art class curator

 

March 28, 2016 6 Comments

How to Compare and Contrast Art to Teach Art History

Inside: Use these techniques artwork examples to compare and contrast art in your classroom. Art comparison help students see the art in a new way and make the conventions of an art movement more clear and understandable.

If I had to pick my favorite teaching method for art history, it probably would be compare and contrast art. When you place two artworks next to each other, new ways of understanding the art can open up!

Compare and Contrast art

There are multiple ways to compare and contrast art:

  • comparing works of art from the same art movement or period to look for commonalities and shared themes,
  • comparing two depictions of the same subject,
  • comparing works of art from one period with works from the period that came before,
  • and probably many more!

Using Compare and Contrast to Teach Art History

In this post, I focus on comparing works from one period with art from the period that comes before. I love this method because, in addition to reviewing prior knowledge, you teach students to discover the conventions of the art movement or period on their own.

It’s easy to tell students that the conventions of Baroque art are contrasted between light and dark, intimate compositions, use of contemporary everyday models, foreshortening, etc, but they won’t remember it unless they find those things for themselves. When you put a Baroque artwork next to a Renaissance artwork, those conventions become immediately clear.

Use the following artwork pairs to have students better understand and connect with the conventions and themes of the art periods.

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This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

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Get the Full Lesson!

This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

Compare and Contrast Art Examples: Renaissance/Baroque

In my Italian Baroque lesson (which you can download as a member of The Curated Connections Library), I have 4 sets of images that I print and have students compare and contrast art in small groups. My favorite set is Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper and Caravaggio’s Supper at Emmaus.

Side by side-The Last Supper and Supper at Emmaus, art comparisons
At left: Caravaggio, Supper at Emmaus, 1601; At right: Leonardo Da Vinci, The Last Supper, 1495

Lead a discussion on these artworks being sure to note the differences in the lighting, the people, the setting/background, the positions of the people, the lines, and the colors.

Compare and Contrast Art Examples: Ancient Rome/Byzantine

After Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, art took a drastic turn from the focus on man to the focus on God. I love to compare this Roman mosaic with the mosaic of Justinian and his attendant.

Justinian and two athletes mosaics, how to compare and contrast art paintings
At left: Mosaic, Church of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy, Justinian and his Retinue (noblemen, patrons, attendants), 6th Century C.E. At right: Floor mosaic from Baths of Caracalla , Vatican Museums, Rome, Two athletes, c.200-500 C.E.

The differences in subject matter are clear. The Roman artwork glorifies the strength and the body of a man while the Byzantine artwork no longer shows the men with realistic proportions in art. Students will note the differences in body proportions, the use of color and pattern, and the Byzantine complexity vs. the Roman simplicity.

Compare and Contrast Art Examples: Romanesque/Gothic

Romanesque is kind of a weird art period to teach. It is so varied and transitional. Putting a Romanesque building next to a Gothic really trains students to look closely at details and notice the glory and impressive engineering of a Gothic Cathedral!

Gothic architecture comparing artworks
At left: Abbey of la Madaleine, Vézelay, Photo Credit: Delta 51; At right: Cathedral at Reims, Photo Credit: bodoklecksel

Check out this past post on teaching Gothic architecture for more information about this side-by-side.

Resource Library Subscribers: Download the Gothic PowerPoint.

Compare and Contrast Art Examples: Neoclassical/Romantic

The honor and stoicism of Neoclassical art is a great contrast to the emotional turmoil of Romanticism. Compare David’s Oath of the Horatii with Delacroix’s Lady Liberty Leading the People.

compare and contrast art history
At left: Eugene Delacroix, Liberty Leading the People, 1830; At right: Jacques-Louis David, The Oath of the Horatii, 1784

Patriotism and nationalism are key themes in both of these art movements, but this manifested in their art in incredibly different ways. This art comparison works really well too with a poetry writing exercise. Have students write haikus about the paintings, and then compare the language used in each.

Compare and Contrast Art Examples: Impressionism/Post-Impressionism

I find Post-Impressionism a little harder to teach than other art movements. It’s mainly just a collection of artists in this strange transition period between Impressionism and Modern Art. It’s Impressionism but it’s not. It’s Fauvism but it’s not.

compare and contrast art
At left: Claude Monet, Wheatstacks (End of Summer), 1890-91; At right: Vincent van Gogh, The Starry Night, 1889

Putting a Van Gogh next to a Monet works as an art comparison because you can really notice the addition of emotion. I describe Post-Impressionism to my students as Impressionism+Emotion+Bolder, Unrealistic Colors.

Classroom Connection


The compare and contrast art activity from the bundle of free art appreciation worksheets is a great way to get students thinking.

What other artworks do you like to compare and contrast with your students? Please share in the comments!

Filed Under: Art Connection Activities, Art Teacher Tips, Featured
Tagged With: best of art class curator, caravaggio, claude monet, eugene delacroix, jacques-louis david, leonardo da vinci, vincent van gogh

 

March 21, 2016 6 Comments

7 Surrealist Games to Unlock Creativity

Surrealist art is some of the most fun and accessible art for students. It is so meaty and weird and creative that kids naturally gravitate towards it. Not only do my students love Surrealism, but I love to teach it! Check out these fun Surrealist games to get your students into the minds of the Surrealist artists.

7 Surrealist Games

Please note, this post includes Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

What is Surrealism?

lobster-telephone-1938
Salvador Dalí, Lobster Telephone, 1938
Dali lobster quote

Surrealism encompassed a literary, intellectual, and artistic movement that developed in the 1920s and continued through the 1960s. Surrealist artists proposed that art should free the individual from the “rational” to express personal desires and release the mind from the shackles of conventional thought.

Surrealists were influenced by psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud’s theories of the struggle in the human mind between the conscious and the unconscious.

In this post, I also include some activities from the Dada art movement. Dada was a precursor to Surrealism, and many Dada artists became Surrealists.

conscious-unconscious in surrealism

7 Surrealist Games to Unlock Creativity

Surrealists often used art and word games to access the subconscious, their dreams, and their inner selves. Try these games out with your students. These are fun ways to understand Surrealism, but you could also use these games to spark ideas for student artworks.

Exquisite Corpse

Exquisite Corpse was a Surrealist game developed in the 1920s, in which sentences or drawings were created by a group of people – each person unaware of what previous players had written or drawn. The result is a collaborative, inspiring work of art.

To play, have each member of a group come up with a random word. One student comes up with an adjective, the next a noun, the next a verb, and so on. Then, have them put them all together to create crazy sentences. Take it a step further and have students design artworks about their new crazy sentences.

You can find a full Surrealism PowerPoint in The Curated Connections Library.

Get the Full Lesson!

This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

Join the List

Get the Full Lesson!

This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

Definitions / Questions & Answer

Similar to Exquisite Corpse, have one person write a word on a piece of paper and then fold the paper to disguise the original word. The next person then writes a definition.

An alternate version of this is for one person to write a question and the next person writes an answer.

Telephone

whisper

Did you know you were practicing a Surrealist technique when you played Telephone growing up? Sit in a circle in a group, and have one person whisper a phrase to the person next to them. Each person then whispers what they hear until it makes it around.


I’ve also played a related board game with my friends called Telestrations. It’s a drawing version of the old game, telephone. You draw a phrase from the card and then pass it. The person you pass it to guesses what you drew. Then, they pass it for the next person to draw. You continue until the original artists get their booklet back. In the end, you compare the guesses and drawings to see how close to the original phrase you got. We had a great time with this! Lots of laughs. This game is rated for ages 12 and up.

Automatic Drawing

One strategy surrealists used was automatic drawing. On a blank piece of paper, have students draw continuously for several minutes without thinking about what they are going to draw. Let their hands flow freely over the paper without self-censorship.

Andre Masson-Automatic Drawing
André Mason, Automatic Drawing, 1924

Surrealist artists did this to let the subconscious take over. Hopefully, by freeing yourself from planning and censorship, your true psyche can be revealed.

You can also do automatic writing and automatic sculpture!

Reassemble Reality

Dadaists and Surrealists loved to use collage techniques to unlock new meaning in the world. I love this artwork by Hannah Hoch which comments on gender in the media. Even in 1919, we were revolting against unrealistic standards of beauty.

Hoch-Da Dandy
Hannah Hoch, Da Dandy, 1919, Photomontage

Notice how Hoch uses both text and images in her artwork.

Another Surrealist activity you could do is to write a dadaist poem. These instructions straight from Tristan Tzara, one of the leaders of the dada movement:

Take a newspaper.

Take a pair of scissors.

Choose an article as long as you are planning to make your poem.

Cut out the article.

Then cut out each of the words that make up this article and put them in a bag.

Shake it gently.

Then take out the scraps one after the other in the order in which they left the bag.

Copy conscientiously.

The poem will be like you.

And here you are a writer, infinitely original and endowed with a sensibility that is charming though beyond the understanding of the vulgar.
– Tristan Tzara

Create New Myths, Superstitions, and Proverbs

Surrealists enjoyed playing with reality and shattering expectations. For this activity, create a new myth, superstition, or proverb.

cat proverb

BONUS ACTIVITY: Turn your proverb into a meme!

What’s Wrong with this Picture?

“In a well-known game children are invited to examine a picture and find elements in it that are somehow “wrong”: A person standing in midair; a dog reading a book, etc. In our surrealist version of the game, first played on July 1988 at La Choza Restaurant on Paulina Street in Chicago, each player identifies the “wrong”, or anomalous elements in a ordinary, mass-circulation picture.” (Source: Arsenal: Surrealist Subversion, No. 4 by Franklin Rosemont)

Try the game with this picture. Be inspired by Surrealist artists and go for the ridiculous.

William Gottlieb, Portrait of Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Ray Brown, Milt (Milton) Jackson, and Timmie Rosenkrantz, Downbeat, New York, N.Y., ca. Sept. 1947, Library of Congress
William Gottlieb, Portrait of Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Ray Brown, Milt (Milton) Jackson, and Timmie Rosenkrantz, Downbeat, New York, N.Y., ca. Sept. 1947, Library of Congress

More Surrealist Games

A Book of Surrealist Games is a great collection of over 100 Surrealist games! I recently purchased it, and I’ve been having a fun time flipping through.

Surrealism (and Dada!) Lesson Downloads

I have a Surrealism lesson and a Dada lesson in The Curated Connections Library which includes some of these Surrealist games.

Filed Under: Art and Artists, Art Connection Activities, Featured
Tagged With: best of art class curator

 

January 18, 2016 8 Comments

Character Analysis Art Activity: Twitter Perspectives

The Art Curator for Kids - Character Analysis Art Activity - Twitter Perspectives
The Art Curator for Kids - Character Analysis Art Activity - Twitter Perspectives

One great way to analyze and interpret a work of art is to do character analysis–looking at visual clues to understand the motives, actions, thoughts, and feelings of the characters in the artwork.

In my Art Appreciation Printable Worksheet Bundle that you can get for free by signing up for my e-mail list, there is an activity I created called “Twitter Perspectives” that focuses on this way of interpreting art. (You can also find more character analysis activities in the art worksheets 25 pack for $12).

Free Worksheets!

Art Appreciation Worksheets

In this free bundle of art worksheets, you receive six ready-to-use art worksheets with looking activities designed to work with almost any work of art.

Download

Free Worksheets!

Art Appreciation Worksheets

In this free bundle of art worksheets, you receive six ready-to-use art worksheets with looking activities designed to work with almost any work of art.

Art Activity Instructions: Study the characters in the artwork. Think about what the character thinks and feels. Then, write tweets from the perspective of the characters in the work. Create a twitter username that fits your perspective of the character.

Get this worksheet and more to explore art in the free Art Appreciation Worksheet bundle by clicking the button below.

Here are some artwork suggestions to use with this worksheet:

How did it go? Please share one of your tweets about these artworks in the comments or tag me on twitter!

This post was originally posted on July 14, 2014.

Filed Under: Downloads and Resources
Tagged With: bartolome esteban murillo, best of art class curator, edouard manet, eugene delacroix, georges de la tour, gian lorenzo bernini

 

September 13, 2015 7 Comments

Exploring Narrative in Art

the Art Curator for Kids - Exploring Narrative in Art-700x1000
the Art Curator for Kids - Exploring Narrative in Art

One of the best ways for a student to connect with art is through narrative or story. Really, it’s not just appropriate for just students–we all connect through narrative. Narrative is how all of us see the world and how we connect with each other. We put together stories in our heads for situations in our lives. We try to fill in the blanks. And when we first see a work of art for the first time, we often go straight to narrative (if the strong emotions in the work don’t grab us first!).

The benefits of including narrative writing in your curriculum are many: from emotional expression to social and cultural awareness and understanding to developing creativity. Hearing others’ stories and telling your own story are powerful.

Art is a natural fit for narrative because much art tells a story, but that story is up for interpretation from the viewer. The story and the art itself changes depending on who is looking at it. The artist leaves us clues and descriptors and emotions, and we are left to put the pieces together. It is exciting and creative and challenging.

I say it is challenging, but really our kids don’t find it as daunting as we do as adults. They are primed for story creating, and all we need to do is help guide them through the process. The rest of this post gives you a step by step guide to exploring narrative through art.

Analyze the Painting: Visual Thinking Strategies

This human focus on the narrative is what led Abigail Housen and Philip Yenawine to develop Visual Thinking Strategies (or VTS). I’ve briefly mentioned them before on the blog here. VTS was created in response to Housen’s stage theory of Aesthetic Development (source). Don’t click away; I won’t bore you with the details, but she discovered that there are five stages of how people interact with artwork. In the first stage or Accountive stage, viewers of art focus on narrative.

Accountive viewers are storytellers. Using their senses, memories, and personal associations, they make concrete observations about a work of art that are woven into a narrative. Here, judgments are based on what is known and what is liked. Emotions color viewers’ comments, as they seem to enter the work of art and become part of its unfolding narrative. (source)

vts image

So, what is VTS?
With VTS, you use three questions only: “What’s going on in this picture?”, “What do you see that makes you say that?”, and “What more can you find?” That’s it! You basically just keep poking and prodding the student for more information and connecting his or her ideas together. Starting with that key question, “What’s going on?” will spark a lot of ideas and stories in the student. The question hints at narrative but doesn’t limit the student’s response. I was really skeptical of this strategy when we discussed it in grad school, but honestly, I find it to be a very effective way of talking about art with students.

Develop the Story

While I think VTS is useful and works very well, sometimes you want to go deeper into the interpretation of the work. Remember, this is YOUR or your student’s story. Don’t look up the “right answer.” Your interpretation is just as correct as whatever you might find to read about the work.

  1. The first step of interpreting narrative in art is fully exploring the painting–taking an inventory of all of the things, emotions, places, actions, and people present in the work. The artist makes a lot of choices that impact the story, so make sure you and your student have discovered and analyzed these choices fully.
  2. Next, you can work together or alone through writing to figure out what happened before the moment depicted in the painting. Figure out the motives and personalities of the characters. What were they doing in painting, and what did they do to get to that point? What were they reacting to? Why were they feeling those emotions? Create a back story.
  3. After developing the back story and present story, create what will happen next. Back up ideas that you have with clues from the painting, but feel free to get creative.
  4. Outline the story and flesh out the details. Study parts of a story to make sure you have all the elements of a good narrative and to connect with your language arts curriculum.

Document the Story and Create

Once you have figured out your story, take it further with one or more of these activities.

  1. Draw, paint, or storyboard the story. Create new paintings of moments in the story before or after the painting in question. Or, create a storyboard with all of the key points illustrated as if preparing for an animated movie on a notecard or a template printed from online.
  2. Write it out. Depending on the age and ability of the student, write out the story. You could have the student write a short story or a screenplay. If your student is unable to write yet, take a video of him or her telling the story out loud or write it down for her.
  3. Act it out. Have students work with other students to put on a play or make a video. Make costumes and props, develop the script, and practice the emotions.
  4. Create a tableau vivant. If you have multiple students, create a series of tableaux vivants, or living pictures. Have them create the story using their bodies with props if you’d like. This is basically like a freeze-frame. You could have them do one point of the story as a freeze-frame which morphs into another freeze frame for the middle of the story which then morphs into the end of the story. Snap pictures of each tableau to document the learning experience. It may sound like a silly activity, but the students I have done this with always get a good laugh out of it and it helps them make a deeper connection with the artwork.

Your Turn!

Let’s try it out. Take a close look at this artwork.

Jacques-Louis David, The Death of Socrates, 1787
Jacques-Louis David, The Death of Socrates, 1787

Develop the story based on clues from the painting, and tell me your story in the comments. 🙂

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This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

This article was originally published on June 18, 2014.

Filed Under: Art and Artists, Downloads and Resources
Tagged With: bartolome esteban murillo, best of art class curator, caravaggio, eugene delacroix, gian lorenzo bernini, jacques-louis david

 

August 24, 2015 2 Comments

10 Artworks Perfect for an Art Criticism Lesson

Artworks for Stimulating Discussion

Through my many years of teaching, I’ve accumulated a nice list of artworks that are perfect to discuss with students and teach them how to analyze art. These artworks spark lots of interesting ideas, have easy to notice design choices that contribute to the meaning and always lead to a great art criticism discussion (or a great student-written essay) with the students.

Artworks for Stimulating Discussion

These artworks are great for high school and college students, but many work for elementary and middle as well. You can use your judgment to decide what works best for your students.

The Four Steps of Art Criticism Lesson Plan

I created this list for my lesson on the art criticism steps available for sale. The Four Steps of Art Criticism lesson teaches students how to analyze art through the art criticism steps of description, analysis, interpretation, and evaluation. This resource includes a lesson outline (pdf), a PowerPoint, a written assignment instructions handout (pdf and editable .doc), a quiz (pdf and editable .doc), and a list of artworks including (but not limited to) the ones below. Buy it now for $14, and use it in your classroom tomorrow!

The Four Steps of Art Criticism Lesson Plan

This lesson covers the four steps of art criticism using artworks. Explore description, analysis, interpretation, and evaluation with your students using engaging activities and examples.

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Ten Artworks Perfect for Art Criticism with Students

Most of these are not in the public domain. I have included small thumbnails for your reference. Click the picture to view a larger image.

Marc Chagall, Young Girl in Pursuit, ca. 1927-28

Marc Chagall, Young Girl in Pursuit, ca. 1927-28
Marc Chagall, Young Girl in Pursuit, ca. 1927-28

This one is so simple and straight-forward, but it always sparks the imagination of the students.

Questions to Ask: How does this artwork make you feel? What choices does the artist make to make you feel that? Who is this woman? Why is there a woman in her hair? What is the meaning of this artwork?

Salvador Dalí, Persistence of Memory, 1931

Salvador Dalí, Persistence of Memory, 1931
Salvador Dalí, Persistence of Memory, 1931

Everyone knows this one. I read some study one time that said Salvador Dalí was the most recognized artist name among people interviewed on the street. I found that to be fascinating. From the melting clocks to the sleeping head, to the ants crawling all over the pocket watch, to is that a snake coming out of his nose?, this one has a lot for students to unpack.

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Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

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Get the Full Lesson!

This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

John Feodorov, Animal Spirit Channeling Device for the Contemporary Shaman, 1963

John Feodorov, Animal Spirit Channeling Device for the Contemporary Shaman, 1997
John Feodorov, Animal Spirit Channeling Device for the Contemporary Shaman, 1997

I wrote more about this one on the post: 5 Artworks to Intrigue your High Schooler.

Frida Kahlo, The Two Fridas, 1939

Frida Kahlo, The Two Fridas, 1939
Frida Kahlo, The Two Fridas, 1939

This one is also on 5 Artworks to Intrigue your High Schooler. Read more there. 🙂

Edvard Munch, Separation, 1896

Edvard Munch, Separation, 1896
Edvard Munch, Separation, 1896

Students love coming up with stories about this one. He is having a heart attack, and the woman is an angel taking him away. The woman is the ghost of his wife who has passed. And more, lots of great stories. The artist’s use of line, color, and contrast adds meaning to the student’s interpretations.

Luis Felipe Noé, Cerrado por brujería [Closed by Sorcery], 1963

Luis Felipe Noé, Cerrado por brujería [Closed by Sorcery], 1963
Luis Felipe Noé, Cerrado por brujería [Closed by Sorcery], 1963


This is one of my all time top artworks to discuss with students. I usually show it on the first day of class in my community college art appreciation class. I wrote a whole post about it here.

Pablo Picasso, Girl before a Mirror, 1932

Pablo Picasso, Girl Before a Mirror, 1932
Pablo Picasso, Girl Before a Mirror, 1932

This painting made me weep when I saw it the first time. It’s stunning in person. Read more about it on 5 Artworks that Promote Introspection. This is a great one to have students write about at the beginning of class.

Lawrence Beall Smith, Don’t Let That Shadow Touch Them, 1942

Lawrence Beall Smith, Don’t Let That Shadow Touch Them, 1942
Lawrence Beall Smith, Don’t Let That Shadow Touch Them, 1942

I love connecting history and art. I include this piece of propaganda art on one of my tests for students to write about. You would be surprised how many students don’t recognize the swastika. In addition to discussing the power images have on our feelings and decision, the historical significance of the image is an important discussion to have with the students.

George Tooker, The Subway, 1950

George Tooker, The Subway, 1950
George Tooker, The Subway, 1950

Creepy, suspicious men and multiple perspectives make this one a fun one to talk about with students. The lone, solitary woman with the concerned expression makes us think, and why is she holding her stomach? Lots to talk about.

Kara Walker, Darkytown Rebellion, 2001

Kara Walker, Darkytown Rebellion, 2001
Kara Walker, Darkytown Rebellion, 2001

This one has some sensitive subject matter. I wouldn’t hesitate to use this for a college class, but only you can decide if it works for your students. I actually got in an argument with one of my friends in front of one of Kara Walker’s artworks like this one. I love art that sparks opinion and discussion. I don’t shy away from big topics in my classroom. Art opens up important dialogues, so I think it is important to let those happen in the classroom. After students look and figure out what is going on through art criticism, we discuss the element of the projection and how the viewer can become a part of the art by standing in between the light and the wall. It leads to some interesting thoughts.

Filed Under: Art and Artists
Tagged With: best of art class curator, edvard munch, frida kahlo, george tooker, john feodorov, kara walker, lawrence beall smith, luis felipe noe, marc chagall, pablo picasso, salvador dali

 

June 23, 2015 6 Comments

Cultural Sensitivity, Xenophobia, and Ethnocentrism in Art Education

The Art Curator for Kids - Teaching Ethnocentrism and Xenophobia in Art Education - A Lesson Plan on Cultural Sensitivity
The Art Curator for Kids - Teaching Ethnocentrism and Xenophobia in Art Education - A Lesson Plan on Cultural Sensitivity, Ethnocentrism lesson

All good people agree,
And all good people say,
All nice people like Us, are We
And everyone else is They;
But if you cross over the sea,
Instead of over the way,
You may end by (think of it!) looking on We
As only a sort of They.

— Rudyard Kipling, The fifth and last verse of “We and They,” 1926.

Today, I am joining bloggers from Multicultural Kid Blogs for the series, A-Z of Raising Global Citizens. I was lucky enough to get the letter X for the series, but I think I’ve come up with a good one.

X is for Xenophobia.

Xenophobia is an incredibly important topic for art teachers and parents to address with your kids and students. Please keep reading to learn about several great art examples and a lesson plan to teach this important topic.

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Get the Full Lesson!

This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

Xenophobia and Ethnocentrism

Xenophobia is “an unreasonable fear or hatred of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange” (Source: Dictionary.com).

Along with xenophobia, another important concept for this discussion is ethnocentrism which is “imposing upon the art of another culture the meanings and prejudices of our own” (Source: Sayre, p. 28). Artlex.com defines ethnocentrism as “the tendency to see one’s own ethnic group as the norm and all others as marginal; a form of racism” (artlex.com).

In both terms, it is an “Us vs. Them” mentality. Our way is the correct way, and their way is “other” or different.

Xenophobia, Ethnocentrism, and Studying Non-Western Art

When I teach Non-Western art, I usually always start the unit of study with a lesson on cultural sensitivity and ethnocentrism using the three examples below. In the next section, I will give you a lesson outline with discussion questions you can use in your classroom incorporating these examples.

Ethnocentrism Lesson Example #1: Hindu Sculpture

At the end of the 19th century, Mark Twain visited the holy city of Benares, India also known as Varanasi. When he saw the Hindu art there, he called it “crude, misshapen, and ugly.” He also said they “flocked through one’s dreams at night, a wild mob of nightmares” (Source: Cotter).

The Art Curator for Kids - Kinesthetic Art History - Indian, Shiva as Lord of Dance (Nataraja), ca. 11th century, Ethnocentrism lesson
Indian, Shiva as Lord of Dance (Nataraja), ca. 11th century, Met Museum

What is wrong with Twain’s statement?

I hear similar things like Twain’s statement pretty regularly when I cover non-Western art in my classes. Students may call something “weird” or laugh at a work by someone of a different culture. When our students (and we do it too sometimes; I don’t think anyone is really immune from this) make judgments about the artworks of other cultures using their own Western perspective, they are deepening the divide between cultures and people.

Twain called Hindu sculpture crude and ugly, but to Hindu people, “the dancing Shiva is, by contrast, a dynamic, joyous, cyclical image” (Cotter). Hindu sculpture shows bodies with manipulated proportions in art and curvy, sinuous figures. To those who made these images, these figures show ideal form. These sculptures are about beauty and life.

Ethnocentrism Lesson Example #2: “Primitivism” in 20th-Century Art

In 1984, the Museum of Modern Art had an exhibition called “Primitivism” in 20th Century Art. It took artworks by 20th-century artists like Pablo Picasso, Max Ernst, Edvard Munch, Paul Gauguin, Jackson Pollock, and more and put them next to artworks from “primitive” cultures from Polynesia, Africa, and the Americas that had similar features to the 20-century work.

The Art Curator for Kids - Primitivism in 20th Century Art - Exhibition Catalog Cover, Ethnocentrism lesson

This was highly controversial.

The curator of this exhibit essentially took these works of non-Western art, stripped them of their context, and then assigned them all together under the term “primitive.” Africa and Polynesia are on opposite sides of the planet, yet they were all grouped together into this term “primitive.”

The Art Curator for Kids - Primitivism in 20th Century Art - Sample Artworks, Ethnocentrism lesson

Ethnocentrism Lesson Example #3: Greek Sculpture vs. African Masks

The last example comes from the writing of another author, Kenneth Clark. In his book Civilisation from 1969, he compares Apollo Belvedere with an African mask. Here is what he said:

I don’t think there is any doubt that the Apollo embodies a higher state of civilization than the mask. They both represent spirits, messengers from another world—that is to say, from a world of our own imagining. To the Negro imagination it is a world of fear and darkness, ready to inflict horrible punishment for the smallest infringement or a taboo. To the [Greek] imagination it is a world of light and confidence, in which the gods are like ourselves, only more beautiful, and descend to earth in order to teach men reason and the laws of harmony.

The Art Curator for Kids - Ethnocentrism and Xenophobia Lesson Plan - Apollo Belvedere and Baule mask, Ethnocentrism lesson

What’s the issue with this one? A “higher state of civilization.” Us = higher. Them = lower.

Now we can’t sum up all of the masks of Africa in one stretch here. Africa is a HUGE continent with tons of countries and cultures and histories. But, that is precisely what Clark does in Civilisation. He doesn’t even say what culture the mask he is referring to is from. The mask he is using to compare is one that his buddy bought and hung up on the wall. I’m not exaggerating here.

But let’s say for comparison’s sake that this is the mask he was referring to. It is a portrait mask from the Baule people of the central Ivory Coast in southern West Africa. A Baule carver says this of the mask, “The god is a dance of rejoicing for me. So when I see the mask, my heart is filled with joy.”  Another carver says that the mask “makes us happy when we see it.”

That hardly describes “a world of fear and darkness,” don’t you think?

(Source: Henry Sayre, A World of Art 5th Edition, 2007)

Xenophobia and Ethnocentrism Lesson Plan Outline

I usually accompany this lesson with an introduction to a group assignment where students research and present about art from around the world. I use this lesson is for high school/college.

Please note, this post includes Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Here’s my ethnocentrism lesson plan outline.

1. Think-Pair-Share Warm-up. Have students answer the following questions in their notes and then discuss answers in small groups.

  • What is culture?
  • What makes up one’s culture?
  • How does your culture impact how you view the world? And how you view art?

2. Read and discuss as a class the poem I put at the top of this post.

3. Show Shiva Nataraja alongside the quotation from Mark Twain. Ask students what is wrong with what Twain said. Discuss and provide information about Hindu sculpture as explained above.

4. Tell students about Primitivism MOMA exhibit and ask them why do they think the exhibit was so controversial? Show examples of juxtapositions from the exhibit (I used scanned pages from the exhibit catalog that I checked out from the library, so I can’t post them here.) Ask students what the curators could have done differently to minimize the controversy.

5. As a homework or in-class writing assignment, have students read the quotations from Kenneth Clark and the Baule carver above alongside the images of the Apollo and the Baule mask. Have students write their answers to the following questions:

  • What are your initial reactions to reading the above quotations? How do you feel about what was said?
  • Describe Kenneth Clark’s viewpoint in terms of what we discussed in class about culture and ethnocentrism.
  • What was his mistake, if any, when interpreting these sculptures?

Thanks for reading. How do you teach cultural sensitivity with your students? Share your ideas in the comments!

Mentioned on the Art Class Curator Podcast…

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Works Cited:

  • Sayre, Henry M. (2005). A World of Art (4th Ed.). Prentice Hall.
  • Holland Cotter, Eastern Art Through Western Eyes, New York Times, July 10, 1994
  • Janetta Rebold Benton and Robert DiYanni, An Introduction to the Humanities (Fourth Edition), Pearson. 2011. Chapter 21
  • Kenneth Clark, Civilisation, 1969 accessed online at link, 6/23/2015

Filed Under: Art Connection Activities
Tagged With: best of art class curator

 

May 26, 2015 42 Comments

Why I Hate The Elements and Principles of Art (But teach them anyway)

About 5 years ago I was in a job interview for an elementary art position, and I told the art coordinator of the district that I hate the elements and principles of art. She was visibly shocked and needless to say, I didn’t get that job.

My website this month has been taken over by my elements and principles of art series which is in direct conflict to that statement I made to that art coordinator years ago. Why the change? Well, there isn’t that much of a change from my original position. I do still hate the elements and principles of art, but I have tweaked my position on this over the years. Let me explain.

This series has been very popular on my site and is bringing in some great traffic. I knew it would be super useful to a lot of people, but I just got wind from a fabulous art teacher that my elements and principles of art posts are adding to a bit of controversy on an art teacher group on Facebook (side note: please add me, admin, if you are reading this! I requested to join a long time ago, and it is still “pending.”). My response to her was, “I totally agree with them!”

This is a controversial subject with art teachers, so I hope you keep your opinions and comments respectful. You might disagree with me, and I’d love to hear your thoughts either way! 🙂

Why I Hate the Elements and Principles of Art

When you design a curriculum around the elements and principles of art, I believe you are doing the students a great disservice. Art is WAY MORE than just design. It’s about ideas and feelings and connections and creativity and all those wonderful things that we love. When you take all of that away and just teach zigzag lines, you are taking away all that art is and leaving nothing of value.

Another aspect that bugs me about the elements and principles of art is that they are a crutch. They are a way that art teachers can prove to math teachers that we too have “real content.” I hate nothing more than hearing an art teacher try to justify the importance of art teaching with an elements and principles argument. No, just no.

“Look! Art is real! You just don’t know! Line, Color, Rhythm! It’s a real thing! My subject is just as important as yours!”

Yes, elements and principles are real teachable content, but they are not why art is valuable. They are tools to make better compositions, but they are also tools to help make meaning. An artist doesn’t just choose to use contrast in order to make something look better. They choose to use contrast to make a statement, to make us think, to make us feel, etc.

Why I Love the Elements and Principles of Art

Well, love is a strong word. I don’t love them. I hate the elements and principles of art, yes, but I do still teach them. Here’s why.

Take The Starry Night–one of the most famous paintings ever (famous is another thing I hate, but that is a story for another day). It’s amazing and beautiful, and it makes us and our students feel something when we look at it.

The Art Curator for Kids - Why I Hate the Elements and Principles - Vincent van Gogh The Starry Night
Vincent van Gogh, The Starry Night, 1889

But, why does it do those things? What choices did the artist make to us feel the way we do when we see this painting? That’s where the elements and principles come in. The artist used swirling, flowing lines, and movement that captures the feeling in my heart when I am very emotional. He used proportion in the art to make that cypress tree grab our eye and flame up and flow back into the sky so we keep looking. He used contrast to make the moon and stars pop out from the sky. Van Gogh used the elements and principles to convey how he felt, and it impacts us in powerful ways.

Our feelings when we look at art are not accidents. They are deliberate choices made by artists.

To me, the elements and principles are about visual literacy.

In our world, images bombard us daily and most of them are advertisements. People use the elements and principles to manipulate us daily, and kids need training in how to see those things. Teaching kids how to notice the choices people make when they make images help them be more informed and aware of their surroundings.

Knowing the elements and principles also helps us better appreciate and connect with works of art.

The Elements of Art and Principles of Design as a Tool

I really dislike art curricula that divides a year into 6 units with each one focusing on one of the elements or principles of art. You study line, show some examples of line, and then you do an art project where you use line. Not for me.

The Art Curator for Kids - Why I Hate the Elements and Principles - Line Projects
My Pen-and-Ink Line Projects from my 2D Design Class in College 15 years ago

But, design is a part of art too. Learning how to make choices in your art that better communicate your meaning is an important element. I do believe if you focus only on line, you could be stifling your student’s creativity, but you also can’t leave it out altogether. The elements and principles need to be taught as a tool that students use in their art just like they need to be taught about the tools of paintbrushes, drawing implements, clay tools, etc.

How I Personally Teach the Elements and Principles of Art

I primarily teach art history and art appreciation, so I may be in a different situation than you. I usually cover them all over the course of maybe 3-5 hours of lessons usually nearish to the beginning of the course/semester (depending on how long the classes are and stuff) and then hit them occasionally throughout other lessons (like covering perspective/pyramidal configuration with the Renaissance, diagonal line/value/contrast with Baroque, etc.). I also heavily include art criticism exercises in my lessons, so students are regularly picking apart artwork in my classes. Covering the elements and principles at the beginning gives students a basis for understanding and looking and trains them to keep looking.

So, there you go. That’s my full opinion on the elements of art and principles of design. What do YOU think?

Download the Free Elements and Principles Printable Pack


This pack of printables was designed to work in a variety of ways in your classroom when teaching the elements and principles of art. You can print and hang in your classroom as posters/anchor charts or you can cut each element and principle of art in its own individual card to use as a lesson manipulative.

Free Resource!

Elements & Principles Printable Pack

The Elements & Principles of Art are the foundation of every artwork, but teaching them can be a bore. Wake your students up and engage them with full color artworks, easy to understand definitions, and thought-provoking higher level thinking questions. This versatile resource can be hung in the classroom or used as an art manipulative.

Download

Free Resource!

Elements & Principles Printable Pack

The Elements & Principles of Art are the foundation of every artwork, but teaching them can be a bore. Wake your students up and engage them with full color artworks, easy to understand definitions, and thought-provoking higher level thinking questions. This versatile resource can be hung in the classroom or used as an art manipulative.

Mentioned on the Art Class Curator Podcast…

Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcast Listening App

The Art Curator for Kids -Example Artworks that Show Space - The Elements and Principles of Art Series-300The Art Curator for Kids - Example Artworks that Show Line - The Elements and Principles of Art - 300The Art Curator for Kids - Example Artworks that Show Emphasis - The Elements and Principles of Art SeriesElements and Principles of Art - Artworks that Show Proportion in art and ScaleThe Art Curator for Kids - Elements and Principles of Art Series - Artworks that Show Shape - 300The Art Curator for Kids - Why I Hate the Elements and Principles But Teach Them Anyway - 300The Art Curator for Kids - How Artists Depict Space - Masterpiece Monday - John Sloan , South Beach Bathers, 1907-1908, Art Lessons for Kids - Elements of Art Lessons

Filed Under: Elements and Principles of Art, Featured
Tagged With: best of art class curator

 

January 26, 2015 4 Comments

Masterpiece Monday: David’s The Death of Socrates

The Art Curator for Kids - Masterpiece Monday - Jacques-Louis David The Death of Socrates - Art Analysis Video, Discussion Questions, Learning Activities, and Lesson Plans

Welcome back to Masterpiece Monday, where I share with you awesome artworks and share ways to use them in your classroom or homeschool. Today is a special one, because I’ve made a video to go along with the post!

Masterpiece Monday - Amazing Works from Art History Each Week at the Art Curator for Kids - The Art Curator for Kids - Masterpiece Monday - Jacques-Louis David The Death of Socrates - Art Analysis Video, Discussion Questions, Learning Activities, and Lesson Plans

I’ve selected The Death of Socrates by Jacques-Louis David, because it is one of my favorite paintings. I love how this painting tells a story and connects with history. I’ve featured it before on Exploring Narrative in Art, and today I’m diving into the painting a little deeper. First, take a good look at it!

The Art Curator for Kids - Kinesthetic Art History - Jacques-Louis David-The Death of Socrates
Jacques-Louis David, The Death of Socrates, 1787

I’ve made for you a YouTube video going through the process of interpreting this painting as well as sharing the story of the painting and how it relates to history (the French Revolution). I wouldn’t hesitate to show this artwork to as young as maybe third or fourth grade. The video would work best for high school and adults (you!) probably.

If you don’t feel like watching, you can read the video transcript.

Art Discussion Questions

Use these questions to help discuss this painting:

  • What’s going on in this painting?
  • Describe the actions and emotions in the painting.
  • What’s the story in this painting? How can you tell?
  • What choices did the artist make to emphasize Socrates?
  • How is Socrates different from the other people in the painting?
  • What does this painting tell us about the people who made it?

Art Learning Activities

Here are some art learning activities that can accompany this painting. Please note, this post includes Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

  • For high school and college students, read these accounts of the Trial and Death of Socrates by Plato ($2.70 on Amazon and only $.99 on Kindle).
  • Complete any of the creative activities from Exploring Narrative in Art.
  • Check out this awesome collection of art lesson plans on Neoclassical art from the Getty for middle and high school students.
  • Learn more about Ancient Greek philosophy with this video.

That’s it! Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed my foray into making videos! 🙂

Filed Under: Art, Art and Artists
Tagged With: best of art class curator, jacques-louis david

 

October 31, 2014 14 Comments

Art Around the World in 30 Days

The Art Curator for Kids - Art Around the World in 30 Days - Experience Art with Your Kids
The Art Curator for Kids - Art Around the World for Kids in 30 Days - Experience Art with Your Kids, Art History for Kids, Art Appreciation for Kids, non-western art lessons for kids

This month, I will be showing you art from around the world. Each day, I will pick one country and one artwork to focus on. Are you ready for this? This is super crazy! In the month of November, I am going to do one post per day. I’ve always wanted to try this to see if it is something I can do.

I will write a little bit of information about the art, give you at least 3 art discussion questions to use with your kiddos to help you talk about it, and provide you with at least one idea for an art learning activity or art project you could do to help teach about the artwork in question. I’m sure there will be other goodies thrown in as well. They won’t be as long as an Art Spotlight or a Masterpiece Monday since this is daily, but I will introduce you and your family to a LOT of amazing art from around the world and offer you some new ideas. The artworks vary from super old to some made in this decade.

The Art Curator for Kids - Art Around the World for Kids in 30 Days - Experience Art History with Your Kids, Art History for Kids, Art Appreciation for Kids, non-western art lessons for kids

Oh! One more thing. At the end of the month, I will be putting all 30 artworks and accompanying text into a PDF Art Around the World for Kids eBook to put in the Curated Connections Library!

When I post a new artwork, I will link to it down below, so future readers can come back to this post as an index to this month of art. I’ve already chosen the artworks for the whole month, so I’ll go ahead and list the countries to get you all excited with anticipation for Art Around the World in 30 Days. I will also be posting other resources from the countries covered (and some that are not!) on my Facebook page, so be sure to stop by the page this month to get some other great links and resources about art around the world.

Art Around the World Posts

  1. Portugal (+Brazil, +Italy)
  2. Nigeria
  3. Mexico
  4. Japan
  5. India
  6. Papua New Guinea
  7. Democratic Republic of Congo
  8. China
  9. Korea
  10. New Zealand
  11. Egypt
  12. Tlingit/North America
  13. Angola
  14. Thailand
  15. Ireland
  16. Vanuatu
  17. USA
  18. Australia
  19. Nepal
  20. Mexico/Olmec
  21. Russia
  22. Algeria
  23. Panama
  24. Colombia
  25. Kazakhstan
  26. Cyprus
  27. Happy Thanksgiving! 🙂
  28. Iraq
  29. Brazil
  30. Germany

Here’s to a great November of exploring art around the world!

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Get the Full Lesson!

This Lesson is in The Curated Connections Library!

Find the full lesson from this post along with hundreds of other art teaching resources and trainings in the Curated Connections Library. Click here for more information about how to join or enter your email below for a free SPARKworks lesson from the membership!

The Art Curator for Kids - Art Around the World in 30 Days-eBook

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