IDENTITY POPPLET
HENRI MATISSE
Procedure
- Design Problem: Create a series of 1-3 small cut-paper collages that capture the essence of your identity through the use of simple lines, shapes, colors, and space.
- Reflect upon “Picture This: How Pictures Work” by Bang as you create these small compositions.
- Brainstorm 3 events (big or small) from your personal history that have helped shape your identity.
- Make simple sketches of each using shapes.
- Reconsider your sketches:
- –Can they be simplified even more?
- –Can they be reduced to a symbol by drawing only a part of it?
- Begin your first collage when ready: select and draw onto your colored paper. Cut-out when ready.
- Experiment with arrangements of these shapes on a background piece of paper. Overlap, rotate, and change them until you are satisfied. Then, glue them in place.
- Self-Assess this first composition and get feedback from a peer:
- – What works visually?
- – What can you change for the second composition?
- Repeat this process for Composition #2 and Composition #3.
Reflection
Heni Matisse falls into this course’s identity unit because he set a precedent for others, including my future students, to find a unique artistic identify, something that expresses who they are. When faced with a cancer diagnosis and life in a wheelchair, Matisse displayed a character of resilience through chartering a new kind of art. He gave himself the freedom, even while handicapped, to create art unlike anyone had seen. He created his unique identity as an artist out of painful life circumstances. His change in mobility allowed him to see art in a way that others would also see as masterpieces. He let his life experiences, beliefs, character, values, and situations to dictate his artwork, not another telling his what is or is not art.
Heni Matisse is an inspiration to artists in my future classroom because each of them is a unique person that has a unique approach to art to match who they are. Each student has a different take on what is beautiful, what they want to express, and what they want to use to express the beauty they see. I hope Matisse is an example to my future students of not being afraid to be themselves through artistic expression. I hope I will be able to point to Matisse as an example of being courageous enough to have a unique artistic identity.
I think a mini-collage composition has an infinite number of uses in the general education classroom. I think this arts visualization would be excellent for community building. At the beginning of the year, I might have my students express an important person to him or her or an important life event through this visualization. I could also see using this studio activity as a way for students to communicate their favorite part or character in a book. Representing a book’s character through a mini-collages poses an enticing challenge for children. Lastly I would even consider using this activity as a reward for positive behavior. Instead of rewarding children with extra recess, pizza parties, or treasure box hunting, I think it would be pretty awesome to reward them with some “creation time.”
I really enjoyed learning Matisse’s story and how his life’s circumstances brought him to have a unique artist’s identity. His story should be brought into the classroom as a way to let students know that art is never right or wrong. It is justified because of the story of the person who created it.
Heni Matisse is an inspiration to artists in my future classroom because each of them is a unique person that has a unique approach to art to match who they are. Each student has a different take on what is beautiful, what they want to express, and what they want to use to express the beauty they see. I hope Matisse is an example to my future students of not being afraid to be themselves through artistic expression. I hope I will be able to point to Matisse as an example of being courageous enough to have a unique artistic identity.
I think a mini-collage composition has an infinite number of uses in the general education classroom. I think this arts visualization would be excellent for community building. At the beginning of the year, I might have my students express an important person to him or her or an important life event through this visualization. I could also see using this studio activity as a way for students to communicate their favorite part or character in a book. Representing a book’s character through a mini-collages poses an enticing challenge for children. Lastly I would even consider using this activity as a reward for positive behavior. Instead of rewarding children with extra recess, pizza parties, or treasure box hunting, I think it would be pretty awesome to reward them with some “creation time.”
I really enjoyed learning Matisse’s story and how his life’s circumstances brought him to have a unique artist’s identity. His story should be brought into the classroom as a way to let students know that art is never right or wrong. It is justified because of the story of the person who created it.
CHUCK CLOSE
Procedure
- Begin on page 2
- Consider two Disney characters that, for some reason, appeal to you: one protagonist and one antagonist
- Write the two names on the provided blanks
- List traits of each character in the second column. Conduct research on the web, if necessary (try Disney.wikia.com)
- In the first column, rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 5 for each row based upon similar traits (be honest)
- Compete the last column for each character by providing evidence of similarities
- Find the average of both the protagonist and the antagonist
- What did you find? Any surprises?
- Consider which character(s) you would like to honor, and continue the discovery process through artmaking
- If necessary, complete the exercise again using additional characters on page 1
- Using “marks, multiples, and materials,” create a painting and/or drawing representing your multifaceted identity.
- Consider utilizing layering and juxtaposition to assist you in honoring the unique identifying marks that distinguish you from all others.
- Please experiment with several of the following materials: Disney character pages, photos, tracing paper, construction paper, scissors, adhesive, crayon, and/or watercolors.
- Student work:https://naea.digication.com/Spiral/Bureau_of_Misdirection--WORKING
Reflection
“Chuck Close Meets Walk Disney” falls into the big idea category of identity because if led me to think deeply about the identity of two (what I thought were), one-dimensional Disney characters. I learned in my research, however, that Belle and Cruella share some characteristics: both are exceptionally passionate, non-conforming, and driven. Before this activity I thought Belle, a protagonist, and Cruella, an antagonists, were complete opposites. Now I think that they could be identified by some of the same characteristics.
I realized through this activity that identity is complex. I think people are experts on our own identity and for people to learn about one another, they have to get to know one another for more than face value. Two characters that I never thought of as compatible actually share common ground in their personalities. Identity is complex and goes deeper than just surface-level. My students, for example, will have complex identities that require me to go deeper into getting to know them.
I could use this visual arts integration lesson in my classroom to build community. I don’t think Belle and Cruella would see eye to eye in much of anything; however, in a socially just world, they would learn to respect how they are similar and how they are different. Respect is a lesson that could easily come out of integrating two opposing Disney characters.
I also see integrating this lesson into a social studies context. In our social studies class, we were just looking at CPS social studies curriculum. At many of the grade levels students must compare and contrast two historical figures, such as Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. This project would be perfect for this historical context.
I realized through this activity that identity is complex. I think people are experts on our own identity and for people to learn about one another, they have to get to know one another for more than face value. Two characters that I never thought of as compatible actually share common ground in their personalities. Identity is complex and goes deeper than just surface-level. My students, for example, will have complex identities that require me to go deeper into getting to know them.
I could use this visual arts integration lesson in my classroom to build community. I don’t think Belle and Cruella would see eye to eye in much of anything; however, in a socially just world, they would learn to respect how they are similar and how they are different. Respect is a lesson that could easily come out of integrating two opposing Disney characters.
I also see integrating this lesson into a social studies context. In our social studies class, we were just looking at CPS social studies curriculum. At many of the grade levels students must compare and contrast two historical figures, such as Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. This project would be perfect for this historical context.
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disney_2.pdf | |
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disney_3.pdf | |
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WILLIAM WEGMAN
Procedure
Mixed Media Personifications
- Design Problem: use PERSONIFICATION to communicate the IDENTITY of a familiar character from fairytale, fable, or other narrative.
- Select a narrative and character as the subject.
- Select an animal whose commonly recognized characteristics complement the IDENTITY of the selected character.
- Combine animal and human imagery using 3 or more mediums (art materials) to render the personification.
- Consider costume, expression, gesture, props, setting, etc. as IDENTITY clues for the viewer.
Reflection
I was surprised to enjoy working on this piece. I struggled to know what to do for the Chuck Close studio activity, and I didn’t like the end result of my piece. I definitely feel more proud of this piece compared to the last one! I think one reason for the difference in this thinking might be that I love the fable of the Tortoise and the Hare. My Grandma Schaaf gave me this book at a young age. It became my favorite book to read with her. I was excited at the opportunity to illustrate this story while thinking about the characters’ identity!
This studio activity relates to the big picture idea of identity because it encourages the artist to exaggerate identity traits through mixed media. Putting a human face on a hare, for example, allowed me to show that the hare was disgruntled, confused, and upset after seeing the tortoise win the race. I enjoyed putting a human facial expression on an animal because I like to think animals feel in the same way as humans but just don’t express emotion like us! Mixing media in this piece brings the characters to life in a way that brings out the meaning of the story. Highlighting a certain emotion in a human face for each animal conveys meaning to the artist’s audience perhaps more clearly than keeping the faces animals as well.
This art activity is perfect for literacy teaching because it gives students a chance to show how they envision characters responding to an event in the text. Students can exaggerate these emotions through choosing untraditional pictures of expression.
I think this mixed media activity also has potential for social studies integration. In social studies I think it is often easy to just read facts without thinking about the emotions that drove events to occur (for example, colonists in Boston were angry at Britain for being unjustly taxed. They Boston tea party was a result of this frustration). Depicting emotions of figures throughout history will put historical events in a more meaningful context for students.
I will definitely be using this idea in my future teaching. I thoroughly enjoyed playing with the emotions of the emotions of these characters through mixed media!
This studio activity relates to the big picture idea of identity because it encourages the artist to exaggerate identity traits through mixed media. Putting a human face on a hare, for example, allowed me to show that the hare was disgruntled, confused, and upset after seeing the tortoise win the race. I enjoyed putting a human facial expression on an animal because I like to think animals feel in the same way as humans but just don’t express emotion like us! Mixing media in this piece brings the characters to life in a way that brings out the meaning of the story. Highlighting a certain emotion in a human face for each animal conveys meaning to the artist’s audience perhaps more clearly than keeping the faces animals as well.
This art activity is perfect for literacy teaching because it gives students a chance to show how they envision characters responding to an event in the text. Students can exaggerate these emotions through choosing untraditional pictures of expression.
I think this mixed media activity also has potential for social studies integration. In social studies I think it is often easy to just read facts without thinking about the emotions that drove events to occur (for example, colonists in Boston were angry at Britain for being unjustly taxed. They Boston tea party was a result of this frustration). Depicting emotions of figures throughout history will put historical events in a more meaningful context for students.
I will definitely be using this idea in my future teaching. I thoroughly enjoyed playing with the emotions of the emotions of these characters through mixed media!