Units prepared by Shari Hofschire, Dr. Frances Thurber, and Dr. Joanne Sowell
Units prepared by Shari Hofschire, Dr. Frances Thurber, and
Dr. Joanne Sowell
UNIT THEME: Artists carefully observe the world around us and make choices about how to express their observations.
GOALS AND OUTCOMES: (Based on the National Standards)
Content Standard 1
Understanding and applying media, techniques,
and processes
Achievement Standard
K-4 Students use different media, techniques, and processes
to communicate ideas, experiences, and stories.
5-8 Students intentionally take advantage of the qualities
and characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to
enhance communication of their experiences and ideas
9-12 Students conceive and create works of visual art that
demonstrate an understanding of how the communication of their
ideas relates to the media, techniques, and processes they use
Content Standard 3
Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols,
and ideas
Achievement Standard
K-4 Students select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas
to communicate meaning
5-8 Students use subjects, themes, and symbols that demonstrate
knowledge of contexts, values, and aesthetics that communicate
intended meaning in artworks
9-12 Students apply subjects, symbols, and ideas in their
artworks and use the skills gained to solve problems in daily
life
Content Standard 4
Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and cultures
Achievement Standard
K- 4 Students know that the visual arts have both a history
and specific relationships to various cultures
5-8 Students know and compare the characteristics of artworks
in various eras and cultures
9-12 Students describe the function and explore the meaning
of specific art objects within varied cultures, times, and places
KEY QUESTIONS:
Questions in parentheses are from the Prairie
Visions Inquiry Chart. These general questions form a framework
for designing questions more specific to each unit of instruction.
How does what I see in the work compare to what I see in the
world? (What does the form of this work say about its context?
How does the medium of the work relate to its visual characteristics?
(What are the elements and content of the work?)
How do artists go beyond simply recording the world? (How does
art make meaning?)
KEY WORKS OF ART:
Nebraska Masterpieces: (Click on Reproduction
for a printable version)
Kent Bellows, Over the Mermaid
Lounge
Keith Jacobshagen Naming the
Days (Rain in May, Platte Valley
LESSON IDEAS (SUB-THEMES):
1. Some artists choose to document
the world in a realistic way.
2. Some artists represent the world in order to express an
idea or opinion.
LEARNING STYLES/DIFFERENTIATION:
This unit emphasizes:
Visual Intelligence
Logical Intelligence
Naturalist inelligence
MORAL DIMENSIONS OF TEACHING:
John I. Goodlad (Editor), Roger Soder
(Editor), Kenneth A. Sirotnik (Editor), The Moral Dimensions
of Teaching, Jossey-Bass; New Ed edition (November 16, 1993).
This unit encourages group discussion and listening to the ideas
of others, a crucial skill for living in a democracy. It also
deals with ways to get across one's ideas to others in order to
affect society.
By using various instructional methods and encouraging hands-on
art making activities this unit allows access for many different
types of learners.
This unit encourages stewardship of the environment.
LESSON 1:
Lesson Sub-Theme: Some artists choose
to document the world in a realistic way.
Goals and Outcomes:
Students will look carefully at works
of art and explain what they see.
Students will use their observations to speculate and draw conclusions
about meaning.
Students will use a relief printmaking medium to create repeatable
images.
Students will compare images made in different times and places.
Students will consider the importance of reproducing images for
conveying information.
Key Questions:
What kinds of objects and/or people, has the artist chosen to
document?
What medium has the artist used for his/her work? How does that
affect the look of the work? What tools would the artist use for
this medium?
What is the artist trying to tell us about the objects or people?
Key Works of Art:
Nebraska Masterpieces: Kent Bellows,
Over the Mermaid Lounge , 1992
Keith Jacobshagen Naming the
Days (Rain in May, Platte Valley, 2000
Maria Sibylla Merian The
Miraculous Transformation and Unusual Flower-Food of Caterpillars,
Germany 1679-83.
scroll down to plate 31 and click to enlarge
Albrecht
Dürer, The Large Turf, 1503.
scroll down and click on Large Turf
Leonardo da Vinci. Notebooks, c. 1500.
Lesson Narrative:
Teacher Preparation: Visit the websites listed above. Copy plate
31 from the works of Maria Sibylla Merian, The Large Turf by
Albrecht Dürer, and one or two of the drawings from Leonardo's
Notebooks. Make a set of images for each small group (4 or 5 students
in a group.)
Teacher Presentation and Group Discussion: Introduce Kent Bellows'
self-portrait using the Nebraska Masterpieces poster. Use the Study this Work of Art section from the back
of the poster paying particular attention to the questions:
Kent Bellows is known for his skill in drawing. What do you see
in the work that would make someone say this? What different kinds
of textures can you observe?
What makes this art work different from a photograph?
We often think of pencil drawings as sketches. Do you think this
is a sketch or a finished drawing? Why?
Introduce Keith Jabobshagen's landscape using the Nebraska Masterpieces poster . Use the Study this Work of Art section from the back
of the poster paying particular attention to the questions:
Have you ever seen a landscape like this?
Have you ever imagined a place like this or read a story with
a setting like this?
These works are very different. One is a self-portrait
and one is a landscape. One is a graphite and charcoal drawing
and one is an oil painting. How are they alike? (Both artists
have very carefully observed the world and recorded it acurately
even if they mix objects from different contexts.)
Small Group Discussion: Look at the works by Maria Sibylla Merian,
Albrecht Dürer, and Leonardo da Vinci. In your group discuss:
What kinds of objects are these artists depicting? Do you think
it is important that they depict these objects accurately? What
can you learn from these drawings? Could you learn this information
if you didn't have an image to look at? How important do think
illustration is to science?
Large Group Discussion and Activity:
Discuss what the students decided in their small groups. Would
any of these images be important to science? Why or why not?
Have the students play "Telephone." Whisper a sentence
or two to the first student in line and have each student whisper
it to the next student. The last student will say the sentence
out loud. (Make the sentence complex enough, depending upon the
age of the children, that it will make the point.) Did the sentence
change? Why do you suppose that happened? Could the same thing
happen with drawings?
Teacher Preparation. Collect four leaves that
are recognizably different in shape, but with some similarities.
Arrange a station where students can individually draw a leaf
on an 8.5" x 11" piece of white paper with a pencil.
Individual Task: Ask one student to choose a leaf from the four
and draw it on a sheet of paper without anyone else watching.
After the first student makes the drawing, take the leaves away
and ask the next student to draw the leaf from the first student's
drawing. Then take away the first drawing and ask the next student
to draw from the previous student's drawing. The principle is
the same as in Telephone. When everyone has had a chance to draw,
show the last drawing to the class. Can they identify which of
the four leaves was chosen (remember that only the first student
saw the original leaf). How accurate were their drawings when
they could not see the original leaf?
Teacher Presentation and Group Discussion: Look again at Maria Sibylla Merian's drawing. Do you think she studied the plants and insects? We can look at her works because they were printed through the medium of engraving, and those prints were photographed to put on the web. When an artist makes an engraving, they scratch the lines into a metal plate and then put ink on the plate and run the plate and the paper through a press to transfer the ink to the plate. (The etching process is similar but the lines are made in the plate with acid. To understand what an etching is go to the Museum of Modern Art website What is a Print?). This is a method for making many copies from the same plate. Before printmaking was invented, if someone wanted a book they had to sit down and copy it from another copy of the book - just like you did with the leaf drawing. What do you think happened to images in those books after they were copied many times, like your leaf drawing? Printmaking increased the accuracy of the images so they could all be just alike. Photography is also used to repeat images accurately. It would be hard to copy Kent Bellows drawing or Keith Jacobshagen's painting, but we can all enjoy the works of art because photography allows us to all see an accurate reproduction of the original work.
Teacher Preparation: Have each student bring
a leaf to school. They will be making prints from their leaves.
Teacher Presentation: Use the Museum of Modern Art website What is a Print? to introduce students to
a relief print in which the ink is held above the surface. Use
the interactive demonstration of a woodcut. Instead of cutting
away wood, students will be glueing string onto a piece of cardboard
to create raised lines.
Individual Task: Each student will make a relief print from a
leaf by painting the leaf with water soluble ink and pressing
it on a 5" x 7" piece of paper (you may need to have
larger pieces of paper if some leaves are bigger.) Each student
will also make a relief print from a drawing of the leaf. Draw,
not trace, the outline of your leaf on a 5" x 7" piece
of cardboard or poster board. Draw a few of the interior lines
of the leaf too. Now glue cotton string along the lines. When
the glue dries roll ink over the string and press onto a piece
of paper. Make three prints of your leaf. Are they all the same?
What might make them a little different? When they dry, take one
of your prints and use colored pencils to add details and color
to the print. Glue your four images, your original drawing, your
two prints, and your colored print onto a piece of construction
paper.
Look at your four images. Which do you like best? Which is the
most accurate?
Large group discussion: End this lesson with a discussion on why
it might be important to accurately reproduce an image over and
over again. Do we still do this today? Think of examples.
Instructional Strategies:
Teacher presentation.
Small group discussion
Large group discussion and activities.
Individual Art Making Tasks
Assessment Strategies:
Formative Assessment - Teacher observation
and check for understanding during discussions.
Summative Assessment - Have the students followed directions correctly?
Were the students able to assess their work? Did the students
understand the importance of reproducing images accurately?
Interdisciplinary Linkages:
Science scientific illustration
Resources and materials:
Krystek, Lee. The UnMuseum. Leonardo's
Notebooks.
http://www.unmuseum.org/leosketch.htm
Other resources on Leonardo as both scientist and artist:
http://www.metmuseum.org/special/Leonardo_Master_Draftsman/draftsman_splash.htm
http://www.mos.org/leonardo/
http://library.thinkquest.org/3044/
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/vinci.html
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/leonardo_da_vinci.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/leonardo/
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/L/leonardo.html
Madison, Wisconsin, University of Wisconsin Memorial Library Special
Collections. Maria Sibylla Merian.
http://www.library.wisc.edu/libraries/specialcollections/womennature/sectionpages/MariaSibyllaMerian.html
Other resources on Maria Sibylla Merian as both artist and naturalist:
http://www.astr.ua.edu/4000ws/MERIAN.html
http://www.philographikon.com/msmerian.html
http://naturalhistory.mse.jhu.edu/ChronologicalTour/ChT_Merian.html
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/merian_maria_sibylla.html
http://home.wtal.de/hh/merian/meng.htm
New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art. Timeline
of Art History - Albrecht Dürer
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm
Paris, Web Museum. Albrecht Dürer
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/durer/
Other resources on Albrect Dürer as both
painter and printmaker:
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/durer_albrecht.html
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/D/durer.html
http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/bio/d/durer/biograph.html
http://www.geocities.com/eleonoreweil/durerus/den/index.html
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/durer/engravings/
New York, Museum of Modern Art. What is a Print?
http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/2001/whatisaprint/flash.html
Some other artists and cultures to consider in relationship
to careful observation:
Jan Van Eyck, John James Audubon, Karl Bodmer, George Catlin,
Dutch still life, Rachel Ruysch, Richard Estes, Dorothea Lange,
Margaret Bourke White, Egyptian tomb painting
The following websites contain other appropriate
units of instruction that can expand, extend, or support big ideas
presented in this lesson:
Winslow Homer
http://www.nga.gov/kids/homerscoop.pdf
Analyzing Photographs-From Theory to Practice
http://www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org./content/3901/
Lewis and Clark: Artful Recordings
http://www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org./content/3786/
Easy Printmaking in the Classroom
http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/elem/PrintmakingIdeas.html
Underground Garden
(Type the title of the lesson into the "keyword search box"
on the index page)
http://www.crayola.com/educators/lesson_plans/index.cfm
Art Materials:
drawing pencils
colored pencils
8" x 10" white paper - one sheet per student
5" x 7" drawing paper - 4 sheets per student
colored construction paper
5" x 7" pieces of cardboard or poster board
water soluble printing ink
glue sticks and liquid glue
cotton string
ink rollers
LESSON 2.
Lesson Sub-Theme: Some artists represent the world in order to express an idea or opinion.
Goals and Outcomes:
Students will analyze the visual characteristics
of works of art and consider how artists manipulate imagery to
create meaning.
Students will consider how artists use subject matter and symbols
to create meaning.
Students will create an image to convey a point of view.
Key Questions:
How does an artist make choices about what they are going
to say in their works?
What medium has the artist used for his/her work? How does that
affect the look of the work? What tools would the artist use for
this medium?
What is the artist trying to tell us about the objects or people?
How has the artist conveyed his/her own opinion in the work?
Key Works of Art:
Nebraska Masterpieces: (Click on Reproduction
for a printable version.)
Kent Bellows, Over the Mermaid
Lounge
Larry Ferguson, Iceberg, Anarctica
Andy Goldsworthy, photographs
of various works made in nature.
choose several of the works made
in nature.
Lesson Narrative:
Teacher Preparation: Visit the websites listed under Key Works
of Art. Print out copies of the images to use in your classroom.
Make one set of images for each small group (4 or 5 in a group)
with the title identifying each image.
Teacher Presentation: Introduce Kent Bellows
self-portrait using the Nebraska Masterpieces poster . Use the Study this Work of Art section from the back
of the poster paying particular attention to the questions:
Kent Bellows is known for his skill in drawing. What do you see
in the work that would make someone say this? What different kinds
of textures can you observe? What objects look close to you and
what objects look farther away?
What makes this art work different from a photograph?
Now look at Larry Ferguson's photograph, Iceberg, Anarctica .
What do you see in this work? Is there any real object represented?
Is it represented realistically or is it more abstract?
Why do you think people want to go to Antarctica? How would you
describe the environment and natural life of this place?
What happens to the world if all the icebergs melt?
What do you think Ferguson wants you to think about as you look
at his photograph?
Small Group Discussion: Divide the students
into small groups and give each a set of the images by Zig Jackson,
Patrick Nagatani and Andy Goldsworthy. Take a look at these photographs
and discuss the following questions:
What is the work of art - the photograph or the image photographed?
What is this work about?
Do you think the artist is trying to express his own opinion?
Whole Group Discussion and Student Presentation:
Have the groups report out about what they discussed. Raise the
following questions as they report out:
Zig Jackson, City Hall, San Francisco, CA 1997, from Jackson's
"Entering Zig's Indian Reservation" series.
Zig Jackson is a Native American artist who raises issues about
how Native Americans have been treated. What is an Indian Reservation?
Why would Zig Jackson put an Indian Reservation in front of the
San Francisco City Hall? What issues do you think he is raising
and what do you think he wants to express to you?
Patrick Nagatani, Contaminated Radioactive Sediment, Mortandad
Canyon, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 1990-93.
Does anyone know what happened in Los Alamos in the 1940's?
Los Alamos was where the atom bomb was invented. What do you see
here that might relate to the atom bomb or atomic energy?
Mortandad Canyon is an area rich in uranium, a radioactive mineral
used in the production of nuclear weapons. It has also been a
dumping site for liquid waste from the Los Alamos Nuclear Laboratory.
What might Nagatani be saying about this?
This is not a simple photograph. Nagatani has changed the image
to send his message. He has hand colored it and used superimposed
images - one image placed over another. By doing this he creates
a beautiful, yet disturbing message. There may be one other reference
he is making here as well. Nagatani is a Japanese American artist.
How is Los Alamos connected to Japan?
The first atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, by the United
States during World War II in 1945.
Nagatani has manipulated his image. Did Zig Jackson manipulate
his in any way?
He manipulated the image that he photographed rather than manipulating
the photograph itself. He added the Indian Reservation sign.
Andy Goldsworthy, photographs of various works made in nature.
What do you think is the art work here - the photographs or what
Goldsworthy does in nature?
Andy Goldsworthy makes sculptures out of natural objects and then
leaves them to return to their natural state. Why would he do
this?
Do you think he has a message to send?
Individual Art Making Task: Find a realistic
image of an endangered animal. Create a setting for the animal
using either collage, or collage and markers. How can you create
a setting that says something about the problems facing this animal?
How can you express what you think about what is happening to
this animal?
Alternate Small Group Art Making Task: Working in small groups
go outside and create a sculpture out of natural objects, leaves,
sticks, rocks, etc. You might also consider using other kinds
of objects (like trash) to make a statement about the environment.
Using digital cameras, photograph your sculpture.
Written Statement: Write about your work and what you meant to
express with your art work.
Instructional Strategies:
Teacher presentation.
Small and Large group discussion.
Student Presentation
Individual or Small Group Art Making Task
Writing Task
Interdisciplinary Linkages:
Science - Endangered species
ecology.
Assessment Strategies:
Formative Assessment - Teacher observation
and check for understanding during discussions.
Summative Assessment - Have the students expressed an opinion
through their work of art? Have they conveyed this opinion successfully
in their written statement?
Resources and materials:
Cass Sculpture Foundation. "Andy
Goldsworthy."
http://www.sculpture.org.uk/biography/AndyGoldsworthy
New York, NY. Haines Gallery. "Andy Goldsworthy."
http://www.hainesgallery.com/Main_Pages/Artist_Pages/AGOL.work.html
Other resources for Andy Goldsworthy:
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/goldsworthy_andy.html
http://www.arthistory.sbc.edu/artartists/photoandy.html
http://www.artnet.com/artist/7145/andy-goldsworthy.html
http://www.sculpture.org.uk/image/504816331403
http://www.sheepfolds.org/html/info/info00.htm
Chicago, IL. Columbia College, Museum of Contemporary
Photography. "Patrick Nagatani."
http://www.mocp.org/collections/permanent/nagatani_patrick.php
Los Angeles, CA, S K Josefsberg Studio. "Patrick Nagatani."
http://www.skjstudio.com/nagatani/contaminated.html
Other resources for Patrick Nagatani:
http://www.andrewsmithgallery.com/exhibitions/patricknagatani/
http://www.tfaoi.com/aa/2aa/2aa234.htm
http://www.museumofnewmexico.org/mfa/ideaphotographic/artists_nagatani.html
http://www.myhero.com/myhero/hero.asp?hero=Nagatani_california_06
Washington, D. C.., The Library of Congress, "Zig
Jackson Is First Contemporary Native American Photographer Represented
at the Library of Congress," May 11, 2005. http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2005/05-098.html
Other resources for Zig Jackson:
http://www.andrewsmithgallery.com/exhibitions/zigjackson/zigpress.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A24776-2004Sep15.html
http://www.kathleenewinggallery.com/shows/nativeamericanart.html
Other artists to consider in connection with
expressing ideas, opinions, moods and stories in art:
Georgia O'Keefe, Alfred Stieglitz, Ansel Adams, Jaune Quick-to-See
Smith, Karl Bodmer, George Catlin, Aurther Amiotte, Nam Jun Paik,
Duane Hanson, Claus Oldenberg, George Segal, Andy Warhol, Japanese
scroll painting
The following websites contain other appropriate
units of instruction that can expand, extend, or support big ideas
presented in this lesson:
Georgia O'Keeffe
http://www.nga.gov/kids/scoop-okeeffe.pdf
Sky and Artist
http://www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org./content/2366/
Weather or Not
(Type the title of the lesson into the "keyword search box"
on the index page)
http://www.crayola.com/educators/lesson_plans/index.cfm
Art Materials:
For Collage:
12" x 18" white drawing paper
markers
magazines
glue
For outdoor sculpture:
digital cameras