Part of what makes ART so rad is that the processes we learn and become aware of (which is called METACOGNITION, or "thinking about thinking") ...can be applied to so many other different actions. The simple power to begin is one of the best things art can give us. When we have the courage to take something from our brain and create it IRL, that's beyond huge. That's a kind of magic.
Another great and widely useful skill is what we learn in critique. When you describe, analyze, interpret and evaluate your and other people's art, you sharpen your skills at all of those things. In the teaching trade, we have a bunch of words that we use when we plan lessons; these are the "depth of knowledge" levels. These words cover some of the very highest-level skills that we're trying to teach you. An art critique would be the same process that you'd use for reviewing any creative or communicative product. The DAIE format and "smart-soft" questions I'm using in this lesson borrow heavily from Cindy Ingram and Marvin Bartel. Below is Marvin's quote about "critiques without cruelty," which I love: “The critique is the time to be nice in spite of ourselves. Empathy is more natural for some than others. Fostering empathy and creativity is a worthy educational goal for the sake of our student's future survival and success. Art class offers chances for both.”
0 Comments
A short YouTube about Fine vs. Applied Arts.
And one about a sign painter in Glasgow. And one about a high school student's ideas on High/Low art. And one about Fine Arts vs. Crafts. Where do you think Art and Craft overlap? It's a tough question! March 2018: The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, one of America's most famous art museums, is switching from being "pay as you can" to NY and NJ students and resident museum-goers...to charging $25 to get in. See this article and read what artists have to say about the change (spoiler: they don't like it.)
What do you think about the museum's decision to charge an admittance fee that is, for many, simply too high to pay? As artist Ai Weiwei says in the article: When I lived in New York in the 1980s, economically it was very bad for me. But I would come to the Met all the time and pay a penny. And when I could afford to I paid more. When I was back in China, I would very proudly show them this pay-as-you-wish policy as an example of what was positive about the U.S., that even in this capitalistic society, there was a door, a light. To stand in front of a Van Gogh or a Jackson Pollock, or African sculpture, it gave you hope and you were not judged by your economic status but by how much you loved those works. It was a treasure, not a privilege. This new way totally ruins this belief. It’s like taking the jacket off a poor person. If they do this, I will never go to the Met. Am I calling for a boycott? No. But I myself will not go. The Grid of Mystery!! (Students still working on squares for extra credit.)
Why was this image and phrase chosen? Visual literacy: The Oak tree (and specifically the Valley Oak) is a symbol of the Mechoopda tribe, the original inhabitants of this area. Although colonizers tried to destroy Mechoopda culture, this culture still exists and the Mechoopda are determined to preserve and restore their lifeways and even their language. We can all be inspired by their determination and resilience, because those are the things everyone needs to get through life. The Oak tree is sacred for many different cultures, including the Irish pagan druids. The town of Derry in Ireland is from the Gaelic "Doire," which means Oak. The background is a photograph of an Oak in winter, taken by the bike path between Forest and Bruce Rd. Naked Oaks are some of the most beautiful and interesting shapes in nature ("organic shapes"). And the phrase "Don't let the hardness of our times, destroy the softness in our hearts": YES! LIFE IS HARD. Oh man is that true. But if you let your heart be as hard as the times, no joy will come into your life. As much as it hurts, you have to try to keep a piece of softness in your heart. The acorn in the picture is the soft part that we protect; the acorn is our future. In our Fair View family, we're all committed to protecting that tenderness in each other's hearts, and in our own. When you can't do it for yourself, we'll help. Because youall were reproducing artwork that was given to you, it's not really right to say that you're having a CRITIQUE--which is where we talk about our (and other people's) design choices. Instead, we're going to think about the process of the project, and the four questions below:
What was easy for you about this project? What was hardest for you about this project? How would you rate your own piece on a scale of 1-10? Explain your reasoning. How would you rate the piece as a whole on a scale of 1-10? Explain your reasoning. ALSO: MiZ MURPHY IS LOOKING FOR YOUR FEEDBACK ON HOW SHE TAUGHT THE LESSON. Tell me what you would have liked to have MORE of, or LESS of? For example: "I didn't understand the grid part. I wish you'd spent more time on that." |
Art Matters.ArchivesCategories |