UNit 1: Identity
Popplet
ARTIST: CHUCK CLOSE
- SELF-PORTRAITURE: CRAYON
ARTIST: WILLIAM WEGMAN
- ARTFUL PERSONIFICATIONS: MIXED MEDIA
UNIT 1: IDENTITY REFLECTION
Self portraiture using Disney protagonists and antagonists allowed each artist to compare himself to these characters, finding close similarities or drastic differences, ultimately revealing a part of his identity, whether physical, emotional, or psychological. As I personally chose Jasmine from Aladdin and Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty, I originally found very little in common with either character, but as I searched deeper, I found features of Jasmine that I admired and hope to grow in myself. When considering lessons art teaches, a powerful statement is made: “The arts enable us to have experience we can have from no other source and through such experience to discover the range and variety of what we are capable of feeling” (Eisner 2002). This is a realization I had not recognized before. In the same way with artful personifications, creating a piece portraying the tale of The Ugly Duckling allowed me to think deeper into the meaning of the story, depicting it in a way I would have never thought of before. Just as Eisner points out the possibilities art offers, I too took away an experience I would never have realized without this practice of art.
Elementary students could certainly experience these studios of self portraiture and artful personifications as well. In my future classroom, I could craft a similar lesson, allowing the children to choose a favorite story from any book they have read, movie they have watched, or television show they have seen, and create a scene displaying the tale. Integrating this with a writing piece, my students could choose a particular character from the scene and briefly explain why they chose the character they chose, discussing what similarities and differences they had with the character. “Learning how to slow down perception is one of the primary ways in which one can enrich one’s experience” (Eisner, 2009, p. 8). Encouraging children to dig within themselves through the practice of visual art allows them to see things they may never understand otherwise.
Eisner, E. (2002). Ten Lessons the Arts Teach. The Arts and the Creation of Mind. http://www.naea-reston.org/tenlessons.html.
Eisner, E. (March 2009). What Education Can Learn from the Arts. Art Education, 6-9.
Elementary students could certainly experience these studios of self portraiture and artful personifications as well. In my future classroom, I could craft a similar lesson, allowing the children to choose a favorite story from any book they have read, movie they have watched, or television show they have seen, and create a scene displaying the tale. Integrating this with a writing piece, my students could choose a particular character from the scene and briefly explain why they chose the character they chose, discussing what similarities and differences they had with the character. “Learning how to slow down perception is one of the primary ways in which one can enrich one’s experience” (Eisner, 2009, p. 8). Encouraging children to dig within themselves through the practice of visual art allows them to see things they may never understand otherwise.
Eisner, E. (2002). Ten Lessons the Arts Teach. The Arts and the Creation of Mind. http://www.naea-reston.org/tenlessons.html.
Eisner, E. (March 2009). What Education Can Learn from the Arts. Art Education, 6-9.