Learning Unit
Art History
Renaissance To Modern Art

CONTENT KNOWLEDGE:

Declarative

• Historical time line
• 5 major periods in Art (Renaissance/Realism, Impressionism, Expressionism, Abstract, and Modern art)
• Characteristics of each period
• Major Artists involved
• Reactions to Art
• Beliefs reflected through Art

Procedural

• Drawing skills
• Skills in painting, collage, composition, etc.
• Compare/contrast
• Identify/classify
• Assigning meaning to art
• Abstracting
• Computer skills

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

• What can I learn from looking at art over the past 600 years, that will help me make art something that I enjoy, and enjoy the art I see?
• What are the defining characteristics of a particular period of art?
• Who are some of the famous artists involved in the period?

INITIATING ACTIVITY:

• A comparison of three violins. Harnett's The Old Violin is a realistic painting; Dufy's The Yellow Violin is an expressionistic one; and Braque's Musical Forms is abstract. Why? What makes them so? (Compare/contrast graphic organizer)
• Students will work in collaborative pairs to fill in and think through the compare/contrast diagram.

CONNECTION TO STATE LEARNING STANDARDS

Content Area: Visual Arts

Level: Elementary

Standards: #1 Participation in the Arts

#3 Responding to and analyzing works of Art

#4 Understanding the contributions of the Visual Arts

Benchmarks: #1 Using what they know to produce Art works that reflect understanding of the concepts, and development of their own ideas.

#3 Explain their reflections about meanings, purposes, and sources of works of Art; describe their responses and reasons for those responses. Develop an art vocabulary.

#4 Look at and discuss a variety of art works from world cultures to discover some important ideas, issues, and events of those cultures.

LEARNING EXPERIENCES:

The Renaissance and Realism:

Holding close to an accurate reproduction of visual facts. The realist may change an object somewhat and put it in order to give it meaning but the objects are still portrayed realistically. Realist Art is believable. The believability is key.

LESSON #1. The "WHAT" sheet. Introduce, identify, and define. Students are given the defining characteristics of the period of Art. (Attention is directed toward visual reproductions on display in the room. The teacher gives a 10-15 minute teaching addressing the definition of, and historical setting for, the particular period under study.) The students then organize and summarize this information into the graphic organizer ("What" Attached). They may work in pairs or as a group with an overhead projector. Using miniature Art reproductions or old Art museum catalogs, students may work in collaborative pairs to find examples of these works. Students fill in the "WHAT" sheets with this information. Some discussion may follow if time permits.

LESSON #2. The "WHO" sheet. Introduce a major artist of this period, be reading from the Getting to Know the World's Great Artists series by Mike Venezia, to them. Fill in the "WHO" sheets. Have them look through the reproductions and find examples, or draw an example in the "Show me…" box on the sheet. Possible artist's biographies are; Michalangelo, Rembrandt, DaVinci, and Reaphael, among others.

LESSON #3. Vocabulary sheet, take about 10 minutes to get a few key words down. They may include some or all of the following: architect, portrait, foreground, perspective, 3-dimensionsl, Renaissance, background, still life, realist.

Then we go into one of the following:

1. realistic drawing (with how to help)
2. perspective (one point)
3. background, middleground, foreground
4. deep space vs. shallow space
5. Art Smart by Susan Rodriguis, (ISBN 0-13-147754-0), activity #31 "The Art of Invention"
6. Art Smart activity #32 "I Remember Mona"
7. Art Smart covers the Renaissance from pages 94-112, with 9 possible activities for young students

LESSON #4. Work on the example continues

Impressionism: The step away from realism. the visual appearance is key. A novel, innovative, original approach to art. A new way to look at light, color, and nature. A breaking away from traditional Art. Without form and outline. "It is my impression" said Monet. Landscapes are a primary focus. The flattening (or exaggerating) of perspective, depth is indistinct and hazy, asymmetrical composition, color takes a new role as the subject, playing on the reflexes of the eye, not solid and compact. Approximately 1870-early 1900's.

LESSON #1. Introduce, identify, and define similar to the activity above.

LESSON #2. Introduce a major artist of this period. Possible artists: Monet, Mary Cassatt, Renoir.

LESSON #3. Vocabulary: museum, gallery, The Salon, pigment, asymmetrical, composition, balance, depth, landscape.

LESSON #4. Example. Students produce work in an Impressionist style. Suggestions:

1. copy a Monet (one of the Waterlillies perhaps)
2. show the students a photo in slide form, make the projector go slightly out of focus, have the students paint what they are seeing
3. Art Smart activities 53-64 (with slides available)

Expressionism and The Fauves: Emotion and feeling are key. Sharply individual and personal, moody, probing your own soul, the tempestuous inner world. It may be puzzling to others. A distortion of color and form for emotional interpretation. It is not a photo likeness or an accurate portrayal of what is seen. A free expression of emotion. Far removed from the physical truth that inspired it. Hence, a departure from reality.

Likened to children's Art at times except that it's subjects usually deal with the morbid, the tragic, the visionary. Therefore, it is subject to spiritual interpretations. Color and line are used to display emotion. It is a departure from tradition as is Impressionism and overlaps in timing and sometimes artists.

LESSON #1. Introduce, identify, and define similar to the activity above.

LESSON #2. Introduce a major artist of this period. Possible Artists: Van Gogh, Matisse, Kandinsky.

LESSON #3. Vocabulary: distortion, emotion, intensity.

LESSON #4. Example. Students produce work in an Expressionist style. Suggestions:

1. copy Van Gogh's style in a painting of your own
2. Art Smart activity #63 "Once Upon a Starry Night"
3. paint a "Mood"
4. painting to classical music

Abstract Art: Objects are reduced to their most simple forms and basic shapes. Also a departure from reality. Evolved from the other movements that broke from tradition. In fact, it represents the culmination of an entire evolution of thorough and theory as to what is or is not art. Thinking is key. The spiritual intertwined. Objects are delicately and deliberately balanced so that any change in color or compositions will ruin the image. The forms and shapes are supposed to be universal expressions of human thought. It frees line and color from meaning. Emphasis on theory rather than subject matter. It shows the idea of the object rather than the look of it. Abstract Art evolved around the early 1900's and is still ongoing.

LESSON #1. Introduce, identify, and define similar to the activity above.

LESSON #2. Introduce a major artist of this period. Possible: Picasso, Braque, Mondrian, Klee.

LESSON #3. Vocabulary: cubism, geometric, controversial.

LESSON #4. Example. Students produce work in an Abstract style. Suggestions:

1. copy Picasso's style in a painting of your own
2. Art Smart activity #68 "Abstract Thinking"
3. a study of Modrian's Trees, look at the progression of thought involved in Abstract Art (Possible use of the sequence chart in Appendix 4 - Assessments)
4. make Art using pure lines and color
5. take their realistic drawings from the Realist lessons and abstract them
6. Art Smart activities: #69 (Mondrian)

Modern Art: The Art of the 20th century. Basically: Anything goes. (Surrealism, Dadaism, Op Art, Pop Art, Futurism, De Stijil, Minimalism, etc.)

LESSON #1. Introduce, identify, and define similar to the activity above.

LESSON #2. Introduce a major artist of this period. Possible: Pollock, O'Keefe, Nevelson, Lichterstien, D. Hanson, Calder, Warhol, etc.

LESSON #3. Vocabulary: soft edge, hard edge, pop-art, op-art, graphic, surreal, influence.

LESSON #4. Example: students produce work in their own style. Suggestions:

1. copy O'Keefe's style in a painting of your own choosing
2. a Jackson Pollock-like, drip painting (or spatters, toothbrush, sponges, etc.)
3. Nevelson-like sculpture
4. Cadler-mobiles

EXTENDING AND REFINING KNOWLEDGE

Students will E&R their knowledge of these 5 styles through the reasoning processes of: Comparison, Classification, and Abstraction. These thinking processes are built into the above learning experiences. The concepts must be understood in order to produce their own work in these styles.

MEANINGFUL USE TASK

Students will be demonstrating their understanding of and ability to apply the unit content by engaging in a project that will produce a product. The reasoning processes they will use are invention and decision making. The computer program PHOTODELUX (Adobe) will be utilized by students to make 5 self-portraits in each of the 5 styles.

PRODUCTS/PERFORMANCES

A booklet will be produced by each student, which will contain all of the student's information sheets, example art, and self-portraits.

CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION

Rubrics: (Attachments)

Written Test: tests what they retain in their memory (Attached)

UNIT SCHEDULE/TIME PLAN:

20-25 Forty minute art classes:

• Renaissance and Realism=4classes
• Impressionism=4 classes
• Expressionism=4 classes
• Abstraction=4 classes
• Modern Art=4 classes
• Evaluations, Organizing Booklets, Testing, take time also and must be planned in.

MEANINGFUL USE TASK:

Photodelux Self Portraits-May take an additional 4 classes

NARRATIVE:

This unit represents the bulk of the third grade curriculum at NNES (September to June). This focus is within a K-6 Art Program, which covers many aspects of doing and appreciating Art. The idea is to present a scope and sequence for Art within a historical time frame. Much emphasis is made on the thought behind the evolution of Art as we know it today. (Just how did we arrive at "anything goes" art?) This unit may be adapted to older grade levels, even into High School. The repetition of the 4 lessons (What, Who, Vocabulary, Example) enables students to excitedly anticipate what is coming next. Also, they are able to Compare/contrast one period with another more readily. Putting the pages together, in order, according to a table of contents, helped the students review the material. Any lessons missed could be copied from a peer. Time can even be set aside as a make up class. The test can be given as an open book where they are using their folders to find answers. Or it can be given and then self corrected with another color pen. The MUT is still another way that the material may be "rubbed in by repetition". Actually, the MUT was the way they really internalized the learning.

Art work was kept to a smaller size. Usually a blank 5x8 index card. Sometimes Art was completed directly onto the "Example" sheet. This kept the budget for the program very reasonable. NNES has a computer lab (Macs, Scanners, Printers, Disks), supplies come out of technology funds for the color printing.

All told, this proved to be a rewarding year of learning and growing for both teacher and students. The booklets were valuable to the students and they felt like they'd learned a lot.

COMPARE/CONTRAST DIAGRAM

WHAT?

What are we studying? _________________________________________

WHO?

A major artist of the ____________________ is ____________________.

This artist painted ____________________ (Name one of his/her paintings or describe one you remember).

He/She lived (when?) ____________________ in (where) ____________________.

Here's what I know about him/her…

Show me what their work looked like.

ART VOCABULARY

MY EXAMPLE OF _______________ ART

RUBRIC FOR PHOTODELUX MODERN ART

NAME____________________YOUR OVERALL SCORE___________________

MY ____________________ SELF-PORTRAIT.

BY ____________________ GRADE _____

In what way does this portrait fit the definition for the style of Art you selected.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________ Grade _____ Date ____________________

Year End Evaluation

WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER?

(1)We studied 4 or 5 major periods in Art History this year. How many can you name?

1. ______________________________

2. ______________________________

3. ______________________________

4. ______________________________

5. ______________________________

(2)Please describe one of these periods in Art?__________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(3)We looked at many famous artists. How many can you name?

1. ____________________ 4. _____________________

2. _____________________ 5. ____________________

3. ____________________________________________

(4)Can you tell me the title of one (or more) of the famous works of art?

(5)Can you name one (or more) of the artists who painted these works?

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(6)What did you like about art class this year?

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(7)Vocabulary: Can you tell what these words mean to art?

The Salon______________________________________________________

Avant garde_____________________________________________________

RUBRIC FOR ART HISTORY BOOKLET - 3RD GRADE

NAME____________________YOUR OVERALL SCORE___________________