The Visual Arts Essay
(FOR KIMKIM)
Read, listen, and watch the assigned material, including my commentaries, before participating in this discussion.
Many people don’t have a lot of experience really LOOKING at art.
We kind of look at it–maybe we like the colors, or what’s depicted (my husband might say, “Cool! It’s a soldier with a gun!” because he’s a soldier). But looking at art is like anything else: the more you practice, the more you see.
The assigned material on the visual arts and the link in this assignment give some ideas of HOW to look–what to look for, what to pay attention to.
ASSIGNMENT:
Browse the paintings, drawings, and sculptures at this link: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-history
Or look at a web site from any art museum. Here are a few good ones to get you started.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York: http://www.metmuseum.org/collection
National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.: http://www.nga.gov/content/ngaweb.html
Louvre, Paris: http://www.louvre.fr/en
Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), New York: http://www.moma.org/
Choose one painting, drawing or sculpture that depicts or tries sends a message about a political or social event.
Then choose another that interests you, but does not seem to be trying to “send a message.â€
Begin by looking carefully at the two works you’ll be discussing. Note the content, composition, style, colors, technique…This link will help you with ideas of what to look for.
Khan Academy: The Skill of Describing
For the discussion:
Identify the works and include links where we can view them. (You may find a better view of the image by searching online.)
Try to embed an image of the works by going to the “insert stuff” icon at the top of your text box (the first one on the left, with four little objects in it). Scroll down for more detailed instructions on “inserting stuff.”
Describe what you see in the two art works. You may have to do a bit of research to understand these art works. Be sure to include links to any resources you consult.
Do you think the work that tries to convey a political or social “message†is effective at communicating a position, evoking an emotion, or inspiring a particular reaction that might affect people’s opinions or actions?
What about the “apolitical†artwork, the one without an overt social or political message. Do you see any message at all in that art work? Does it evoke an emotion or inspire a particular reaction in you? Are there particular aspects of the images that speak to you–color, line, form, content, style…?
What is your overall reaction to these works? Would you expect people’s reactions to these two artworks to be fairly universal? Or would you expect big differences in how the art is perceived, based on the cultural background of the observer? Explain your thinking.
To answer this question, start a thread in this discussion and give it a unique title. Your main post should be at least 250 words.
Comment on the contribution of at least one other student.
HOW TO INSERT IMAGES, HYPERLINKS, AND VIDEOS
To edit and correct your contributions to discussions.
1. Got to your post.
2. Click the little triangle to the right of your post title or your name.
3. Click “edit thread” or “edit post.”
4. After you’ve made changes, click the blue “update” button at the bottom.
To insert a live link. There’s more than one way to do this. I prefer the easy way.
1. Copy the link location (right click and highlight it with your mouse).
2. In the page where you’re posting, look at the upper left icon in the editing toolbar just above where you’re typing. Those four little thingies are the “insert stuff” icon.
3. Click “insert stuff”
4. Choose “insert link”
5. Follow instructions. Insert your link, scroll down and click “next,” insert your link (or a title) again, then submit.
To embed an image or video.
1. Usually you can just right-click on the image, “copy image,” then paste it into your post!
2. Sometimes inserting the link will also make the image show live (especially for videos). I don’t know how this works. Magic, probably.
