Fractured Chairs: Exploring Distortion
Overview of the Lesson The lesson introduces and explores the concept of distortion and abstraction as a form of artistic expression.
Big Idea: Artists shape their artistic investigations, following or breaking established conventions, in pursuit of images that represent their unique view of the world.
Goals. To demonstrate:
o understanding of the characteristics of distortion as a technique that involves exaggeration and a twisting of the image for a specific purpose;
o knowledge of David Hockney and his ideas about time, viewpoint, and multiple images;
o understanding of objects as symbols for self (chair paintings by Van Gogh and Gauguin) and comparison with the chair artworks created by David Hockney.
Big Idea: Artists shape their artistic investigations, following or breaking established conventions, in pursuit of images that represent their unique view of the world.
Goals. To demonstrate:
o understanding of the characteristics of distortion as a technique that involves exaggeration and a twisting of the image for a specific purpose;
o knowledge of David Hockney and his ideas about time, viewpoint, and multiple images;
o understanding of objects as symbols for self (chair paintings by Van Gogh and Gauguin) and comparison with the chair artworks created by David Hockney.
Many times, students strive for photorealism in their drawings. This learning activity takes them on an artistic exploration -- introducing distortion of realistic images so that they become more energetic and expressive.
In the words of one student: "All the distorted drawings the students made were very colorful and exciting -- they seemed to move on the page. And each one was different and interesting in its own way. The drawings were unique in a way that the original drawings weren't."
This lesson explores the idea of the artist's intent -- the purpose of the artwork.
If possible, as a culminating activity, show the video Behind the Scenes which documents David Hockney's "walk around a chair" as a way to capture multiple viewpoints.
http://www.amazon.com/Behind-Scenes-David-Hockney-VHS/dp/6305347972
Complete the Contact Us Form for password access to complete lesson plans , including procedures, discussion questions, assessment strategies, and teacher reflection
|
The lesson also contains several examples of student work with excerpts from their reflective writing. |