Classroom Blog
Third grade students tackled a big subject in their latest project . . . Art as a method of bringing social change. We began by talking about some of the reasons artists make art- sometimes it's simply for enjoyment or to bring beauty to the world, but sometimes it's for a greater purpose, like to educate viewers about a topic or encourage them to think about something from a new perspective. Students were already familiar with the idea of an author writing for a specific purpose- such as to entertain, persuade, or inform- and were able to apply those concepts to art-making. I asked students to think about our society, and to choose something they didn't like about the world we live in. I offered a few ideas to get them started, such as bullying, pollution, or animals in need, but encouraged students to think of an issue that has affected their own lives. Their goal was to create an artwork that would communicate a message about their chosen topic and would inspire change in their viewer. This project was very student-driven. I offered students access to many different art supplies and encouraged them to choose what they were comfortable with and what would best communicate their ideas. Students could choose from paint, markers, colored pencils, white or colored paper, and various collage materials. Allowing the students this much choice really helps students to be invested in their work and committed to doing their best. Here are some of the finished projects. While the artworks are not as polished as I would like them to be, I think the message behind these works makes them each successful. Several students chose topics that were very personal to them. I was proud of them for being risk-takers and being willing to share their feelings! "I am sad because there are kids that do not have friends. I wish kids would have friends and never be lonely. Some kids don’t have friends and that makes me sad. I wish kids were not lonely. I would like to help people that don’t have friends. I would like to change the world by giving everybody friends and nobody being mean." "Please help the dogs. Help dogs that are homeless. Help them by giving them food and water. I drew a person giving food and water to a dog. We can help collect money and food for the animal shelter." "My change is for my family to stop fighting. Then we will be a happy family. Then we will have a good life. My picture shows my family. We are being nice to each other in my painting. It shows hearts so you will see we are a happy family." "We need to stop killing deers. Hunting is bad because it hurts the animals. We should keep the deers alive because they are beautiful and Santa needs the deers." "The change I want to make is to change the world by being a teacher. I want to help children learn about math. My art has six children and a teacher and the children have notebooks open and they have pencils in their hands and there are chairs and desks and a board. Teachers are important because they help us learn." "We need to stop oil in the ocean. Otters and beavers get stuck. They also get stuck in the soda holders. They choke and they can’t get out. People have to save them. My art shows an otter. There are blue tears on his face. The black oil is all around him." "I want to see everyone accepting each other. I want to see new colors and people liking the new colors. I showed this because people need to change and love each other in life. We can change our ways in life and make better choices." "My change is to make people not be on the road in a storm. You will get a message when a storm is about to happen and will get cover. People will all have homes and be protected and be safe." "My change is to stop littering. My art shows if you don’t stop it this is what’s going to happen. Just look at it- there are no trees, there is nothing left because of littering. You should start now or later. If we do this everything will last forever. It will help Earth a lot." "People should stop smoking. It is dangerous. It smells bad. It hurts our lungs. It makes us very sick. It makes your lungs black. You will have a crazy voice when you use a machine to talk." "My change is to make stuff not cost much money. Some people don’t have enough money to buy stuff. In my picture stuff costs $60. There are three men holding a suitcase and their faces are mad. We should tell the president to lower the prices. We can also tell the people that work at the stores." "My change is to stop killing animals. I feel depressed when I see one die. My art shows a person killing a dog/cat. Then it shows two dogs eating. It says let them eat food too. It also says to donate money to animal shelters to start the change. You should spread the word to other people." "I want people to stop drinking. I know people that drink. I don’t want them to get in trouble. My painting shows that my uncle died in a wreck with a tree. I know where he crashed. It is too late for him. But not too late for other people. This painting shows my mom. She is crying because my uncle died. The sign shows no drinking. I painted the tree and the crashed car." "People are crashing cars and they die from the crashing. They don’t want to die. They crash because they don’t watch where they are going and they are on their phones and they don’t see where they are going. My change is for them to stop looking at their phones and look where they are driving." On the last day of the project, I introduced students to some master artists whose work addresses social issues. Typically I show other artworks at the start of a project; however this time I intentionally waited until students' work was well underway. I wanted them to think for themselves rather than copying imagery from another artist. Here are a few of the works we looked at: Keith Haring: themes of love and peace Keith Haring began his art career by creating large chalk drawings that he displayed in subways cars in New York City. His work was seen by the many people riding the subway each day. His imagery often shows love and friendship. As his career grew, he began painting murals in buildings like schools and hospitals. His later work focused on raising money to find cures for illnesses. Marisol Escobar: feminist issues This sculpture is a portrait of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The small figures he is holding in his hand appear to be birds; however, when you look closer you realize they have people's faces. They faces are those of his wife and two daughters. The bird shapes are a reference to his wife, Lady Bird. The contrast in size makes him seem very powerful, while the female figures seem less important- almost like pets. This artwork points out the unbalanced power between the male and the females. Romare Bearden: celebrating African-American communities Romare Bearden was part of the Harlem Renaissance in New York City. Some of his most famous works are his collages featuring African-American neighborhoods. He wanted to celebrate the communities and give others a glimpse of what life was like. This image, which is part of a large artwork called The Block, shows a group of street musicians performing outside a barber shop. Kerry James Marshall: civil rights Kerry James Marshall was a child in the 1960's, and grew up during the civil rights movement. His artwork celebrates the leaders of the time and the sacrifices they made. In this painting, a woman is creating a shrine to the leaders of the time. She is dressed all in black to symbolize mourning their loss, and is painted wearing wings like an angel. Chris Jordan: waste, excess, and consumerism This artist is the most contemporary, and the one that students were most interested in. Chris Jordan creates digital collages representing all the things we waste every day. The above artwork is a copy of Seurat's painting Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte- but when you look closer, you see it's made up of soda cans! He explains that this artwork is made of 106,000 cans- the amount the US uses every thirty seconds. The gallery on his website is quite interesting, and really puts into perspective the resources our country wastes. Here are his other works I showed to students: Building Blocks: representing the 1.2 million students who drop out of high school each year Car Keys: shows the 260,000 gallons of gasoline used by U.S. cars in one minute Plastic Bottles: the 2 million plastic drink bottles we use every fifteen minutes We finished up with this video featuring an artist from Uganda, "Mr. Art", and how he hopes to inspire change in his city of Kampala through his artwork.
1 Comment
allison
3/22/2018 01:07:52 pm
Beautiful, beautiful work my friend! Your reflection, and commitment to pushing your students is such an amazing gift! You are a prize to HES.
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