Monday, September 14th

Welcome to Cultural Aesthetics!

Please find your seat by looking at the seating chart on the clipboard at the front of the room. Then pick up a marker and an index card and complete the following at your seat. When you've finished, please wait quietly.

• Fold the card in half lengthwise.
• Write your name on half of the blank side, big enough and dark enough to make it legible from across the room. Embellish with color and design; this is an art class!
• On the lined side, answer the following (in pen or pencil, not marker):
  1. Your full name (again), tell me if you have a preferred name
  2. The middle school you went to
  3. What kinds of art do you most appreciate? Music, dance, film, painting, etc. Give a few examples of pieces you like.
  4. Describe yourself as an artist in a few sentences. How do you feel about making art? What kinds of art are you comfortable making? What are you not comfortable with? What kinds of art have you never tried, but would like to? How important do you think art is? Why? Does your artistic expression say anything about you personally?
     

Wednesday, September 16th

Good afternoon!

Please pick up a "Cultural Aesthetics Warm-Ups" sheet from the front table. Put your name on it and date the first box. In that box brainstorm as many different types of "art" as you can think of. This is a contest, so I would recommend numbering your ideas and not sharing them with classmates.

Friday, September 18th

On your "Warm-Ups" sheet, please answer the following question(s) as thoughtfully as possible. Fill the space with as many ideas as possible.

How might studying art from around the world help you better understand other cultures and increase world peace?

Tuesday, September 22nd

Look at the images below. What can you guess about the cultures that created them, based on the images shown? What kind of lifestyles did they have? What did they care about?

Tuesday, September 29th

Is beauty in the eye of the beholder? Or are there some universal principles that help define beauty? What do you think? You can argue both ways if you want.

Monday, October 5th

Take a look at the biome cave art posters created by your classmates. Choose one near your seat (that you didn't make) to study. Imagine you are an art historian or an archeologist. What can you tell about the culture that created this art? Describe the picture on your warm up sheet and explain what you believe it tells about that culture.

Turned in warm up sheets with quiz. Start new warm up sheets next class.

Wednesday, October 7th

Take a moment to think of one place that is very significant to you for some reason. It could be a place you find refuge or a place that something important happened in your life. It could be a place you spend a lot of time or somewhere that you've only been to a few times but holds real meaning for you. Right a few sentences to identify and describe the place in detail. Why is this place important to you? If you wanted to help someone find it, how would you do so?

Monday, October 12th

On Monday we learned that Aboriginal Australians have to earn the right to be an artist through rites of passage and rituals. Yet, we are doing Aboriginal-inspired art in class. Is that ok? Is it morally wrong? Is it up for debate? How do we decide? Explain your ideas thoroughly.

Wednesday, October 14th

no class - Testing Day

Friday, October 16th

no warm up, jump right into art since we have a shortened period due to early release.

Tuesday, October 20th

Look at the "dot" paintings by Aboriginal Artists below. Choose one. Remember the importance of birds-eye view and iconography. What story do you imagine this picture might be trying to tell. Create a glossary and write a paragraph about your interpretation. (Remember, although much art is open to interpretation, these pieces have actually stories connected to them. The act of making up a story isn't intended to discount the real story, but to help you think about how the art is used to tell stories.)

Artists: Andrea Nungurrayi Martin, Liddy Nelson Jakamarra, Mary Napangardi Brown, and Minnie Pwerle.

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

Consider the pictures of Maori men below. Two photos are showing the haka, a traditional war dance, and all three feature photos show the moko facial tattoo. The tattoos and the dance are both designed to (among other things) be intimidating. Traditionally in American culture, we haven't used facial tattoos or dance to intimidate rivals, but that doesn't mean intimidation doesn't happen intentionally all the time. How do you think people try to intimidate each other in American culture? Explain your ideas thoroughly.

Monday, October 26th, 2009

Polynesian navigators were some of the first and finest explorers in the world. What do you think might have inspired Polynesians to set out in boats such as these and migrate to new unknown places such as illustrated in the map below?

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Pick up a new warm up sheet. You will turn in the 5 warm ups from the Oceania unit after the quiz. Do the warm up below on your new sheet.

Respond to the piece of art below. Where do you think it’s from? Describe the elements of art and principles of design you see.

Friday, October 30th, 2009

On your warm up sheet, respond to the piece of cloth at the front of the room. How can you describe it using the elements of African art we discussed last class?

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009

Pick up the Adinkra Stamping Project handout (green) and the accompanying symbols packet (white) from the front table. Look over them. Do step 1. Be ready to take notes from a short lecture in a moment.

Thursday, November 5th, 2009

Imagine your ideal house. What would it look like on the outside? What colors, designs, shapes? Do you have a subdued or bold style? Draw or describe with words what your house would look like. Explain your choice.