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Visual Culture Database

Analysis of various artworks as a springboard for pivotal lesson plans

Mirror Piece I

Tar Beach

Red Leaf Patch

Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii

Trapped

Dirty white trash (with gulls)

Mirror Piece I

Joan Jonas
1969
Performance at Annadale-on Hudson
Big Idea: Identity
Major Theme: Instability
Medium/Presentation: Human bodies, mirrors, live video, chromogenic print
Visual Components: Illusion, symmetry, emphasis, form, space, performance, three-dimensional, two-dimensional
Category: Fine Art and Performance Art
Description/Interpretation

Mirror Piece I is a chromogenic print of a performance piece where performers slowly moved around an environment with choreographed movements and mirrors. In the act of using the mirrors, the surrounding environment is now seen in a two-dimensional form as opposed the three-dimensional reality occurring in front of them. This creates a separation of reality by the viewer’s perceptions.

 

In the still image, a performer sits in the grass holding a mirror.  The mirror shows a reflection of her legs and feet where the reflection occupies the space where her torso would naturally be. The performer takes on the identity of someone who simply reflects his/her surroundings where the viewer becomes engaged in the environment that is reflected and the absence of the performer’s identity.  Her arms and hands holding the long mirror are also visible. The inclusion of these parts of the performer’s body in combination with the separation of these parts from the torso by the absence created through the mirror, elements of the illusion are amplified. The fusion of these elements allows an illusion to surface and create an uncanny and surrealistic form.

 

The constant movement throughout the performance, which depicts these illusions, prevents any possibility for the audience to feel stable. Joan Jonas uses her understanding of the psychology of observer to muddle the audience’s relationship to her prepared, indirectly, interactive performances.

Mirror Piece I.jpg

Use in Teaching

This lesson idea is for an eighth-grade class. After students analyze Mirror Piece I, they will arrive at the conclusion that Joan Jonas’s big idea was instability. Her theme revolves around the performer’s confusion of identity. Students will think about other situations in their life when they have felt unstable and communicate the situation representationally through a three-dimensional form. Students must use at least three different mediums, including plaster, to construct their sculpture. Students will be required to create a unique method for installation as a way to convey the meaning of their piece. This lesson is more open-ended to help students critically think about the various methods of installation that can influence a sculptures meaning.
Discussion Questions:
  • When have you been in a situation where you have felt uncomfortable or disconnected?

  • Why did you feel this way?

  • Share words with me that describe this feeling.

  • What are some physical representations of these words?

  • How does Mirror Piece I make you feel?

  • Why does it make you feel that way?

  • How would the meaning of the piece change if it wasn’t a performance?

  • How does the absence of a face in the image influence the big idea of identity?

  • How does the mass of the four legs make you feel when you look at it without the surrounding context?

Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii

Nam June Paik
1995
Current Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Big Idea: Cultural Identity
Major Theme: Variety and Unity of American Culture
Medium/Presentation: Sculpture, assemblage, new media, multimedia, fifty-one channel video installation (including one closed-circuit television feed), custom electronics, neon lighting, steel and wood
Visual Components: Color, sound, scale, landscape, unity, repetition, line, shape, three-dimensional, movement
Category: Pop Culture
Nam-June-Paik-Electronic-Superhighway-Co
Description/Interpretation

Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii structurally depicts the United States with the use of neon lights and televisions on a grand scale. The viewer must walk past the installation and engage in its colossal construction. This symbolizes the enormous size of the United States of America.

 

The piece not only has motion pictures that are associated with each states significance, but the sound of the films which are broadcasted for viewers to absorb. The media selection expresses the large consumption of American culture. The televisions showcase the strong influence television has had on American culture and the neon lights reflect the excitement of participating in eating out and staying at hotels while traveling. The use of vivid lights and chaotic movement helps instill the concept that the United States of America is pulsing with energy. Americans are invited to embrace the freedom of all of the opportunities presented to them as shown on the television screens.

 

Additionally, the television screens have order and repetition in their composition which expresses the unity of the states within the country. Each state maintains its unique identity regardless of the strong homogenization that occurs from media consumption. Nam June Paik clearly expresses the individuality of cultures and the unity among them in the context of the United States of America.  

Use in Teaching

After understanding the significance of cultural identities, students will research either their historical cultural identity or current cultural identity. Students will create a diptych in which the first image depicts their historical or current local community and the second image will depict a larger cultural identity. In this way, students will be able to compare and contrast micro-cultural identities and macro-cultural identities in the context of different time periods. Students will be challenged to consider the media used in the time era to express the cultural identities, and will not be limited by any medium. The analyzation of the micro and macro scale of identities will allow students to experience the wide range of cultural identities that exist.
Discussion Questions:
  • Who has gone on a road trip before?

  • What did you notice on your trip?

  • How far did you go?

  • Did it take a long time?

  • What were some new and similar things you saw in these places?

  • What does the size of this piece emphasize?

  • What are some cultural symbols of America?

  • What images are shown on the television screens in this piece?

  • How are those images associated with the piece individually and as a whole?

  • What cultures are you currently a part of?

  • What is your family’s historical culture?

Dirty white trash (with gulls)

Tim Nobel and Sue Webster
1998
dirty_white_trash_1998A.jpg
Big Idea: Throw-Away Society
Major Theme: Role as a Global Citizen
Medium/Presentation: 6 month’s worth of artist trash, two taxidermy seagulls, projector
Visual Components: Viewpoint, assemblage, light, shadow, form, silhouette
Category: Fine Art
Description/Interpretation

When looking at Dirty white trash(with gulls) it is important to look at the sculpture as is exists without the use of the projector. At first glance, it is a pile of trash which is composed of objects that are by-products of a throw-away society. The pile looks very chaotic because of its lack of intention and organization. Given the use of the light projector, two figures appear. Since the pile of trash is composed of the artists own trash, it can be concluded that the two figures that appear are the artists themselves. This is a unique approach on self-portraiture as they use an undefined three-dimensional form with the projection of light to revel their silhouettes. Since the composition of the artists forms is of their own trash, this provides evidence that the artists are conscious and want to make commentary about their role of overconsumption in a throw-away society.

Use in Teaching

Students will keep a record and create a list of all of the materials they consume and throw-way for a week. Students will evaluate the purposes for throwing away and keeping the items they have listed.  Students will then select one of the items that can be reused from their list and use it as the material to create something on the list they have purchased and kept over the course of the week. The item must be functional, but may vary in scale. This ides enforces the idea that people are creating upcycled products to reduce the excessive production of short-lived items.

Discussion Questions:
  • What do you see when you look at the piece?

  • How may your perception alter if I share with you that the trash that is used is trash over the course of six months from the two artists?

  • How much trash do you think you produce (in pounds)?

  • What products do you use that reduce the need for single use items?

  • How might technology influence the amount of waste you contribute?

  • How can you communicate the relationship between new media and traditional media to express ones environmental advantage over the other?

Trapped

Beth Cavener
2015
01_Trapped_2015_beth_cavener-1500x846.jp
Big Idea: Personal Suffering
Major Theme: Loneliness
Medium/Presentation: Stoneware, paint, 18 k gold, rope, wood
Visual Components: Sculpture, three-dimensional, multi-media, form, tension, emphasis, movement, expressive
Category: Fine Art 
Description/Interpretation

Trapped is a sculpture of a fox gnawing at its own arm which has a gold ring on its paw. The fox’s leg is tied to a wooden branch by a rope. The fox’s color holds true to its realistic qualities, but the form of the fox is more muscular like human anatomy which can be deducted by the movement of the lines carved into the sculpture.

 

Given that animals do not wear rings to symbolize their commitment to their romantic partner, it becomes apparent that the sculpture is a portrait of a human who appears to be struggling with their marriage since that is the paw it is gnawing at. However, the fox’s lack of attention to the leg that is actually bound expresses the animal’s misunderstanding of the source of pain. The true pain that the animal is suffering from is an outside source and is mistakenly interpreting its marriage as the root of its suffering. The use of the animal as the representation of the human signifies its innocence, since humankind generally is less naïve than wild animals. Because the animal can’t locate the true source of its pain, it feels trapped, hence the name of the piece.

Use in Teaching

For sixth graders, it will be helpful to show them the power of new media in the art making process as they begin to make more serious advancements in creating art and seek more manageable methods of achieving realism. With that, students will be prompted to create a new image using new media software, such as Photoshop, which utilizes an original image that expresses unity as the background and cohesively add another image to make the piece express loneliness. This expresses that the absence of the actual subject may not always cause loneliness, but the redirection of attention can cause loneliness too.

Discussion Questions:
  • Who has ever seen an animal wear a ring?

  • Who wears rings? Wild animals or humans?

  • How does the animal wearing the ring change the meaning of the piece instead of a human?

  • What problems is the fox facing?

  • Why isn’t there another animal there to help?

  • When have you felt alone?

  • When have you felt united?

  • What are some ways you have alone and untied at the same time?

Red Leaf Patch

Andy Goldsworthy
1983
​Cumbria, United Kingdom
red leaf patch.jpg
Big Idea: Intimacy with nature
Major Theme: Entropy
Medium/Presentation: Leaves, saliva, grass, Fujichrome film
Visual Components: Texture, color, shape, form, organic, radial symmetry, illusion, space
Category: Fine Art 
Description/Interpretation

Use in Teaching

Andy Goldsworthy uses very specific methods when creating his artwork. Generally this leads to duplicates of his artwork from students when they create. To refrain from mimicking, I would alter his main idea slightly when teaching children about his work. Since nature undeniably decays over time, I would have students concentrate on the theme of time passing. When discussing Red Leaf Patch in a middle school class, I would place emphasis on intertwinement of his big idea and theme. To express this, students would utilize an environment they spend most of their time in to display the theme of entropy. Students will take a series of photographs in the same location of that environment every day over the course of a month and create a time lapse project to demonstrate ephemerality. A second part of the lesson would consist of students selecting materials they found within their specific environment to create a photograph using successful composition methods which expresses entropy in an environment. Student will then have the opportunity to compare and contrast how the two media choices influence the value of their message. Using the same big idea and theme as Goldsworthy with a twist of the environment materials being utilized lets students explore other common occurring and natural materials within that designated environment as a method to understand the variety of environments that exist around them and how that environments timeline may be communicated differently from other environments. This project allows students to learn that media selection plays a significant role in communicating an idea to an audience and that media selection can enhance the meaning of artwork.

​

Note: This assignment would take place outside of class over the course of a month to give students ample time to complete the project. Using environments students are familiar with creates a comfortable environment for the art making process. When sharing projects, this also allows students to view many different types of environments they may generally not come in contact with.

Given that Goldsworthy’s big idea is being intimate with nature, he uses materials that are not man-made because they are intrusive of his big idea. His methods for creating his work also rely on the tools his body was naturally equipped with such as his teeth. Red Leaf Patch depicts a red colored circle composed of leaves; some of which the leaves are half dark brown and a washed-out green which blend into the surrounding environment. The brown leaves which surround the red leaves are withering away. The circle which contains the red leaves boldly stands out against the brown leaves as though it is on a different plane.  The red colored circle is in the middle of the photograph is utilizing the concept of radial symmetry. The red circle which brightly pushes itself forward shows the vivid life of a leaf and the surrounding brown, dead leaves resemble the end of a leafs life. The use of the circle and vivid red color draws the viewer’s eye directly to the center of the piece distracting the viewer from death and decay that is lingering. Red Leaf Patch’s major theme is entropy because of the use of opposing colors and schema provided about the natural life cycle of leaves. The dimensions of the piece are not clarified, yet the photo has a square shape and the scale of the leaves is equivalent to those found in nature. The borders of the photo show patches of grass that peak through the leaves since the grass is acting as a natural canvas. Although the green grass is more subtle, it acts as a canvas that supports the natural process of time passing due to its liveliness during an evident moment of decay. His big idea and theme relates to humans natural lifecycle with the juxtaposition of humans involvement and acknowledgment of the idea of decay.

Discussion Questions:
  • Where is your favorite place to spend time?

  • Why is this environment your favorite place to spend time?

  • When you are in this environment, does your time pass slowly or quickly? Why?

  • What items can you find in this environment?

  • How do these items represent the environment they exist in?

  • How do other people respond to this environment?

  • How did Goldsworthy create a clear red circle out of leaves?

  • What tools do you think Goldsworthy may have used to create Red Leaf Patch?

  • How does the nearly perfect circle juxtapose nature?

Tar Beach

Faith Ringgold
1988
New York
tar beach.png
Big Idea: Freedom
Major Theme: Fantasy vs. Reality
Medium/Presentation: Acrylic on canvas, fabric, thread
Visual Components: Pattern, texture, color, foreground, background
Category: Fine Art 

Use in Teaching

Description/Interpretation
Discussion Questions:

Tar Beach is a 3-D quilt composed of different colorful patterned textile fabrics surrounding the acrylic painting on canvas in the middle. Many of the fabrics have patterns that have flowers on them. There are two long white stripes with black text written on them at the top and the bottom of the quilt. Some of the text reads “only eight years old and in the third grade and I can fly. That means I am free to go wherever I want to for the rest of my life.” In the middle of the quilt, there is a painting that occupies most of the space of the quilt. The painting depicts six African Americans on a roof top with the city skyline in the background including a bridge and the stars. The rooftop is in the foreground and composes about 75 percent of the painting. On the roof, four African American adults are sitting at a table playing games and two African American children are lying on a mattress looking up at the night sky. In the night sky, a young girl is flying. There is also a table with food such as watermelon and fried chicken sitting on another table. There are also some flowering plants in pots on the roof top and a clothesline with sheets hanging on it.

 

The use of quilting provides insight on the material’s history in African American culture. During times of slavery, black women would quilt as a duty for their slave owners. When slaves tried to escape thrall through the Underground Railroad, many locations on their path to freedom used quilting to display symbols.  In addition to the fabric method and application, the flower patterns on the fabric showcase the feminine qualities of the piece. The written text emphasizes the importance of storytelling. The written text also discusses the desire for freedom that the young girl has in the fantasy of her thoughts, yet is rooted to reality which is expressed by the location of the piece, Tar Beach. It is evident that the family is happily getting along, given that many of them are playing cards together and enjoying each other’s company. The table filled with specific foods indicates a cultural significance to African Americans. It’s important to note that the other flowers on the rooftop may also enhance the concept of femininity. All of Ringgold’s symbols indicate the difficulties that African Americans and women have faced. The narrative of the young girl lying on the mattress fantasizing about flying in the sky with written text and visual context communicates the freedom the next generation desires, given the triumph her family has overcome. Her family being together and embracing their culture indicates the power of support to make fantasies become realities.

Ringgold uniquely executes the importance of storytelling through a combination of written text, imagery and material selection. Since the big idea of her works relates to freedom, I would have students explore moments where they felt confined by a higher authority and did not have the ability to share their thoughts. Students would use text to explicitly write what they wanted to say in these moments and use imagery to depict the way the lack of personal power made them feel. The imagery would be painted in acrylic and then students would scan the painting and add text to the image in Photoshop. The use of Photoshop for the text emphasizes the use of electronic platforms a rapid way to voice ones thoughts and the use of quick drying acrylic paint symbolizes the entrapment one may feel when suppressed by a higher authority. This activity helps students explore the feelings they associate with moments of restriction and captivity as a platform for dialogue among the audience viewing their work to juxtapose the meaning of the piece.

  • When have you experienced a moment of freedom?

  • How can you tell the young girl in Tar Beach desires freedom?

  • How might the young girl be restricted with the ability to achieve freedom? How might she be supported?

  • When have you experienced a moment of suppression?

  • Who suppressed your voice? Why?

  • What are some ways people communicate non-verbally to express moments of distress?

  • Does social media reduce or increase opportunity for freedom?

  • How can people healthily speak out during moments of suppression?

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