English through Art-
An English Project for the Upper grades of
the Mae Boyar High School,
Jerusalem.
by Jack Pillemer
Dear Students,
In pairs, you will be doing
a project in English about art . The project is based on the paintings you see
below - painting which actually appear on he walls, pillars and
the ground as you enter Boyar High School.
The amount you learn from
this project, the satisfaction you get and your grade will largely be determined
by the effort you invest. So give it your best shot.
This project is a Bagrut
requirement and you may be tested on this
work orally at the end of Grade XII. Be sure to have your own copy.
Approximately 10 full class
lessons will be devoted to this work.
Follow instructions VERY
carefully. Don't waste your time.
We hope you learn a lot of
English, a lot about art, and enjoy yourself at the same time.
The project is a serious one
which demands high quality work.
We are sure you will find
the task challenging and you will produce work that you are proud of.
Final date:
________________________________. (Ask teacher)
Your English
Teachers.
For a MS WORD version of the project, click here.
Stage 1 – Getting
organized.
Boyar students should go
outside and carefully examine all the artwork. Using the list of artists
and names of paintings given to you (on page 5 of the printed material),
try match the painting, the artist and the name of the picture. When you have
finished as many as you can, come back inside and complete the chart
below.
TIPS ON
HOW TO DO THIS:
You will have to use your
initiative for this stage.
Here are some suggestions:
Ask someone who may know
more than you do. Try the art teachers, students who actually did the paintings,
teachers and students who may know.
Browse art books in the
library or the Internet using the clues you have picked up.
Check for the correct answers here.
Stage 2 – Getting the
basics
Now choose THREE pieces of art from the ones
above to focus on.
Find large copies of
the full paintings using art books or Internet.
Add the the year in which
the painting was painted and where the original painting can be found
today.
TIPS ON
HOW TO DO THIS:
If you find the picture in a
book it will probably have this information.
If you are using the
Internet, go to a search engine such as http://www.google.com/ or http://www.yahoo.com/
Write the name of the
painting and the name of the artist in quotes (e.g. "Leonardo De Vinci"
"Mona Lisa" ) as your key words.
Then try to find the date
and location.
Stage 3 – Looking carefully and
describing what you see.
Choose 2 (of the 3)
paintings and describe what you see in
detail. You may relate to the following aspects:
subject matter, composition,
color/contrast, texture /brushstroke. The reader must be able to more or
less imagine the picture in his/her mind without actually seeing it, on the
basis of your description. Write approximately 100 words describing
each.
TIPS
ON HOW TO DO THIS:
Subject
matter: describe the scene
in general terms e.g. portrait of a woman/ landscape/still-life etc. Is it
realistic – reflecting reality?
Composition: Describe each
element in the painting in terms of position, size etc. Mention what attracts
the eye and if the eye is naturally pulled in one direction or another. Mention
how the canvas is divided, what space is left empty. Does the picture have depth
i.e. is there perspective? etc.
Color: Are there generally
warm or cold colors? Do any specific colors stand out? Is the picture light or
dark? Are the colors true to life? Etc.
Texture/brushstroke: How is the paint
put onto the canvass – smoothly, thickly, flatly, covering large areas, in short
dabs or dots etc.?
Other:
Point out any
thing else that catches your attention
Stage 4 – Personal
Reaction
Choose ONE painting (of the
two you have just described)
What thoughts and/or
feelings do you have when looking at the paintings? Explain your reaction. Write
approximately 100 words.
Do you like the painting?
Explain.
NOTE: this must be done
individually by each member of the group.
Stage 5 – Research: learning
about the artist.
Write a short biography of
the artist. (approximately 150 words)
Read at least TWO
different biographies from books or the Internet and summarize the main points.
If you find any biographical information related specifically to the picture you
have chosen, include it.
INSTRUCTIONS
ON HOW TO DO THIS:
Find two sources of
information about the artist that are not too detailed. Print or photocopy the
sources. Read and understand the articles.
Decide on which information
you want to include from each and underline/highlight that information.
Prepare a draft summary of
the information you have decided to include.
Write the final
version.
Keep a hard copy of your
sources (printed) plus the details for your bibliography at the
end.
Stage 6 – Research: placing
the painting in its historical perspective
Art is often categorized
by historical art movements e.g. Impressionism, Surrealism, Cubism,
Realism, Expressionism etc. Find out what art movement or movements are
reflected in the picture you chose in stage 5.
(i)
Describe the main features
of the relevant art movement/s (approximately 100 words). You must
use at least two different sources of information – Art books, the
Internet encyclopedias, interview a knowledgeable person.
INSTRUCTIONS
ON HOW TO DO THIS:
Follow all the instructions
above.
In addition, if you
interview a knowledgeable person, take notes.
(ii)
Explain how these elements -
the characteristic features of the art movements you researched in Stage 6
(i) -are expressed in the painting you chose. (approximately 100
words). It may be useful to photocopy the picture and label it for this
purpose.
INSTRUCTIONS
ON HOW TO DO THIS:
In this section you must
show the connection – if it exists in the painting - between the art movement
(theory) and the painting (practice). For example you will have sentences like
this one:
The Impressionists
generally chose outside landscapes. This is true of the painting XXXX. The
artist chose a field of flowers as his subject.
Stage 7 – Creative
work
(NOTE: For students working
in pairs, each student prepares his/her own creative work)
Choose ONE of the following
tasks.
Paint a picture which
reflects the style of the painting you have chosen.
Describe how it reflects
that style and what you learned/understood by doing it. (Explanation must be
approximately 150 words.)
Or
Write a short story in which
one of the three paintings (you chose in the beginning) is one of the
scenes/characters in that story. (Approximately 300 words)
Or
Write a poem/song (at least
20 lines) inspired by on one of the three paintings (you chose in the
beginning). In addition, explain the poem and its connection to the painting.
(approximately 150 words)
Stage 8 – giving credit by
preparing a bibliography
Prepare a bibliography
including ALL your sources of information.
INSTRUCTIONS
ON HOW TO DO THIS:
The bibliography must be on
a separate page and must include at least 4 sources of information.
It must be in alphabetical
order. See example below
(Encyclopedia)
- Britannica Encyclopedia,
Volume 16, pages 74-79
(Book)
- Green, J.
The History of Art. Oxford Press, 1993, page 24-27
(Internet site) -
Pablo Picasso Period Paintings
http://www.pablo-picasso-paintings-period.com/
4/10/03
(Interview)
- Notes from
an interview with Mr. David Solomon, 2/10/03
Stage 9 – Getting it all together
for presentation
Include ALL the following
in this order
- Cover page (with your
name, class and project title.)
- Contents page (what can be
found on each page)
- Names, artists, dates and
locations of 3 pieces of art you chose in Stage 1 and Stage 2.
- Descriptions in detail of
2 of the paintings you chose in Stage 3. (done individually)
- Your personal reaction to
the painting in Stage 4
- A biography (research) of
the artist in Stage 5
- Discussion of the art
movement/s your painting represents (research) in Stage 6(i)
- Discussion of your
painting in relation to the art movement/s in Stage 6(ii)
- Your creative work from
Stage 7 (done individually)
- A bibliography as
described in Stage 8
- A photocopy of all your
sources.
- The assessment/checklist
page
Your work will be graded
according to the criteria listed below
Assessment Criteria
|
Items to be included
in final work |
Point value – For
teacher to fill in
|
|
Cover page
(with your name, class
and project title.) |
1
|
|
Contents page
(what can be found on
each page) |
1
2
|
|
Names, artists, dates
and locations
of 3 pieces of art in
Stage 1 and Stage 2. |
1 2
3
|
|
Descriptions in detail
of 2 of the paintings
you chose in Stage 3.
(2X 100 words) |
1 2
3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10
1
2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 |
|
Your personal reaction
to the painting
in Stage 4 (100
words) |
1
2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 12 |
|
A biography (research)
of the artist
in Stage 5 (150
words) |
1
2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 12 |
|
Discussion of the art
movement/s
(research) in
Stage 6(i) (150 words) |
1
2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 12 |
|
Discussion of your
painting in relation to
the art movement/s in
Stage 6(ii) (100 words) |
1
2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10
|
|
Your creative work
from Stage
7 |
1
2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10
1 2
3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 12 |
|
A Bibliography
as described in Stage
8 |
1 2
3
|
|
A photocopy of all
your sources.
|
1
2
|
|
The
Assessment/checklist page with the checklist filled out. |
1
|
|
|
Total
score
-------------
100 |
Checklist for all
writing
I have read the
tasks clearly and understood what I have to do.
I have made sure
that all writing, printing, filing etc. is from left to right (-English
direction)
I have checked the
grammar – especially the verbs.
I have checked the
punctuation – especially capital letters, periods and commas.
I have checked the
spelling - using a dictionary, a spell checker etc.
I have used
connectors to make my writing clear to the reader
I have divided my
work into paragraphs – each dealing with a separate subject.
I have left a line
between paragraphs
I have read the
final version of everything TWICE and I'm convinced that I have done my best!
I have my own copy
of the project so if anything I hand in gets lost, I'm OK.
Page of Useful
Information
Boyar students may
consult the following members of staff for help:
Art teachers
Anat Barel
Tzippie Vital
Lisa Shalom
Resource Center
staff
Reta Slomon
Nava Haruvi
Raya Shurani
Teachers
Yehudit Hirshberg
Jack Pillemer
Feel free to use any resources you can
find to complete the project but you may find the list of sites below
useful.
That's
it!
ENJOY
YOURSELVES
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