Danielle Scalise, Rachael Sacksen , and Lauren Scholl

1. Exploring Culture and Identity Through Artifacts:Three Art Lessons Derived from Contemporary Art Practiceby Julia Marshall Danielle Scalise, Rachael Sacksen, and Lauren Scholl

2. 6 Fundamental Concepts for an Approach to Curriculum Writing and Art Lessons artinliverpool.com • 1.) Creative Processing- • Give form to complex ideas, catalyze thought, allow for interpretation, and active involvement from the viewer or participant • Also represents an aesthetically shaped experience that can include: presentations, exercises, reflection and closure

3. 6 Fundamental Concepts for an Approach to Curriculum Writing and Art Lessons • 2.) Develop- • Similar to generating ideas for artwork • Idea generation in art lessons mimics and art idea generation • Both employ creative strategies • Originate in observation and questioning

4. 6 Fundamental Concepts for an Approach to Curriculum Writing and Art Lessons • 3.) Main Goal- • Engendering critical thinking about: • Issues and Ideas of Social Consequence • Issues and Ideas of Personal Consequence • Artmaking: • Compelling way to: • Catalyze personal investment • Engage while deliberating significant events

5. 6 Fundamental Concepts for an Approach to Curriculum Writing and Art Lessons • 4.) Meaningful- • Connect to a students world • Derives from prior experience • Evolves to creation of: • New knowledge • Experience • Deeper Understanding of Life http://www.spiritofchance.com/students.htm

6. 6 Fundamental Concepts for an Approach to Curriculum Writing and Art Lessons • 5.) Task • Does NOT lie in preparing consumers of culture • Should develop and enable creations of culture

7. 6 Fundamental Concepts for an Approach to Curriculum Writing and Art Lessons • 6.) Alignment- • Aligned with: postmodern, contemporary art practices • Concept based or processed based • Materials assist

8. 3 Originating Concepts in Contemporary Art 1.) Process- artmaking is employed as a form of inquiry or research 2.) Medium- common cultural artifacts are utilized as sources or mediums for critical inquiry and artmaking 3.) Intent- consciousness and understanding of critical issues such as identity and culture constitute the purpose of artmaking

9. Artmaking as Research • Artmaking- represents knowledge construction and the creation of understanding and meaning that is organic and evolving • Art Processes from lessons- • Come from models in contemporary art • Inspired by research in humanities and social sciences • Ex) anthropology, sociology, and cultural studies

10. Artifacts as Sources of Investigation • Causes children to: • Inquire and examine their own knowledge, experience and attitudes about artmaking • Investigating and “unpacking” common manufactured objects provides great ideas for researched based lessons • Artifacts is a common example

11. Artifacts daacs.org -Represent especially direct entry ways in cultural inquiry and criticism -Seen as ordinary, familiar and integrated into everyday life Provide key clues to culture and how people think “Artifacts shape the way people think, and in turn create artifacts”

12. 4 Steps to an Artifact Based Inquiry Lesson • Step 1- Thinking through and “unpacking” the artifact, finding its meaning and implications • Involves: Group Brain Storming and discussion among students and teacher • Step 2- Researching other artifacts that are similar in form and concept at home, school, in magazines, books, or the neighborhood • Involves: Keeping a journal of drawings and lists of objects and images

13. 4 Steps to an Artifact Based Inquiry Lesson • 4.) Reflecting upon the process and product • Involves: Student discussion of the processes the have experienced and ask questions, also focus on the product of art and the connection to the original artifact • 3.) Making new objects/artwork inspired by the artifact and ideas which surfaced into the discussion and research • Involves: provides opportunity to take ideas and transform them to personal expression that is manifested in artforms and lead to further evolving ideas

14. Making the Connection with Examples from Art www.catherinewagner.org 1.) Fred Wilson 2.) Catherine Wagner 3.) Mark Dion 4.) Candy Jernigan

15. Lesson #1- Investigating a Souvenir Incorporates a simple cultural object as a catalyst for inquiry and interpretation Involves “unpacking” a souvenir Example: Snowdome of Chicago Use questions to lead discussions http://www.andyzito.com/snowdomes/us_02.html

16. Lesson #2 Exploring Meanings in Personal Artifacts Designed to generate critical inquiry into identity through memory and associations Needs to be a personal artifact Explore feelings, knowledge, insights, experiences and sentiment

17. Lesson #3 Exploring Multiple Approaches to an Artifact • Understand an artifact in depth by: • Researching the object • Observing it closely • Writing about it • Transforming and reinterpreting in multiple images

18. Key Quotation “As a location for playing with ideas and hypotheses, research in the form of questioning becomes engaging, imaginative, improvisational and open-ended, creating an evolving process of learning for both children and teacher.” -Julie Marshall

19. Discussion Questions Do you feel it is important to learn about your students cultures? Would you like to try these different lessons on artifacts? What do you think makes your students unique individuals? Why are artifacts so important to individuals?

20. Other Thoughts! Surprises to Us! Familiar to Us! Impact as Future Elementary Teacher!

21. Activity Time • 1.) Choose and draw an artifact that has personal significance to you • 2.) Interview yourself: Please answer these questions • What are you? • Who made you? • What do you do? • What place did you come from? • How long have you been with me? • What memories do we share? • Why are special to me?