Art Critique
Objective: Students will evaluate the
merits of “good” art and “bad” art in a token response activity.
Materials: Art prints, tokens
Procedure: I will display 5-6 works of
art that show a variety of subject matter in a variety of styles. Usually a
photograph (to see which kids consider that to be art), an Romare Bearden
collage (to see which kids think it’s sloppy), an abstract Kandinsky painting
(to see which kids think it’s messy and which kids think it’s creative/unique)
a Chuck Close portrait (to see which kids consider it to be boring and/or
colorful /not colorful) and Andy Warhol print (again colorful/ not colorful)
and an actual painting that is not a print (to see if any students realize that
an actual artist painted it and not a printer.)
I
pass out my TWO tokens. Others exist, but for time purposes, we only use two: a
yellow smiley face for the one you think is the best/ “good” art and a green
yucky face for the one you think is the worst/”bad” art. Every student gets one each and I call each
table (four students) at a time to place their token under the respective work
of art. I tally up the token “votes” and I call on the students who voted
(either “good” or “bad”) to tell the class why. The students have to dig deeper
than, “I think it’s pretty” or “I think it’s ugly.” They have to tell me why
they think that way.
The
other students (the audience) have to sit quietly and be respectful of the
opinions of others.
Vocabulary: Line
color shape value texture form composition value space balance proportion unity
rhythm emphasis contrast sloppy messy abstract colorful
Assessment: A=follows ALL
instructions (or does more) with great craftsmanship B=follows MOST instructions with good craftsmanship C=follows SOME instructions with good
craftsmanship D=does little work/
poor effort F=does NO work
Standards:
VA.4.C.1.2Describe observations and
apply prior knowledge to interpret visual information and reflect on works of
art.
VA.4.H.1.4Identify and practice ways of
showing respect for one’s own and others’ personal works of art.
VA.4.H.3.1Discuss how analytical skills and thinking
strategies are applied to both art production and problem-solving in other
content areas.
VA.5.C.1.2Use prior knowledge and
observation skills to reflect on, analyze, and interpret exemplary works of
art.
VA.5.C.1.3Examine and
discuss exemplary works of art to distinguish which qualities may be used to
evaluate personal works.
VA.5.C.2.4Identify examples of constructive
criticism and use them to improve artworks and enhance artistic growth.
VA.5.C.3.1Use the
structural elements of art and organizational principles of design when engaged
in art criticism.
VA.5.C.3.2Use
art-criticism processes to form a hypothesis about an artist’s or designer’s
intent when creating artwork.
VA.5.C.3.3Critique works
of art to understand the content and make connections with other content areas.
VA.5.H.1.3Identify and describe the importance
a selected group or culture places on specific works of art.
VA.5.H.1.4Explain the
importance of artwork to show why respect is or should be given to the work of
peer or specified professional artists
VA.5.H.2.1Compare works
of art on the basis of style, culture, or artist across time to identify visual
differences.
VA.5.O.2.1Analyze works
of art that document people and events from a variety of places and times to
synthesize ideas for creating artwork.
VA.5.S.1.4Use accurate
art vocabulary to communicate about works of art and artistic and creative processes.
