I don t think it means what you think it means.

Transcription

1 Arts Integrated Lesson: Visual Art and Language Arts I don t think it means what you think it means. A Lesson about metaphor Written by Joel Baxley SCEA Director of Visual Art Education In this lesson, students will explore visual and verbal metaphor. They will compare the uses of metaphor by writers and artists and create a painting that extends or elaborates on a verbal metaphor they have developed from a basic sentence

2 Standards Tennessee Language Arts (5th Grade) National Visual Art Standards (5-8) Craft and Structure 4. Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.. 1. Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes b. Intentionally take advantage of the qualities and characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to enhance communication of their experiences and ideas 3. Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols, and ideas b. Use subjects, themes, and symbols that demonstrate knowledge of contexts, values, and aesthetics that communicate intended meaning in artworks Objectives Language Arts Visual Art Students will: Identify and analyze metaphors in works of literature. Interpret figurative language. Create a written metaphor that makes a basic sentence more descriptive. Use images constructed in sketches to elaborate on the metaphor. Students will: View works of art that communicat metaphorically and analyze the imagery chosen by the artists. Interpret visual metaphors in works of art. Draw from a verbal metaphor to generate imagery for an original painting. Use descriptive language as a basis for visual choices in the painting

3 Formative: Assessments As a group, students identify metaphors in selected texts and provide possible interpretations. As a group, students analyze and interpret visual metaphors in works of art. Students discuss the range of mental images generated by verbal metaphors. Students recommend imagery to suit a change in a painting s title. Students discuss the impact of changes to a color scheme upon the message communicated by the painting. In small groups, students identify a metaphor in a text, analyze the modifying words used to make the metaphor more vivid and specific, and provide the class their interpretation of the metaphor. Students participate in the creation of an image to illuminate one of the metaphors from Summative (GRASPS model): Goal Role Students will better understand the purpose and power of metaphor in written and visual communication Artists Audience Classmates, teacher Situation Students are given a basic sentence and asked to develop a metaphoric description of how the action in the sentence occurred or what the subject of the sentence is like. Product A written metaphor and a painting that describes or elaborates on its imagery Standard The written metaphor should provide an image for the reader that modifies or explains the characters and actions of the base sentence. The written metaphor should also contain specific, detailed descriptive language to further push the reader s understanding of the sentence. The written metaphor should also contain specific, detailed descriptive language to further push the reader s understanding of the sentence. For instance, not just He was a bull moving through the room, but He was a giant red raging bull flailing back and forth through the dark, crowded room. The painting will be consistent with, or elaborate on, an interpretation of the written metaphor. The artist s selection of imagery will reflect that of the metaphor The composition and use of color will align with the written metaphor and the descriptive language contained therein. For instance, if the metaphor reads She was a ravenous raging red beast then the main subject should be red, of course, but the colors chosen for the background or other imagery contained in the painting should reflect ravenous and raging. The label that accompanies the painting will include: The base sentence from which the metaphor was developed Dad brushed his teeth. The metaphor developed by the student He was a huge, rabid, pink hippo. Wiggins, G. and McTigh, J. (1998). Understanding By Design. ASCD. Alexandria, VA

4 Lesson Procedures Session One: 1. View a painting with apparent metaphorical intent such as Rene Magritte s The League of Frightened Men. Discuss the work and how the picture might mean more than just what is apparent at first glance. If, as in the Magritte painting, the title doesn t seem to suit the image, discuss why it might be named so. 2. Read a passage from a poem containing metaphor, such as The Secrets by Brett Warner in which the poet describes people as forests. Compare this description to a dictionary definition of forest. Guide the class to interpret the meaning of the metaphor. The League of Frightened Men, Rene Magritte, Explain that the class will work to understand how writers and artists can show or say one thing in order to communicate something else. 4. Present definitions of metaphor in literature and in visual art. In writing, a metaphor is a figurative comparison written without like or as He was an animal! He ate everything in the house. What a little angel she is. Read a passage that contains both metaphors and similes together with the class. Ask the class to identify metaphors contained in the passage. In visual art, a metaphor is an image that shows one thing to help you understand something else (a picture of a monkey in a business suit, etc). Show the class a group of images. Ask them which they think might be intended as a metaphor and have them explain. 5. Introduce examples of verbal metaphor from selections of prose and poetry. Ask the class why the authors chose to use such strange language. Point out the power of metaphors to create mental images that help readers better understand the text. Identify the modifying words used by the authors to make the images they have created for the reader vivid and specific. 6. Guide the students in a similar discussion of visual metaphors. The imagery in many works of art can be complex and the symbols obscure, so choose images that are easy to understand. Some of the most accessible visual metaphors can be found in political cartoons such as Thomas Nast s depictions of Boss Tweed as a vulture or big business as a man with moneybags for brains The Brains, Thomas Nast 1871

5 Point out that artists may use such imagery for many reasons, but one reason is that a literal depiction of a subject may not achieve the emotional response in the viewer that the artist desires. Compare, for example, photos of William Tweed with Nast s depiction of him. How would the impact of Nast s cartoons have been different if he had just drawn what Boss Tweed really looked like and written below the picture This is a bad, greedy man? 7. Ask why an artist might choose an image to communicate a given idea. Why did Magritte choose owls for The League of Frightened Men? Brainstorm images that might have been used if the painting had been The Angry Men or The Depressed Men, etc. 8. Distribute excerpts from texts to groups of three or four students. Ask the groups to read the text they have been given and identify at least one metaphor used by the author. Then, have the students discuss the following within their groups: The literal meaning of the metaphor (the big kid, the boys fighting, etc) The mental images generated by the metaphor and the words the author used to create those images 9. Have each group report their findings to the class. 10. Provide each group with a basic sentence describing an action (He ate the sandwich. She opened the door. Etc.). Ask each group to decide how each action was performed and create a metaphor for that action. For instance, He ate the sandwich greedily. He was a pig. 11. Have groups read their metaphors to the class. Highlight one of these and discuss the images that it brings to mind. Demonstrate a drawing that might show what the metaphor is saying. Have students direct the visual choices that must be made. What kind of pig? How much of the pig needs to be on the page? What should the pig be doing? How do I show that? Discuss placement on the page, facial expressions, actions, etc. that might contribute to the viewer s understanding. 12. Go back to the text. Using the drawing as a guide, choose adjectives that might help the reader better capture the imagery in his or her mind. Not just He was a pig, but He was a fat, greasy pig devouring that poor sandwich. 13. Present the summative task to the class. They are each going to create their own visual and verbal metaphor. They will take a basic sentence like the ones they worked with in groups and write a metaphor of their own, then they will create a painting that echoes or elaborates on their writing. 14. Provide each student with a new basic sentence and some scrap paper. They should first decide what they are trying to describe in the sentence. Ask them to consider how the subject did whatever he or she or they did or what sort of person the subject is. Allow them time to write, facilitating as needed. At this point, they should have a basic metaphor (He was a pig, she was a monkey, etc)

6 15. Ask the students to read their new metaphor to themselves and consider what that picture might look like. How would they need to draw this picture so that we can understand what this person or action is like? How will they need to arrange things on the page? If time permits, give the students time to create thumbnail sketches and choose the composition that they feel works best. Then provide them with the posterboard for their paintings and have them draw their image on the dull side. Remind students that this will be an underdrawing for a painting so it doesn t have to be absolutely perfect, it mostly needs to show where everything will go. 16. Upon completion of the drawings, have students go back to their written metaphors. What adjectives or adverbs could they add to help the words tell what they just drew? Once each student has elaborated on their metaphor, have them write the completed metaphor clearly on an index card with their name and the original sentence as shown below. Title: Dad brushed his teeth. Artist: Eric Wade He was a huge rabid hippo. Blubber was shaking all over and he was spewing foamy toothpaste all over the room. Session Two: 17. Have the room preset for painting. Distribute the students drawings and metaphors. Review the instruction from the first session and the intent of the summative task. Explain that in this session they will complete their paintings. 18. Demonstrate the creation of a painting for the class: Begin with a pencil drawing and a written metaphor. Perhaps the one used as an example after the group work in the first session. (He was a fat, greasy pig devouring the sandwich.) 19. Establish values using brown and white paint Where should our focus be? How can we make it stand out from the surroundings using value? 20. Discuss the use of color and how color choice can impact the meaning communicated by the painting. Like a writer s use of adjectives and adverbs to create a more vivid metaphor, artists can use their choices of color to develop the emotional impact of an image. Refer to examples from expressionist works like those of Franz Marc or some works by Matisse. This use of color allows the artist to make an image communicate its intent more vividly, like the modifying words employed by writers. 21. Discuss Franz Marc s Yellow Cow. How would this image be different if the artist had used blues or neutral colors?

7 22. Have students select two to three colors that would best suit the metaphor in the demonstration painting. Based on the words in our metaphor, how should this picture feel? What colors might suit this mood? (Choose no more than three.) 23. Distribute painting supplies. Have students follow the painting process described above. Monitor students work and provide guiding questions and comments: As they lay in value in brown and white, ask the student to consider whether a darker or lighter image is more consistent with the written metaphor. As they begin to apply color, remind them to limit their color choices to a few (two or three) that best communicate the emotional qualities of the image they are attempting to create. 24. When paintings have dried, mount each on a piece of poster board with the index card from session one as a label. Title: Dad brushed his teeth. Artist: Eric Wade He was a huge rabid hippo. Blubber was shaking all over and he was spewing foamy toothpaste all over the room. 25. Have each student should trade paintings with a classmate. Tell them to think about the criteria for the image and the metaphor. Provide them with guiding questions such as: Does the written metaphor include enough detailed descriptive language? Does the imagery in the picture reflect that of the written metaphor? How well do the colors communicate the emotional qualities of the metaphor? Once they have responded to these questions, have each pair share with their partner. Conclusion 27. Review the definitions of metaphor in visual art and language art spotlighting students work to illuminate the discussion

8 Prior Instruction This lesson has been described as it was taught to groups of fifth graders using acrylic paint. One could accomplish the objectives of the lesson with other media as well, but to help make sense of what these students did, I include here a description of a session held before this integrated lesson began. 1. Prepare the room for painting before the class comes in. Tables or desks should be arranged so that there is a bowl of water for every 2-4 students and brushes, poster board, and a paper towel for each. Palettes can be shared in pairs if space is limited, but it s nice to have your own. 2. As the class comes to their places, ask them if any of them have worked with the kind of paint they see on the tables. Allow them to describe experiences in art classes, outside of school, etc. Identify the medium as acrylic and explain that for the next few lessons, they ll be using this paint. 3. Discuss acrylic paint with the class. Ask the students to explain the purpose of the materials on the table (water, paper towels, palettes, etc.) Compare and contrast this medium with other paint media they may have used: Acrylic paints are water soluble while wet, but once dry form a relatively permanent surface. It is recommended that students wear some sort of cover like an old t-shirt while painting. The paint can be washed out of clothes while it is still wet, but not once it dries. Acrylics can be diluted like watercolors, but are more opaque. Illustrators and commercial artists frequently use acrylic paint because it carries many of the visual qualities of oil paint without the extended drying time required for oils. Unlike oils, acrylic paints can be applied directly to most surfaces without the need for surface preparation such as gesso. 4. As you prepare to give a demonstration, tell the class that the purpose of their painting today is not to create a masterpiece, but to explore the use of the paint

9 5. There are many ways to use acrylics. In this lesson, you will demonstrate only one: Create a quick pencil drawing of a face on a piece of poster board. Give it some sort of emotional expression. Don t take time for lots of detail and don t worry about mistakes. In fact, it might be a good idea to make a mistake on purpose. Instead of erasing it, draw over it and explain that your painting will cover it up. Emphasize the fact that when finished, your drawing will no longer be seen. Using brown and white paint, establish the lights and darks in your picture. Point out to the students that in order to make the face stand out clearly against the background the value of the face and background should contrast one another (dark facelight background and vice-versa). Discuss the emotional expression you gave the face. Ask the class to identify the emotion and to suggest colors that might suit that emotion (red for anger or intensity, blue for sadness, etc. Discuss ways to create a range of values for that color (adding black or white or adding the color s compliment). 6. Have students review the process with you: quick under-drawing, values only, color. 7. Allow each student to make a simple acrylic painting following the steps in the demonstration. 8. Spotlight works in the room and have the class identify the successes and difficulties evident in each

10 Extensions Have students design the exhibit of the paintings from this lesson. How will they be arranged for view? Why? Give students an opportunity to revise an earlier piece of their own writing. Have them choose descriptions from the text that could be made more powerful by using metaphor. They should create drawings to help themselves picture the images they wish to get across to the reader. Have students create an image that uses visual metaphor to describe their personal response to an event in their own lives. Rather than providing the viewer with a verbal version of the metaphor, require each student to write an interpretation of the metaphor painted by another student and discuss the range of interpretations that may occur. Materials and Resources Images of allegorical or surrealist works of art such as Rene Magritte s The League offrightened Men Images of political cartoons Brushes Pencils Sheets of drawing paper or newsprint for sketches Palettes (Styrofoam or plastic plates work pretty well) Poster board approximately 11 x 14 (1/4 of a full sheet) Acrylic Paint in primary colors, black, white and brown Paper to cover tables Paper Towels Bowls of water Colored Poster board approximately 14 x 22 (1/2 sheet) for mounting paintings and labels Index cards Double sided tape to mount paintings to poster board when dry Excerpts from books such as the following Spinelli, Jerry. Maniac Magee. Reilly Giff, Patricia. Pictures of Hollis Woods. Lyne, Sandford. Soft Hay Will Catch You. Lyne, Sandford. Ten Second Rain Showers