Currently museums and galleries have closed their doors to support social distancing. Given the unknowns surrounding museum openings and the timelines surrounding the safety of public spaces. We are offering class options regarding your museum field trip paper.
I have put together a few alternatives that can satisfy the requirement.
Alternatives for the museum experience paper:
* A sculpture park, public art installation or mural
* Take a field trip virtually. A museum website can work if fully formed and well documented. Consider the big ones - Smithsonian, MET, etc. Here is a show I saw at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC this last winter break. The work and the idea behind the pieces was really diverse and core shaking. The animated example in the video was pretty fantastic - check it out! (https://portraitcompetition.si.edu/)
* A virtual museum trip (thanks google culture) https://artsandculture.google.com/
-These last two options are digitally based. The Virtual museum google option is much like the "street view" from google maps, but in culturally significant places. Although it is not perfect and doesn't meet the "seeing art in person" goal, I have given this alternative before as a way for soldiers to work through deployments.
You can take a free trip and leisurely "walk" through the National gallery in DC or London, the Louvre in Paris, or the Uffitzi in Florence
For example:
(https://artsandculture.google.com/story/cQVh5Rbqa2Q3dg) here's a link to the Uffizi - home to Botticelli's Birth of Venus, and often there is more information on it like this next link-
https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/the-birth-of-venus/MQEeq50LABEBVg?hl=en
(Some of these pieces have their own street-view hyperlink like this one does below)
https://artsandculture.google.com/streetview/MQEeq50LABEBVg?hl=en
but don't use this example - find your own fantastic art centered trip!
Wherever you go, it should be explored, (don't tell me about the first room or object you see) look up at the frescos on the ceiling, walk around through as many rooms as you can, find something you weren't expecting, get close, and then add as much research as you need to then write a paper about the experience. What was it like? How did the context change seeing artwork in context, and scale? What remained the same or was limiting due to the digital format?
Follow the directions for the paper, and have fun!
To help you learn to analyze and respond to art, and to apply the terminology learned in class, you will write a formal analysis of one painting at a museum or gallery close to you. You must visit the museum or gallery in person to see the painting. Review the Rubric.
We cannot overlook the role photography has played in the development of the field of art history and arts education as we know it today. While it was once traditional for European painters to copy the great works of the "masters" in museums, photographs provided another option. Now, many American artists study and may copy photos of original works in their own homes and studios and rarely see "masterworks" in person. Photography is a fine art in its own right, and photographic imagery is often appropriated "as is" for modern creations. Pablo Picasso's collages ushered in a new era when he chose to incorporate printed newspapers and advertisements into some of his major works. We cannot deny, however, that photographs separate us from what's real. Photographs are not always good substitutes for the "real thing." Why visit a museum when there are hundreds of "virtual galleries" available with the click of a button? Is art simply visual imagery, or is seeing or participating in art an essential human experience?
To begin to address these questions, you will visit a museum close to you and choose one painting to focus on (it can be from any time period and any style, but must be a painting). Spend 30-45 minutes examining your chosen artwork, paying special attention to the formal elements and principles of design. Also think about how these elements and principles may manifest themselves differently depending on whether you are viewing the original painting or an image of the painting (print or online). For example, are elements such as color, texture, light, and canvas size understood the same way in both cases? Or if not, how do they differ?
You can use museum information on the painting (wall labels or website) as one of your three research sources. Use the Art Research Guide to find other sources about formal analysis and the pros and cons of viewing artwork in person, or about the specific artwork you chose.
If you are having difficulties visiting a museum or you require ADA Accommodations, please contact your instructor for alternate arrangements.
In your written essay, be sure to include the visual elements and the principles of design discussed in the course and the textbook. You should not just write a description of these elements, but rather an analysis of them. This means describing what the elements are and also explaining how they work to create a particular effect, mood, or meaning. Remember, this type of analysis requires you to stay objective. You should not make critiques or judgments about the quality or beauty of the work (for example, do not use words like “great,” “brilliant,” or “bad”), but simply describe and analyze the formal elements.
For your reference, here is a list of the visual elements and principles of design. Your paper should address each one of these as it relates to your chosen painting:
Visual Elements: Line, Shape, Light, Color, Texture, Space
Principles of Design: Unity and Variety, Balance, Emphasis and Subordination, Scale and Proportion, Rhythm and Movement
You must include at least one relevant, properly captioned (artist, title, date) image file in your document.
Create a "Works Cited" section that lists your 3+ scholarly sources in MLA Style format at the end of your paper. Be sure you have properly cited any direct quotes you use in support of your own writing. For help with MLA Style citations, visit the suggested links in the Art Research Guide or look here in this course under Content > Syllabus > Research.
Before you submit your assignment to the Assignment Submission Folder, review the instructions once again to make sure you have answered the required questions and provide relevant support. As always, the title of your saved file must include the module number and your name (M6_LastNameFirstName). Your work should be saved and submitted as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf file.
See the Schedule in the Syllabus Module for due dates. Review the Rubric above or attached to the Assignment Submission Folder for grading information.