Arizona Arts Standards

1AV-E2. PO 1, 2, 3 Demonstrate increasing technical ability and skill to complete visual arts assignments
2AV-E1 Use subjects, themes, and symbols that demonstrate knowledge of contexts, values, and aesthetics to communicate intended meaning in their art-works
PO 1 – Use the elements of art to describe the effective communication of ideas in own personal work
3AV-E7. Describe ways in which the principles and subject matter of other disciplines in the curriculum are interrelated with visual arts (mathematics, reading)

Goal:  The students will become human sculptures, apply critical reading strategies to read about Auguste Rodin’s sculptures, collaborate, pose for gestural and proportional life drawing sessions in preparation for their creating active figure sculptures.  They will modify the base to create an environment related to their sculpture, reflect, evaluate their work, and they will draw their finished sculpture as part of their evaluation.    

Objectives: The students will:

1. practice closed composition in a line up
2. practice open composition in a line up
3. pose in open composition
4. gesture draw their peer models within 3 minutes, 1 minute, and 20 second intervals
5. observe, record, and create a contour line drawing of peer models in proportion
6. apply critical reading strategies
7. research active postures for their sculpture
8. collaborate to brainstorm and experience their sculptural pose
9. interpret the 2-dimensional image and translate it to a 3-dimensional image
10. analyze proportions while building body
11. select and apply appropriate finish
12. modify and create extension to the base
13. reflect, evaluate own work, and participate in peer critique

Art Materials

Paper, pencil,
Medium brushes, watered black tempera paint, manilla paper (gesture painting)
Newspapers
Two 2’x3’x8’ wood ($1.84) 4”     cuts = 24 per unit for bases (Home Depot)
2 boxes 8oz powder paper mache (Teknabond $3.97)
24 rolls ¾” or 1” masking tape (0.48) 
12 packages 16” guage 100 ft wire ($5.98)       cut: 26” body, 9” arms
Auguste Rodin Working with Sculpture, Art & Man, November 1990, Vol 21. No 2, Scholastic Art

black tissue paper cut into small sections (1/8 sections = less waste) 500 sheets
drill, 1/16” drill bit, extension cord, protective eye gear, wire cutter
stiff dry brushes, tag board strip for paint and to brush off excess paint
assorted metallic paints, MM Modern Masters, water base, non-tarnishing: Green gold, pewter, silver, gold, copper and others (Az Art Supply)

Resources:

Scholastics, Art & Man,
Art posters, portraits
Handouts
Sample metallic paints on black tissue
Teacher and ongoing student work samples posted in classroom 

Note:  Teacher will need to:

Method:

Collaborative Structure:  Line Up

1.      Students line up silently by height against the wall

2.      Shuffle one arm’s width away

3.      Warm up, shake arms, shoulders, feet, legs, hips

4.      Teacher demonstrates closed composition (hands, arms, head closed, tight to the body.  If you rolled me down the hill what would fall off?  Nothing, this is called closed composition)

5.      Everyone closes their eyes, sees their pose in their heads, at the count of 3 strike closed composition pose.  Open eyes at end and look around.  How do you feel in your body?  Where is your balance?  What would you be doing?

6.      Teacher demonstrates open composition (hands, arms, head, out, away, twisted, active.  If you rolled me down the hill what would fall off?  What is this called?

7.      Everyone closes their eyes, sees their pose in their heads, at the count of 3 strike open composition.  Open eyes and look around.  How do you feel in your body?  Where is your balance?  Is it easy?  How long can you hold this pose? 

Critical Reading Strategy: 
Auguste Rodin Working with Sculpture, Art & Man, November 1990, Vol 21. No 2, Scholastic Art

Students are randomly chosen to read aloud.  Warn them they will be asked to share 2 important things they learned.

Life Drawing Practice:

1. Round robin rotation with students posing in open composition
2. Gesture drawing, 20 seconds, 1 minute, 3 minutes  (Example: Daumier)
3. Gesture painting, 10 seconds, 15 seconds, 20 seconds: portrait paper for upright pose, landscape paper for crouching long poses, multiple values include dry brush, action in lines, longer poses focus on details, stop when teacher says stop

Collaborative Learning:  Pass the Paper

4. Transition to proportion drawing.  The Exquisite Corpse, a French Surrealism printmaking art form (see below).  Fold the paper (portrait format), in half, then in half again, open to 4 sections.  Person 1, draw the wacky, crazy head, draw two lines that go into the top of section 2, fold head under (hide) and pass (repeat in rotation), Person 2: chest, arms, Person 3: hips tops of legs, tails Person 4: finish legs and feet/tail, claws…  Return to Person 1, open and share.   

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5. Proportion drawing. 
   1. Demonstration:  sight with pencil end, have students measure and look at teacher. Teacher uses hands to measure head while the students sight, then move arms to demonstrate one head measurements that ends at chest.  Students sight measure length of body, shoulder width, arm length from shoulder to tip of fingers, top of thighs to knees, knees to ankles
   2. Student model standing upright.  Ensure all students draw frontal view
   3. Take the paper portrait format, fold in half, then in half again, and one last time, open to have 8 sections.  Each section is one head unit.  Number each section 1 through 8.
   4. Section 1: draw the head, chin touching bottom section, head touching top of paper, neck drawn from the jaw bone
   5. Section 2: (teacher measures head, drops down hand to one head measurement down, ending at model’s chest, artists sight measure and draw only what they see in that section.)  Draw the chest relative to your sighting.  Continue using sight measure and with teacher measuring against student - drawing one section at a time.  Refer to angles of arms and legs (using sighting, align length of pencil to match the angle of the arm, draw the exact angle on paper for the arm).  

Research, Plan, and Create Sculpture:

1. Research images, identify suitable open composition, action figure
2. Interpret image, front, side, and back view in 2-dimensional drawing

 Collaborative Structure:  Mix, Freeze, Group:

a)      Everyone stand up, warm up:  Shake your hands, arms, shoulders, foot, leg, hips, wiggle the head.  Sit down.

b)      When I say go, Put up one hand, take your thumbnail drawing, pencil, and your picture, if you have not finalized your choice, work to brainstorm to find one when matched

c)      Hand up, Stand up, walk around the room, find a partner

d)      As soon as you make a match, put your hands down (signal you are taken) if odd numbers of student a triad, may go anywhere in the room (outside – close by)

e)      Experience your sculptural pose (do not hurt yourself), demonstrate it for your buddy

f)        Buddy mirror your pose, draw your buddy model – note angle of shoulders, legs, hips, tilt of head (use back of paper)

g)      Switch

h)      NOTE:  Teacher models what movement is not (vertical body, rigid arms, staid composition, being able to hold the pose forever) what movement is (diagonals, stretching, twisting, lifting, being only able to hold the pose for seconds)

3. Plan possible environment modification extension for base, disguise its rectangular shape.  Finalize thumbnail.
4. Measure wire, 26” for head and torso, 9” for arms
5. Fold torso wire in half, twist loop about 1” long for head, create a neck
6. Prepare newspapers, tear into 1” strips or smaller, depending on need (tear with the grain)
7. Wrap newspaper to create head, make a chin area, tape to hold (egg shape)

8. Estimate shoulder relationship, Women: 1 ½ heads, Men: 2 heads, Hand: 1 head slide arm wire through base of neck, tape to hold
9. Refer to thumbnails, interpret, mould, shape, sculpt, bend the wire figure
10. Fold newspaper diagonally across shoulders to waist, keep shoulders in proportion, men/women (2 head lengths from chin to waist).   Waist is narrower than shoulders.
11. Mould body use paper strips and minimal tape to hold in place (actively, physically take on pose to feel relationship of body parts in the pose, Mould the body,
12. Emphasize the muscles, the hamstrings joined to the gluteus maximus, atheletes need rounded muscles for all the body parts.  Identify the muscles to help students shape the body.  Sharp angles for bent joints.
13. Working questions:  What would happen in real life, would the body be able to support the arms, head (if oversized), can this figure walk (oversized legs), is there enough muscle in the hamstrings/arms/legs for this athletic movement?......  experience the pose – what relation is the legs to hips, shoulders to head, direction of arms, how do they stretch?....
14. Insert sculpture into base build feet/shoe/skateboard (foot: 1 head)
15. Paper mache with black tissue paper (pre-tear paper – smaller pieces for face, slightly larger for appendages, bigger for torso), smoothen
16. Apply details with black tissue paper (or powdered paper mache, overlay with black tissue paper)

Collaborative Game:  Group Sculpture

1.  Students form a large circle
2.  One student pose (long pose) in center, hold.
3.  Students are called upon to mirror pose, touch pose, reverse pose.  They need to walk around the sculpture, select their position and take a stance to best enhance the group sculpture. 
            a)  mirror pose - face the model, mirror the pose
            b) touch pose - touch any part of the body of the model; change the level of the pose, if the model
                is standing then the pose needs to be squatting, sitting, lying down.
            c) reverse pose - mirror the model's pose, back to back
            d) select 2 students to step out of the group sculpture, walk around it, see the sculpture "in the round"
            e) Students memorize pose and who they are connected to.
            f) "Break" students return to places in circle
            g) count to 10, students return to their pose in group sculpture
            h) "Break"
            i) count to 5, students return to their pose in group sculpture
            j) "Break"
            k) students rotate the group sculpture 180 degree, flip it to it's opposite side
            l) "Break"
4.  Teacher discusses the importance of viewing sculpture from every single angle, above, below included.  Sculpture is created "in the round."
 

8. Extend and modify  base (use extra wire and drill where necessary)
9. Dry brush metallic paint (use a dry brush, while the brush is clean demonstrate separating bristles while rinsing under water until water runs clear, the paint will harden brushes, ensure lid is tight, shake bottle, twist off lid, scrape paint from lid, place on strip of tag board, on opposite area brush off excess paint, dry brush so that the black shows through (choose an area on the sculpture that won't be noticeable).  Teacher does individual and small group demonstrations to ensure 100% success.
10. Title, complete Self-Evaluation Form (draw completed sculpture on the back of the form) Submit both statue and evaluation form, remain for evaluation interview going over the self-evaluation.  Teacher assign grade immediately.  Students display sculpture. 

Note:  Teacher, ask students to physically take the pose, feel where the shoulders, legs, body parts are in relation to each other.  Ask other students to pose for them to see the bending, twisting, stretching of body parts.  Teacher be prepared to pose to emphasize shoulder movements, etc. 

 Assessment: 

1. participation in poses, open and closed compositions
2. participation in modeling, collaborative activities, drawing skills
3. one to one direction in drawing and sculpture
4. small group peer critique
5. completion of self-evaluation, reflection, and drawing of finished sculpture
6. interview and discussion about self-evaluation and reflection

Modifications:

Advanced Students will add greater details with the tissue paper and wire in both the action figure and the environment. 

ESL and below grade average reading students will be excused from reading aloud.  They will be asked to follow along as much as possible.  Teacher or mentor will demonstrate steps to supplement written material.

Low Cognitive Learners and reluctant learners will be allowed extra time to complete each step of the assignment.  Teacher will give individual time to walk student through steps and initial replication activity (or assign mentor).  They will be seated next to a student mentor.   Allow an abstraction, stylization of the figure and environment. 

Alternative Lessons:

Attenuated figure sculptures:  Alberto Giacometti Contemporary (Refer to Mannerism attenuated figures).  Incredible Art Department: Heroes/Heroine lesson.

Bibliography

Auguste Rodin Working with Sculpture, Art & Man, November 1990, Vol 21. No 2, Scholastic Art

Kagan, Dr. Spencer. Cooperative Learning, Kagan. California, 1992

Kaupelis, Robert. Learning to Draw: Watson-Guptill Publications. New York, 1983. 
 

Auguste Rodin Websites:          http://www.musee-rodin.fr/welcome.htm 
                                                      http://www.rodinmuseum.org/

Gesture Drawing Websites:       http://www2.evansville.edu/drawinglab/gesture.html
                                                       http://www.portrait-artist.org/misc/gesture-drawings.html
                                                       http://www.ndoylefineart.com/gesture3.html

Daumier Website:                     http://www.honore-daumier.com/dessinateur_1.html

The Exquisite Corpse Website: http://www.tcf.ua.edu/Classes/Jbutler/T340/SurrealismLecture.htm

                                           http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exquisite_corpse
                                                       http://www.nicedog.com/carol/corpse/corpse_howto.html

Human Body  Interactive Website:  http://www.innerbody.com/index.html

http://library.thinkquest.org/2935/Natures_Best/Nat_Best_High_Level/Title_Net_Page/Title_page_h.html

Incredible Art Department:        http://incredibleart.org/
Michelle Peacock Website:       http://ex.susd.org/mpeacock/