Thinking Through Art Evaluations 2012

Evaluation Thinking Through Art

Printing Mandalas PS 32 - Spring 2012 Teaching Artists: Rukhshan Haque Larissa Raphael Classroom Teachers: Ms. Bruno Ms. Muzzati Ms. Cho Ms. Stewart Ms. Edelstein Art Teacher: Judy Crilley

Thinking Through Art (TTA) is an in-depth multi-session arts residency program. Rubin Museum of Art teaching Artists design and implement arts-integrated lessons and work closely with the classroom teachers to meet the needs of each unique classroom and school environment. PS 32 in located in Flushing Queens. The residency is supported by the Queens Council on the Arts and is coordinated by the art teacher. The entire third grade (138 students) and 5 classroom teachers participated in the residency. The Rubin Museum teaching artists met with each class four times in school and each class traveled to the Rubin once. In the course of the residency, students learned about mandalas, two-dimensional representations of castles that are used as tools for Buddhist meditation. Students learned printmaking techniques to create their own mandalas. The printmaking process allowed the students to replicate shapes and see how the shapes of a mandala fit together. The art teacher supplemented the art project by teaching several classes, during which students created self portraits that were placed in the middle of their mandalas. The residency took place from February 7 through March 27, 2012.

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Introduction 1 Goals of Residency 2 Description and Assessment of Sessions 3 Examples of Student Work 6 Student Reflections 7 Summary 8

Residency Goals and Objectives

Long-term Goals • Students will understand the form and meaning of mandalas • Students will learn printmaking techniques • Students will connect mandalas to concept learned in math and social studies • Students will develop visual literacy

Short-term Goals Session 1 • Students will be introduced to the Rubin Museum of Art • Students will be introduced to mandalas and will observe and discuss the form and

symbolism • Students will begin planning personal mandalas Session 2 • Students will be introduced to printmaking techniques and begin working on their

final project • Students will understand how the shapes of a mandala relate to each other

Session 3 • Students will continue to practice printmaking techniques and working on their final

project • Students will continue explore how the shapes of the mandala relate to each other Session 4 • Students will complete their projects • Students will continue to practice printmaking techniques • Students will reflect on their experience at the Rubin. Museum Visit • Students will develop visual literacy through looking at and discussing works of art. • Students will see examples of mandalas in the galleries and review what they

discussed in class • Students will learn more about the Rubin Museum of Art

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Session 1: Introduction and Sketching Mandalas (45 minutes) Activities: Students looked at PPT and were introduced to the Rubin Museum and Himalayan Asia. With the teaching artist, they discussed the form of the mandala, focusing on the shapes . Students also discussed the meaning and symbolism of mandalas. Finally, they sketched their own mandala focusing on something important to them inside the castle and thinking of how they would protect it. Assessment: LR All the classes were responsive and engaged in discussing the artwork. They seemed to understand the idea of a mandala as a castle and enjoyed sketching their own ideas.

RH:I think relating the mandala to something they know, like a castle was really strong. It really helped to bring home the idea that they are looking at a 3-dimensional structure.

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Session 2: Introduction into Printmaking – Square/Castle (45 minutes) Activities: Students reviewed their knowledge of mandalas and were introduced to the printmaking process. Using the sketches from Session 1 as inspiration, students drew their designs on paper, and transferred them to the styrofoam printing material. Students designed the inside of the mandala thinking about something that is important to them. Many students began printing their mandalas – they printed the triangle stamp four times, rotating 90 degrees each time to create the center square of a mandala. Assessment: LR: This was a difficult session of the residency; it was difficult to introduce printmaking techniques and start the students on their printmaking projects in a 45-minute class. Students worked at various speeds; students who did not have a turn to print were frustrated and classroom management was a challenge. However, students enjoyed seeing printmaking demonstration and were excited to work on their own projects. After this session, we realized that the students might not be able to finish their mandalas in the remaining sessions, so we modified and simplified the project. RH:As with the previous residency at PS 32, the student's responded really strongly to the materials and techniques part of the residency. 3

Teaching artist with map of Himalayan Asia

Student sketching a mandala

Teaching artist demonstrating printing with a woodblock.

Student beginning to print his mandala

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Session 3: Printmaking – Circle/Protection (45 minutes) Activities: Students continue printing triangles to create their squares. While the students who were not able to print in Session 2 printed their squares, the other students began to work on half-circle shapes to transform their squares into circles. Assessment: LR: This session went more smoothly than the previous session after we assigned numbers to the students to determine the order in which they printed at the printing station. This helped manage student expectation and helped with classroom management. Students were able to feel more successful and all had an opportunity to do some printing. Some students completed their mandalas RH:I think the challenge with this type of project is how to handle the lag time among students who are printing, students who are waiting to print, and finally those who are finished printing. The students who are waiting need direction and something specific to be doing while they wait.

Session 4: Completing and Reflecting (45 minutes) Activities: Students continued printing and focused on completing their mandalas. Each student was able to finish the project. When students were finished, they responded to questions to reflect on their experience in class and in the museum. Assessment: LR: Students were successful with finishing their mandalas. Each class worked at a different pace and the projects were at various phases of completion. The students who finished in time completed the reflections. There was little time to reflect on the experience with the who class, so these reflections provided students an opportunity to summarize their experience and to demonstrate the new vocabulary and knowledge the had acquired during the residency.

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Students printing their mandalas

Students competing their mandalas

Museum Visit (60 minutes) Activities: Students got a chance to see actual painted mandalas, some of which they had seen in class. They also saw sculptures of Buddha Shakyamuni and learned the Buddha story. Each class had a different guide who tailored the tour to the student interest and what was on display. Every group had lunch in the Education Center either before or after the visit. Assessment: LR: Several of the classes were late to the museum for their tour, which led to many of the students having less time in the museum than planned. However, the students remembered their experiences in the museum and enjoyed talking about it. The teachers appreciated having the Education Center for lunch, since the trip to and from the school was so long.

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Family Art Night Activities: Student work from the residency was displayed in the cafeteria of the school, along with self portraits made by students in other grades throughout the year. Rubin Museum educators led four activities with the parents and students: button making, prayer flags, namka making, and collaborative mandala. Assessment: LR: It was great to see the students’ completed works of art on display; when the residency ended, most of the students had not completed their self portraits. I was surprised by how they looked together with the mandalas and was pleased to see that it tied the mandalas to the self portrait project the students were doing in class. Since so much time had passed since the end of the residency, it felt like rediscovering the student mandalas. In the future, however, I would try to hold the Family Art Night closer to the end residency to assure a feeling of continuity.

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PS 32 families participating in Rubin Museum Family Art Night.

Student work on display at Family Art Night

Mandala of Pancharaksha; Central Tibet; 18th century; Pigments on cloth

Buddha Touching the Earth; Tibet; 15th Century; Gilt bronze with semi-precious stones

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Sample of Student Reflections

Final Projects

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Summary Page

Teaching Artist Reflections: LR: “Because of the limited time with each class, we were not able to go into as much detail about the content and were very focused on finishing the project. Although printmaking was a challenge in the classrooms that had 30 students and no running water, the students enjoyed learning the skill. It was crucial to have two teaching artists for the printmaking since the students needed a lot of assistance. The teachers helped when asked to do so, but were not actively involved with the residency.” “In the future, it is important to remember not to schedule PS 32 groups too early for their museum visits. Many groups were late due to issues with buses, weather, and school schedule; we need to make sure that they have enough time to travel to the museum.” “The final projects included the printed mandalas as well as self-portraits that were attached to the center of the mandalas. These portraits were completed with the students after the printmaking by the art teacher. I was nervous about what they would look like, but, in the ens, was surprised and pleased to see how the portraits changed the mandalas and connected them to projects done by other classes in the school. “ RH:”I was really struck with the amount of recollection the student's had of their tour even though a couple of weeks had past since their tour, which is great. I think for future residencies at PS32, it would be important to find ways for the teachers to be more involved and engaged in the project. Perhaps they are still unsure of their role in the residency and hang back.” Classroom Teacher Reflections: What surprised you? “During the museum tour, my students observed some paintings and sculptures carefully and asked some great questions about the art work.” “How well the students were when they were actually printmaking. Only their hands got messy! That was amazing!” What discussions/activities were the strongest? “The discussion on the mandalas and the actual printing.” “The children enjoyed the slideshow of the different mandalas. They also loved visiting the museum and seeing the shrine room.” “The children showed a lot of interests in Rubin museum and the mandalas on the first day of presentation and discussion time.” What discussion/activities were the weakest? “Printmaking process was a challenge since we don't have a big table space for all children to do the work at the same time. However, it worked out and the children had fun doing it.” What suggestions do you have for next year? “Perhaps create other things besides mandalas.” “I think it went well. No changes.”

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Thinking Through Art Evaluation Bookmaking - Pechas PS 86X - Spring 2012 Teaching Artists: Larissa Raphael Classroom Teachers: Ms. O’Brien Ms. Siliezar

Thinking Through Art (TTA) is an in-depth multi-session arts residency program. Rubin Museum of Art teaching Artists design and implement arts-integrated lessons and work closely with the classroom teachers to meet the needs of each unique classroom and school environment. PS 86X is located in the Kingsbridge Heights neighborhood of the Bronx. The school has a close relationship with the Rubin Museum of Art and has participated in Thinking Through Art residencies for many years. Students from PS 86 visit the museum regularly; the second graders participating in this residency had all visited the museum during the school year. The residency focused on the exhibition Illuminated: the Art of Sacred Books, which featured sacred books from different religious traditions that were created, used, appreciated, and passed down as valued objects of art as well as devotion. Students learned printmaking, collage and gilding techniques and used them to create their own pechas, traditional Tibetan books, for their ELA writing projects. The residency took place from April 17 through May 15, 2012.

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Introduction 1 Goals of Residency 2 Description and Assessment of Sessions 3 Examples of Student Work 6 Student Reflections 7 Summary 8

Residency Goals Long-term Goals • Students will know different forms of books, including pecha, codex, and scroll. • Students will understand that many cultures use precious materials to create sacred books • Students will learn new art techniques, such as printmaking and collage • Students will develop visual literacy. • Students will become more familiar with the Rubin Museum of Art and it collection and exhibits. Short-term Goals Session 1 • Students will review their knowledge of the Rubin Museum of Art and be introduced to the

exhibit Illuminated: the Art of Sacred Books • Students will understand that there are different formats of books. Session 2 • Students will understand how a Tibetan book, a pecha, is created using woodblocks. • Students will understand and create patterns • Students will learn printmaking techniques • Students will begin to work on their final project

Session 3 • Students will understand and create patterns • Students will continue to practice printmaking techniques • Students will work on their final project Session 4 • Students will learn the different ways books are decorated in various cultures • Students will understand the role of a book cover and will discuss examples of covers from the

museum. • Students will learn collage techniques and create covers for their books

Session 5 • Students will learn about gilding • Students will complete their projects • Students will reflect on their TTA experience Museum Visit • Students will develop visual literacy through looking at and discussing works of art. • Students will see examples of different book formats, woodblocks, moveable type and book

covers. • Students will learn more about the Rubin Museum of Art

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Session 1: Introduction (90 minutes) Activities: Teaching artist showed a presentation with information about the Rubin and the Himalayan region. Students reviewed what they remembered from their museum visit earlier in the year and reviewed the story of the Buddha. The students then looked at the painting of an arhat, paying special attention to the book that he is holding. After looking at the pecha touch object, students discussed what they thought it was, whether it was a book, and defined what a book is. After the teaching artist explained the project, students created drawing that illustrated their poems and stories. Assessment: Students remembered a surprising amount from their visit to the museum and used their previous knowledge of the Rubin when discussing the painting. They were able to articulate what they thought a book was and have a discussion about whether a pecha fit into that category.

Description Images

Session 2: Introduction into Printmaking (90 minutes) Activities: Students watched a video showing Tibetan woodblock carving and discussed the process. After a demonstration of woodblock printing, the teaching artist demonstrated how the students would be creating the printed border on the pages of their books using styrofoam instead of wood. Students were divided into two groups. Half of the students began copying their poems or stories into their books. The other half of the students glued styrofoam strips onto chipboard, used a pencil to “carve” a pattern, and then printed the border onto paper. Assessment: The students were very interested in the process of woodcarving, shown in the video; they focused especially on how the artisan used his hands at various points of the process instead of tools and how the completed woodblocks were covered in butter while drying in the sun. The students responded well to the printing process, though not all students were able to print.

Students creating printed borders with patterns

Student copying poems.

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Pecha, a traditional Tibetan book

Elder (Arhat); Pantake, China; 19th Century; Pigments on cloth

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Session 3: Printmaking (90 minutes) Activities: Students who printed in the previous class copied their poems/stories onto the pages with printed borders. Students who had copied their poems/stories, printed borders onto their pages. By the end of the session, each students who was present had completed 5 pages with printed borders. Assessment: Students took longer than expected to copy their writing and were not finished with this step of the process. The printing process was difficult for some students who struggled with putting too much or too little ink when printing. However, the students used the correct terms when referring to the tools they were using and generally enjoyed the process.

Session 4: Covers (90 minutes) Activities: Students looked at and discussed various ways the books are decorated including printing, painting, and gilding. Teaching artist demonstrated how minerals can be used to create paint and used ground mineral pigment to mix egg tempera paint. Students discussed how people use natural resources like minerals, plants, yak glue, and egg to create paint. Students then looked at images of covers from Illuminated. They created a front cover for their books using paper collage technique and jewels. Assessment: Students understood how people use natural resources to make paint and responded well to the demonstration. The students became so involved in this aspect of the lesson, that not every student had enough time to finish the collage.

Students working on and displaying their collaged covers

Gospel Book in Armenian; Armenia; ca. 1675-1725; Leather binding with jewelry and coins

Book of Hours in Arabic; Fano Italy; 1514; Ink and pigment on paper, woodcut borders

Student work in progress

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Book Cover; Tibet; 13th-15th Century; Wood with pigments, traces of gilt

Description Images

Session 5: Completing Project (90 minutes) Activities: The teaching artist demonstrated the process of gilding. Students used gold leaf and gilding size to write their names for the back cover of their book. While students were doing gilding in small groups with the teaching artist, students focused on finishing aspects of the project that were incomplete (copying poems/stories, finishing collaging the covers, or adding illustrations). The students then wrapped their books with fabric and ribbon. Assessment: Since the students worked at different speeds and since there were several absences during the residency, the students were all working on different parts of the project, including printmaking. Because of this, there was not time for students to reflect of the project during this session, although the classroom teachers gave their students time to do so after the residency.

Museum Visit (60 minutes) Activities: The students looked at objects in the Illuminated exhibition, including pecha covers, scrolls, woodblocks, moveable type, and other works of art. Student also had independent sketching time in the galleries. Assessment: Students used vocabulary and knowledge they learned in class when looking at works of art in the exhibition. They enjoyed seeing actual works of art that they had been introduced to in class. Also, the students better understood the precious materials that are used in sacred books after seeing the books in the exhibit.

Students displaying completed and wrapped pecha

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Sutra of Innumerable Meanings; Japan; ca. 1720; Gold and silver inks on indigo-dyed paper

Book Cover; Tibet; 13th-15th Century; Wood with pigments, traces of gilt

Page from Book of Wars; India; Pigments and gold on paper

Student applying gold leaf

Students wrapping their books with fabric and ribbon

Examples of Final Projects

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Student Reflections

My favorite part of making my pecha was: “Putting jewels on my cover because it made it look fancy. Also when I was making patterns on my pecha because it really made me think of all different kinds of patterns.” “Decorating the cover with different papers and patterns. I also like gilding with a golden leaf.” “When I and my classmates was putting jewels on the front of our pechas to make it really special and show how hard we worked on them, Also, my favorite part of making my pecha was writing our names in gold made me feel like a real author.” “When we made the back cover doing gilding because it was fun. We had to write our names with a white color pencil on a blue sheet and put glue. Then we put a gold paper on top and rubbed it gently. Then, we brush the left over gold paper off gently.” “ When we were gilding and printing because in gilding we did the back cover which was writing our names and putting glue on it. In printing I learned to do a pattern and put ink on it.” “My favorite part of making the pecha was printmaking.” “My favorite part of making my pecha was writing poems.” “When you were showing us how to make paint.”

I learned: “That in Tibet they use wood to make pechas and they put glue with their hands. They put it outside to dry. They put butter too.” “How to make pechas. How to make paint. How to print. I learned that most pechas are made in Tibet. I learned that when you print you don’t use that much ink.” “ About Tibetan people. Plus, Tibetan culture. I also learned about Buddha. I learned about green Tara. She helped the innocent but protected many others.” “ About pechas and scrolls. Also why jewels are valuable to books. Also about how pechas are made. But anyway, it was a video on how pechas are made. Wow!” “That you can make paint out of minerals. All you have to do is you grind it. Then you melt yak glue or put yak in the powder and mix. Last, you get paint. Also that different countries make different books and have different writing. Also, people add jewelry to show how hard they worked on the book.” “I learned that a pecha can weigh a lot of pounds. I also learned that paint are made of rocks” “I learned that pechas are like a sandwich or a book.”

My favorite part of the museum trip was: “It was when I saw the museum paintings. I got to draw a painting and two scrolls.” “When we were drawing. I love to draw. It was easy but the letters were hard. It was very fun.” “When we saw different types of books such as: pechas, scrolls, and other books which was from different countries like: Tibet, China, and Japan. Wow! How impressive.” “When I met Ms. Larissa and Ms. Sara. Also when I met Ms. Megan. Ms. Megan was so nice. Also when my mom came. Also, when I ate lunch with my class.” “When we were sketching. Also, making observations. I liked it because it was fun. Also because making observations is important. It was great! I really enjoyed it!” “My favorite part of the museum was when we drew pictures of Buddha.” “When we got to draw whatever we wanted.”

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Summary Page

Teaching Artist Reflections: “I felt that this residency was very successful and that the students were very responsive to the themes discussed in class. The students were inquisitive, enjoyed classroom discussions, and were ready to share ideas, often with the result that there was not enough time to complete projects. Printmaking days were challenging since the classrooms were tight, did not have sinks, and did not have much space for drying. At the end of the residency, students were working on finishing different parts of the project and I did not have an opportunity to reflect on the experience with them. However, students did use the vocabulary learned in the residency and were proud of their projects.” “The classroom teachers were supportive and helpful throughout the residency. Both of them worked with the students on the writing portion of the project during the residency sessions and outside the residency. Both teachers helped with classroom management when needed.” “I think that an extra day in the classroom would have improved the residency and allowed time for students to share the project with each other and/or their parents and school community. Although both classroom teachers allowed time for students to reflect, it would have been better if that was part of the residency. “(LR) Classroom Teacher Reflections: What surprised you? “How involved my students were and how they were able to explain the process of making a pecha. They also used the vocabulary to explain the process such as gilding and the proper name of the tools used” (AS) “The thing t hat surprised me most was the impact that my initial visit to the Rubin museum had on my students. When Larissa came to our classroom. they were able to recall many things that had stuck with them from our visit prior to our involvement with the residency.”(KO) What discussions/activities were the strongest? “Everything was very good. The conversations with the instructor and among themselves. The book making process was great and the students were motivated and made a connection with how Tibetans make their pechas which also helped them be reflective.” (AS) “I feel that all the activities that were done were valuable. I think the project as a whole was well matched with my students and their abilities. I also feel that it correlated well with what we were doing in our classroom.” (KO) What discussion/activities were the weakest? “I feel like it might be nice to work on the culmination of the project. The last session was weakest. They did gilding and wrapped their pechas, but there was not really a culminating experience for the students” (KO) What suggestions do you have for next year? “Keep the workshop going. This was a great experience” (AS) “It would be nice to include a session at the end where the children share the pechas and their writing.” (KO)

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Evaluation Thinking Through Art Liberty High School Comics and Personal Narrative Spring 2012 Teaching Artist: Larissa Raphael Classroom Teacher: Noel Jackman Teaching Artist Assistants: Evan Goodman Emily Fitz-Randolph

Thinking Through Art (TTA) is an in-depth multi-session arts residency program. Rubin Museum of Art teaching Artists design and implement arts-integrated lessons and work closely to meet the needs of each unique classroom and school environment. Liberty High School Academy for Newcomers is a Bilingual/English as Second Language school that meets the needs of newly arrived non-English speaking immigrant students. The students participating in this residency were two ESL Level 5 classes (Period 3/4 and Period 7/8). The classroom teacher’s goals for the semester were for students to understand literary elements and terms, story structure, and different genres. Through participation in TTA, Mr. Jackman wanted students to learn about comics as a genre, have experience with art and art making techniques, and to improve their spoken English through the presentations. The project was inspired by the exhibitions Hero, Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics and Modernist Art from India: the Body Unbound. Students discussed story structure, symbolism, and character and learned techniques for drawing faces and expressing emotion. Students created a comic depicting their first day in New York City. The residency took place from March 15 through May 2, 2012

Introduction 1 Goals of Residency 2 Description and Assessment of Sessions 3 Case Study - Student #1 7 Case Study - Student #2 8 Reflection 9

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Goals and Objectives

Long-term Goals • Students understand that art can be narrative • Students become familiar with the Rubin Museum’s collection and exhibitions,

including Hero, Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics and Modernist Art in India • Students tell a personal story using the conventions of the comic book genre • Students learn drawing skills • Students develop verbal skills and build ELA vocabulary and proficiency • Students develop visual literacy and critical thinking skills

Short-term Goals Session 1 • Students learn about the Rubin Museum and the Himalayas • Students discuss the discuss examples of narrative art and compare traditional

thangka painting to a comic book • Students create a working definition of “comic” as a class Session 2 • Students explore the ways events in a story are represented and sequenced to tell a

story • Students begin to draft their own stories using both text and image Session 3 • Students explore conventions for depicting facial expressions in Himalayan art and in

comics • Students learn drawing skills to depict facial features, emotions, and character traits • Students draw/create a “main character” for their personal story Session 4 • Students explore the role of gesture and movement in Himalayan art and in comics • Students learn drawing skills to depict the human body and to represent movement • Students begin to sketch their final project Session 5 • Students explore the importance of setting in narrative art • Students explore different ways that text is used in comics Session 6 • Students discuss the role of color in comics • Students learn techniques for adding color to comics • Students complete their personal story comic Museum Visit • Students continue to develop visual literacy • Students have an opportunity to read comics in the exhibition Hero, Villain, Yeti

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Session 1: Introduction to Narrative Art and Comics (90 min.) Activities: Students looked at a presentation which contained an introduction to the Rubin Museum. They compared the story of Milarepa in a traditional Tibetan painting (thangka) and in a modern comic book. The class discussed what the characteristics of a comic were and created a definition. Students then collaboratively created a “jam comic”; each student drew one frame of a comic and then passed it to a classmate who continued the comic in the next frame. Teaching Artist Assessment: Although the students knew what comics are and were able to create a definition of comics that included the key elements, such as frames, speech and though bubbles, etc, they were not as familiar with comics and graphic novels as I expected. Some of the jam comics were not successful. However, by looking at these examples, students understood the importance of a clear story line is in comics.

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Session 2: Sequencing and Storytelling Structure (90 min.) Activities: Students looked at and discussed the painting First Day in New York by Bhupen Khakhar, focusing on the elements of real and imagined. Students explored different ways scenes of a story are represented in art, revisiting two variations of the Milarepa story. Students worked in groups on a sequencing activity where they arranged random images into a sequence in order to tell a story. Students also began to write / draw the stories of their first day in New York: they focused on story structure using basic prompts like “first, then, finally.” Teaching Artist Assessment: Students responded well to the Bhupen Khakhar painting and were interested in identifying the narrative. Through the sequencing activity, students understood how the meaning of an image could change based on the images around it. Students were, at first, reluctant to talk about their own first day in New York. By talking to these students individually, Mr. Jackman, the teaching artist assistants, and I were able to help these students to express themselves. Students used a combination of writing and drawing to their story, based on their comfort with drawing.

Narrative thangka (Lama (Teacher), Milarepa; Tibet; 18th century; Pigments on cloth) and page from The Magic Life of Milarepa; Tibet’s Great Yogi by Eva Van Dam, 1991

Students putting images in sequence to tell a story

Example of successful student jam comic

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Museum Visit (60 min.) Activities: Students looked at and discussed First Day in New York by Bhupen Khakhar, the Milarepa thangka, Durga sculpture, and other works of art. Students also had independent time in the galleries to read the comic books on display in Hero Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics. Teaching Artist Assessment: Students responded well to the Modernist art exhibit; they talked about the Bhupen Khakhar painting in detail and were able to make deeper observations since they had already discussed this image in class. The students understood the narrative nature of specific works of art and compared these to less narrative works of art such as Diagonal by Tyeb Mehta. Since many of the students had visited the museum in the past, I sensed that they enjoyed seeing and learning about a different style of art.

Bhupen Khakhar; First Day in New York; 1985; Oil on canvas

Durga Killing the Buffalo Demon; Nepal; 13th century; Gilt copper alloy

Description Images

Images of peaceful and wrathful expressions

Student learning techniques to draw faces

Example of student worksheet practicing drawing expressions

Session 3: Facial Expression and Characters (90 min.)

Activities: The class discussed how peaceful and wrathful deities are depicted in Himalayan art, focusing particularly on the eyes, mouth and attributes/clothes. Students learned techniques and conventions of drawing faces and facial expressions in comic books. Teaching Artist Assessment: Students understood the elements that differentiated peaceful and wrathful deities and were able to connect this to the emotions these images elicited. They enjoyed learning techniques for drawing a realistic face. Many students who were not comfortable with their drawing skills expressed that the guidelines were helpful and that this was the first time they were able to draw anything well. Students incorporated less realistic elements when drawing expressions to show emotion.

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Description Images

Session 4: Human Figure, (90 min.) Activities: The students practiced techniques of drawing the human body. They then created a main character for their story. Using story worksheets from Session 2, students created a thumbnail sketch of their comic. Teaching Artist Assessment: As with the previous class, students enjoyed learning the proportions of drawing a human figure. When creating their comic character, many students used a less realistic style. Using their work from previous sessions as a guide, students began refining their ideas and drawing styles to create a thumbnail sketch of the final comic.

Example of student’s sketch practicing techniques of drawing the human figure and samples of students’ character studies

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Session 5: Setting and Text (90 min.) Activities: The class compared how the Himalayas are represented in a photograph, a thangka, and a comic. Students discussed the importance of showing setting in their comics. The class also discussed how to use text, speech and thought bubbles to help tell their story. Students then began to work on their final project, sketching onto Bristol board and inking. Teaching Artist Assessment: The students understood the importance of setting and used images of New York City as inspiration for their own drawings. They began to work on the final project; students worked at different paces with some finishing their entire comic during this session and others still working on the thumbnail sketch.

Students working on final projects

Example of student work in progress

Example of student’s thumbnail sketch

Description Images

Session 6: Color and Finishing Personal Story Comics (90 min.) Activities: Students compared examples of colored comics to black and white comics and discusses the differences. Students learned how to use colored pencils and markers to add color to their comics. Students finished their personal story comic and prepared for the final presentation. Teaching Artist Assessment: Students worked at very different paces although most students were able to finish inking. The students who did decide to color their comics used the color to emphasize their story and add emotional impact. Although many students had participated in TTAs before, they were nervous about the final presentation; Mr. Jackman said that he would practice with them in class.

Presentations (60 minutes) Activities: Students presented their final comics to their classmates, focusing on their story as well as the process of creating the comic. Each student received a book with all the comics from the class. Students also filled out evaluations about the residency. Teaching Artist Assessment: Students had prepared for the presentations in class which helped them be more confident when presenting in the Education Center. Students talked about their own work and asked questions about their classmates’ work. The students also enjoyed seeing their comics in a book with the work of other students.

Students at presentations

Student presenting his comic

Examples of colored and black and white comics

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CASE STUDY: Student #1 - Tony

Beginning Middle Final

Description: First Day in New York worksheet Teaching Artist Analysis: The student was reluctant to tell his story at first and was not comfortable with his drawing skills. The student did eventually tell his story using a combination of text and images . His story followed the story structure and had a clear beginning, middle and end.

Description: Practicing drawing realistic faces and expressions Teaching Artist Analysis: The student demonstrated an understanding of the elements of facial expression and was able to successfully draw a range of emotions. The student also understood the proportions and techniques of drawing a realistic face.

Description: Final Comic Teaching Artist Analysis: The student’s final comic successfully “translates” his story into images. Although he was still not comfortable with his drawing skills and chose to use stick figures, the comic includes successful depiction of setting, use of speech and thought bubbles, and portrayal of emotion.

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CASE STUDY: Student #2 – Si Min

Description: First Day in New York worksheet Teaching Artist Analysis: The student was able to tell her story using images , however, the story was simple and did not include much detail.

Description: Drawing the human figure and creating a character Teaching Artist Analysis: The student successfully drew the proportions of a human body and was able to transfer this knowledge to create a character for herself. The student also for the first time demonstrated a distinct personal style.. :

Description: Final comic Teaching Artist Analysis: The student’s final comic builds on the story that she drew initially, but includes added detail. The student expanded the story by incorporating more emotion through expression and her personal style.


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Reflection Page

Teaching Artist Reflections: Larissa Raphael “I was surprised at first how unfamiliar the students were with the comic book genre and comic book characters, even in their own languages. However, the students enjoyed looking at comic books and had to the painting First Day in New York. Although the students resisted at times, revisiting the painting several times in the residency allowed them to look at different aspects of the painting and understand the complexity of narrative art. The most successful lessons were when students learned drawing techniques for faces, expressions, and human figure since this provided tools for the students who were not comfortable with drawing. Mr Jackman, the classroom teacher, was helpful with classroom management and supported the comic residency by connecting themes to classroom curriculum and tailoring some projects to incorporate new skills students learned in class.” “The final projects reflected the wide range of drawing skills, but also demonstrated how students incorporated comic book techniques that were discussed in class. The comics also showed how the students were willing to explore the more difficult emotions connected to their first days in New York and provided an outlet for them to do so. As a teaching artist, I feel that this project allowed me to get to know the students individually to have a better understanding of the various challenges that the students at Liberty High School face.” Classroom Teacher Reflections: Noel Jackman “Art techniques, explanation of various types of comics, and how to create one [were strongest discussions/activities]” “Larissa and Evan were extremely well-prepared and interacted well with the students” “Good connections made between comic stories and literary elements – protagonist, setting, mood, plot.” “I really enjoyed the comics project – worked well” “I would like to see a photography project [next year]” Student Reflections: “I learned how to draw because before I didn’t know how to do it and now I know thanks to the teams from the Rubin Museum of Art.” “My favorite part was when I learned how to drawing techniques . ” “[my favorite part was] drawing my story.” “I liked to visit Rubin Museum.” “My favorite part was that I learned vocabulary words and learned about comics.” “[my favorite part was] by making the plot from beginning to the end.” “I want to learn about photography and other things.”

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Evaluation Thinking Through Art Liberty High School Comics and Personal Narrative Spring 2012 Teaching Artist: Rukhshan Haque Classroom Teacher: Jim Lu Teaching Artist Assistant: Daniel Rosemarin

Thinking Through Art (TTA) is an in-depth multi-session arts residency program. Rubin Museum of Art teaching Artists design and implement arts-integrated lessons and work closely to meet the needs of each unique classroom and school environment. Liberty High School Academy for Newcomers is a Bilingual/English as Second Language school that meets the needs of newly arrived non-English speaking immigrant students. The students participating in this residency were an ESL Level 6 class. The classroom teacher’s goals for the semester were making curricular connections particularly with their class writing project titled ‘First Day in New York’. The teacher also wanted opportunities for students to speak about their work to practice presenting in English. The project was inspired by the exhibitions Hero, Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics and Modernist Art from India: the Body Unbound. Students discussed story structure, symbolism, and character and learned techniques for drawing faces and expressing emotion. Students created a comic depicting their first day in New York City. The residency took place from March 19 through May 7, 2012

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Long-term Goals • Students understand that art can be narrative • Students become familiar with the Rubin Museum’s collection and exhibits, including Hero, Villain,

Yeti: Tibet in Comics and Modernist Art in India • Students tell a personal story using the conventions of the comic book genre • Students learn drawing skills • Students develop verbal skills and build ELA vocabulary and proficiency • Students develop visual literacy and critical thinking skills

Short-term Goals Session 1 • Students learn about the Rubin Museum and the Himalayas • Students discuss examples of narrative art and compare traditional thangka painting to a comic

book’ • Students create a working definition of “comic” as a class Session 2 • Students explore the ways events in a story are represented and sequenced to tell a story • Students begin to draft their own stories using both text and image Session 3 • Students explore conventions for depicting facial expressions in Himalayan art and in comics • Students learn drawing skills to depict facial features, emotions, and character traits • Students draw/create a “main character” for their personal story Session 4 • Students explore the role of gesture and movement in Himalayan art and in comics • Students learn drawing skills to depict the human body and to represent movement • Students begin to sketch their final project Session 5 • Students explore the importance of setting in narrative art • Students explore different ways that text is used in comics Session 6 • Students discuss the role of color in comics • Students learn techniques for adding color to comics • Students complete their personal story comic Museum Visit • Students continue to develop visual literacy • Students have an opportunity to read comics in the exhibition Hero, Villain, Yeti

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Session 1: Introduction to Narrative Art and Comics (90 min.)

Activities: The class looked at PPT including an introduction to the Rubin Museum and discussed how the story of Milarepa is depicted in a traditional thangka painting and in a comic book. The class discussed what the characterisitics of a comic were and created a working definition of “comic.” Students then collaboratively created a “jam comic”; each student drew one frame of a comic and then passed it to a classmate who continued the comic in the next frame.

Teaching Artist Assessment: In this first session, I found that the majority of the students had gone through the Thinking Through Art program before, some multiple times. I kept this in mind as I taught the residency. I also found that comics were a relatively new art form for the students. The closest connection they made to comics were through cartoons and familiar cartoon characters. Three students had a solid grounding in comics. We had a classroom discussion defining comics together, which I found helpful to get everyone on the same page and those with specialized knowledge could share with their classmates what they knew.

Description Images

Session 2: Sequencing and Storytelling Structure (90 min.)

Activities: Students looked at and discussed the painting First Day in New York by Bhupen Khakhar, focusing on the elements of real and imagined. Students explored different ways scenes of a story are represented in art, revisiting two variations of the Milarepa story. Students then engaged in a sequencing activity where they arranged random images into a sequence in order to tell a story. Students also began to write / draw the stories of their first day in New York: they focused on story structure using basic prompts like “first, then, finally.”

Teaching Artist Assessment: In the second session, we reviewed the definition of comics as an art form. I gave the students a handout (see page 4) and with the class generated definition of comics from the last session. I found the students really responded to the painting: ‘First Day in New York’ and it was also an excellent tool to discuss the idea of reality and imagination. I introduced the idea of a timeline which was helpful in talking about sequencing in stories. They were responsive because they used timelines in their ‘First Day in New York’ projects with Mr. Lu.

Narrative thangka (Lama (Teacher), Milarepa; Tibet; 18th century; Pigments on cloth

The Magic Life of Milarepa; Tibet’s Great Yogi by Eva Van Dam, 1991

Bhupen Khakhar; First Day in New York; 1985; Oil on canvas

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Some images used in the sequencing activity.

Rubin Museum of Art – Thinking Through Art Program

Liberty High School - Spring 2012

What is a comic?

A comic is a sequence of images or pictures used to tell a story.

A comic can also use text or words to help tell the story.

A comic is sometimes referred to as Sequential Art.

A comic is made up of panels.

A panel is a single frame that shows a specific part of the story in the comic.

A panel is usually in the shape of a rectangle but can be other shapes as well.

Zooming in is a technique to focus on a specific part of the story or on a detail.

Zooming out is a technique that gives more general information about the story.

A comic uses symbols to show speech, sound, thought, and movement.

The story in a comic can be real or imagined. It can also be a combination of the two.

Key Words

comic

story

narrative

images or pictures

text or words

setting

characters

real

imagined

symbols

panels

sequence or order

Sequential Art

zooming in or out

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Worksheet created by teaching artist that incorporates student-generated definitions of comics

Description Images

Session 3: Facial Expression and Characters (90 min.) Activities: The class discussed how peaceful and wrathful deities are depicted in Himalayan art, focusing particularly on the eyes, mouth and attributes/clothes. Students learned techniques and conventions of drawing faces and facial expressions in comic books. Students used these new skills to draw a main character for their story. Teaching Artist Assessment: In this session, after a discussion based on looking at images of peaceful and wrathful deities, we worked on how to draw faces and facial expressions. I found it helpful to not only demonstrate techniques, but for the students to come up to the board and try it for themselves. This way we could problem solve together as a class how to express different emotions and students could share their own way of expressing emotions visually. Session 4: Gesture and Movement (90 min.) Activities: The class looked at examples from comics of how movement is represented and discussed why representing movement might be important to a comic. Students used artist mannequins to practice drawing the human figure in motion first as a mannequin and then with clothes. Using story worksheets from Session 2, students created a thumbnail sketch of their comic. Teaching Artist Assessment: In this session, I did a similar class activity as the last session, where the class and I worked together at the board on how to draw the figure and show movement. I also did an activity like this in Session 5 as well. This repetition helped with the class structure so the students knew what to expect. It was also like having a group activity (involving the whole class) which was a great counterbalance to the project which was so individual and personal.


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Student practicing drawing expressions

Students displaying their thumbnail sketches.

Session 5: Setting and Text (90 min.)

Activities: The class compared how the Himalayas are represented in a photograph, a thangka, and a comic. Students discussed how artists represent places they have never been to. Students also looked at examples of how text is critical in a comic and how size, font, and bubbles can be used to enhance elements of the story. Students engaged in an activity where they filled in the text bubbles in a Green Lama cartoon and discussed how each students use of text changed the meaning of the images. Students then begin work on their final project.

Teaching Artist Assessment: In this session, I had a similar group activity as in session 3 & 4 working with text. I found students started to see text in new ways and perhaps it was their first time considering text as a visual form that can express emotions (and sounds, etc.) by the style or form it is written in.

Description Images

Session 6: Color and Finishing Personal Story Comics (90 min.) Activities: Students compared examples of colored comics to black and white comics and discussed the differences. Students learned how to use watercolor pencils to add color to their comics if desired. Students finished their personal story comic and prepared for the final presentation. Teaching Artist Assessment: This last session was focused mainly on review, color and completing the projects. Adding color was optional. Since time was a concern, I found it beneficial to demonstrate how to add color in creative ways. Such as highlighting by outlining inside the black lines or coloring a few main objects as a way to intensify or focus on the objects. Those who wanted to or had time could fill in with as much color as they liked.

Photograph of the Himalayan Mountains

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Teaching artist demonstrating effect of text on comics.

Student adding color to her comic.

Description Images

Museum Visit (60 min.) Activities: Students looked at various works of art in the Modernist Art from India exhibition, especially First Day in New York by Bhupen Khakhar. Students also had independent time to explore the comics in Hero, Villain, Yeti. Teaching Artist Assessment: I found the museum visit to be one of my most successful class tours. We spent time in both the comic book exhibition and the modern art from India exhibition. Since this particular class had significant prior experience with the Rubin Museum of Art, I found focusing on these two exhibitions really challenged and opened their minds to different art forms in general and also what was available at the Rubin Museum. I found the students really responsive to both exhibitions. They particularly connected with the modern art exhibit which surprised me as I thought it may be too abstract for them. I found the contrary, they really connected with this exhibition. I found they were very astute and articulate when talking about the paintings. It made for a very powerful group discussion. Since both exhibitions were different in content and structure, I structured the tour differently for each, which I found to be successful. I set significant time in the comic book exhibition allowing them time to read and process the comics (those who did not want to read had the option to sketch). So it was a more individual-oriented approach to the tour. The modern art exhibit I structured more traditionally, where I introduced each painting and we had a discussion and group experience around the painting. Finally, since one the major themes of their project was the idea of real vs. imagined, I discussed (in class as well) how this relates to the experience of art as well. We looked at ‘First Day in New York’ quite a bit in class and so during the tour, part of the discussion was around how different the experience of art can be in person versus looking at an image of an art work. The students were surprised at all the new things they saw or saw differently when they experienced the painting in person.

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View of the and Hero, Villain, Yeti exhibition and a view of First Day in New York by Bhupen Khakhar and Diagonal by Tyeb Mehta in Modernist Art in India

CASE STUDY: Student #1


Description: Safiatou,(on the right), a student in ESL 6 class Teaching Artist Analysis: The student, Safiatou, was present for all sessions, but often had her head down and was reluctant to participate. I found that she connected with the student, Aissatou (on the left). Aissatou in contrast to Safiatou, was very engaged in the project and in classroom discussion. She also worked very fast, so I found it helpful when she finished her work, to work with Safiatou, and to keep her motivated and engaged as much as possible.

Description: Saffiatou’s work in progress Teaching Artist Analysis: Saffiatou was one of the few students who openly said she could not draw on multiple occasions. With her strong resistance to drawing, I encouraged her to shift the balance towards text and writing. I found her to be a wonderful writer, who understood and used metaphors beautifully. Her style of writing was very visual in form and worked well in comics. She also expressed emotions and feelings vividly. My favorite quote from her work, “My happiness like stars.”

Description: Safiatou during her presentation. Teaching Artist Analysis: I found when she shared her story with me, she really brightened and opened up, so I was happy that she could share it with her peers as well.

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CASE STUDY: Student #2

Description: Aly (back row) during one-on-one time with teaching artist in class. Teaching Artist Analysis: Aly, was generally engaged in the project but did not participate in classroom discussion. I found he opened up to me quite a bit during our one-on -one discussions during class.

Description:’ Aly’s work in progress Teaching Artist Analysis: Aly used a large number of panels which were like little snippets or vignettes of his experience in New York that profoundly impacted and shaped his understanding of this new place he was living in. I had most of the students stick to about 4-5 panels in the interest of time. In Aly’s case I made an exception because his panels were small and he filled them quickly. I found he was drawn to this panel style. I also found it interesting because I read 2-3 panels as a grouping of one panel.

Description: Aly during his presentation. Teaching Artist Analysis: Aly, had a really interesting presentation. He has quite a talent for public speaking. I was surprised considering how quiet he was in class. I think because the space was made for him to speak he took advantage of it versus during class discussions students have to be more assertive to share their thoughts and make their own space so to speak.


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Summary Page

Teaching Artist Reflections: Rukhshan Haque “I found the students responded positively to getting a portfolio/folder. They really liked having something (other then their projects) to keep. Many of them decorated the folders to make them their own. I found the folders really helpful to keep the student’s work organized during the course of the residency. I also found it helpful to place worksheets in their folders or when I handed out worksheets they could keep it in their folder instead of losing it and they could refer to it during class if they needed to. Finally I think it is great to have a record of their process and well as other information they could access after the residency is over.” “I found the layering of ideas to be really strong during this residency. For example, the idea of real vs. imagined as applied to their stories and experience of coming to New York. But also applying this idea again when experiencing art in person or reality versus an image of art which can be quite different from reality.” “The combined use of text and image was helpful in creating space for all the students to have a generally positive experience with this project. If it had just been image or drawing, I believe I would have had a lot more resistance as I have experienced in past residencies. But somehow the addition of text and writing, made the project less daunting and more approachable. As a teacher, I felt I had a lot more room to tailor the project to each student’s unique working style.” Classroom Teacher Reflections: Jim Lu What surprised you? “Student’s motivations in creating an artistic expression. They were really working hard.” What discussions/activities were strongest? “When students were taught basic drawing skills for facial expressions and body movements.” What discussions/activities were weakest? “Actually can’t find any. But we could have had a little longer for the last part (finishing the final version the book. Some students couldn’t finish.)”

Other observations? “Great interaction between the instructor and the class. Excellent rapport. Lots of encouragement from instructor. “ Any other curricular connections that could be made next time? “It seems the curricular trend would be emphasis on supporting themes (claims) with details (document or emphasis).” Any suggestions for next year? “Meet the teachers before making any specific plans (By luck, the topics of RMA and mine were the same: First Day in New York).”

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Evaluation Thinking Through Art Liberty High School Comics and Personal Narrative Spring 2012 Teaching Artist: Diana Santiago Classroom Teacher: Amy Shaheen

Thinking Through Art (TTA) is an in-depth multi-session arts residency program. Rubin Museum of Art teaching artists design and implement arts-integrated lessons and work closely to meet the needs of each unique classroom and school environment. Liberty High School Academy for Newcomers is a Bilingual/English as Second Language school that meets the needs of newly arrived non-English speaking immigrant students. The students participating in this residency were a double-period ESL Level 3 class. The classroom teacher’s goals for the semester were for students to learn folk tales, read stories about ESL students, and learn the past tense. The project was inspired by the exhibitions Hero, Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics and Modernist Art from India: the Body Unbound. Students discussed story structure, symbolism, and character and learned techniques for drawing faces and expressing emotion. Students created a comic depicting their first day in New York City. The residency took place from March 12 through May 7, 2012



Long-term Goals • Students understand that art can be narrative • Students become familiar with the Rubin Museum’s collection and exhibits, including Hero,

Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics and Modernist Art in India • Students tell a personal story using the conventions of the comic book genre • Students learn drawing skills • Students develop verbal skills and build ELA vocabulary and proficiency • Students develop visual literacy and critical thinking skills

Short-term Goals Session 1 • Students learn about the Rubin Museum and the Himalayas • Students discuss examples of narrative art and compare traditional thangka painting to a

comic book’ • Students create a working definition of “comic” as a class Session 2 • Students explore the ways events in a story are represented and sequenced to tell a story • Students begin to draft their own stories using both text and image Session 3 • Students explore conventions for depicting facial expressions in Himalayan art and in comics • Students learn drawing skills to depict facial features, emotions, and character traits • Students draw/create a “main character” for their personal story Session 4 • Students explore the role of gesture and movement in Himalayan art and in comics • Students learn drawing skills to depict the human body and to represent movement • Students begin to sketch their final project Session 5 • Students explore the importance of setting in narrative art • Students explore different ways that text is used in comics Session 6 • Students discuss the role of color in comics • Students learn techniques for adding color to comics • Students complete their personal story comic Museum Visit • Students continue to develop visual literacy • Students have an opportunity to read comics in the exhibition Hero, Villain, Yeti

Session 1: Introduction to Narrative Art and Comics (90 min.) Activities: The class looked at presentation including an introduction to the Rubin Museum and discussed how the story of Milarepa is depicted in a traditional thangka painting and in a comic book. The class discussed what the characterisitics of a comic were and created a working definition of “comic.” Students then collaboratively created a “jam comic”; each student drew one frame of a comic and then passed it to a classmate who continued the comic in the next frame. Assessment: Students were intrigued by the comparison of a traditional painting and comic page that told the same story. Showing a comic book page in the context of museum education helped them find the art more accessible. The jam comic was a success. It helped break down the ideas of storytelling in a simple, sequential manner.

Description Images

Session 2: Sequencing and Storytelling Structure (90 min.) Activities: Students looked at and discussed the painting First Day in New York by Bhupen Khakhar, focusing on the elements of real and imagined. Students explored different ways scenes of a story are represented in art, revisiting two variations of the Milarepa story. Students then engaged in a sequencing activity where they arranged random images into a sequence in order to tell a story. Students also began to write / draw the stories of their first day in New York: they focused on story structure using basic prompts like “first, then, finally.” Assessment: The painting “First Day in New York” was a great piece for this residency and really sparked conversation. Students related their stories to the ideas represented in the painting- including real vs. imagined. This was very useful when students began to draw out their stories. The image sequencing in this class was a bit confusing. I believe there may have been too many options in the sequencing to make a clear point about storytelling.

Narrative thangka (Lama (Teacher), Milarepa; Tibet; 18th century; Pigments on cloth))

Page from The Magic of Milarepa; Tibet’s Great Yogi by Eva Van Dam, 1991

Some images used in the sequencing activity. Bhupen Khakhar; First Day in New York; 1985; Oil on canvas

Description Images

Session 3: Facial Expression and Characters (90 min.) Activities: The class discussed how peaceful and wrathful deities are depicted in Himalayan art, focusing particularly on the eyes, mouth and attributes/clothes. Students learned techniques and conventions of drawing faces and facial expressions in comic books. Students used these new skills to draw a main character for their story. Assessment: I found the worksheet with the blank faces and expressions written below to be useful for this lesson. The class and I discussed matching facial expressions with emotions. There was some fun drawing on the board. I think students were feeling a little more confident with the idea of drawing themselves/people in this project. Session 4: Gesture and Movement (90 min.) Activities: The class looked at examples from comics of how movement is represented and discussed why representing movement might be important to a comic. Using story worksheets from Session 2, students will create a thumbnail sketch of their comic. Assessment: This session we talked about gesture and showing emotion while representing the body. i.e. poor posture, lowered head, etc. Project sketches coming along.


Worksheet for drawing expressions

Mannequins used in class to help students draw movements,

Session 5: Setting and Text (90 min.) Activities: The class compared how the Himalayas are represented in a photograph, a thangka, and a comic. Students discussed how artists represent places they have never been to. Students also looked at examples of how text is critical in a comic and how size, font, and bubbles can be used to enhance elements of the story. Students engaged in an activity where they filled in the text bubbles in a Green Lama cartoon and discussed how each students use of text changed the meaning of the images. Students then begin work on their final project. Assessment: Most students were excited to use text to help explain their images. The activity sheet was helpful.

Description Images

Session 6: Color and Finishing Personal Story Comics (90 min.) Activities: Students compared examples of colored comics to black and white comics and discusses the differences. Students learned how to use watercolor pencils to ad color to their comics if desired. Students finished their personal story comic and prepared for the final presentation. Assessment: Students were proud of their finalized pieces. Many of them presented in class to practice for later presentations. A wonderful amount of details were shared concerning their personal narratives.

Photograph of the Himalayan Mountains

Classroom notes about text and setting.

Student completing her comic by adding color with watercolor pencils.

Description Images

Museum Visit (60 min.) Activities: Students looked at various works of art in Modernist Art in India exhibition. Students also had independent to explore the comics in Hero, Villain, Yeti Assessment: Students were very attentive during the museum visit. This was the first visit for some of them. A few distractions but overall a lovely tour. “First Day in New York” painting was a big hit! They thoroughly enjoyed the Hero, Villain, Yeti exhibition – taking time to read, look at and draw some of the art.

Students’ gallery sketches

CASE STUDY: Student #1- Adja


Description: Adja working on sketching her comic. Teaching Artist Analysis: In her comic, Adja tells the story of her first day in New York. She worked very hard in the pencil drawing to lay out her story appropriately. Adja was initially a bit resistant to this project because of the amount of drawing involved . She slowly gained confidence during our sessions.

Description: Adja adding color Teaching Artist Analysis: Adja has finalized the drawing and has added some text to help explain the pictures of her story. Adja enjoyed coloring her almost finished drawing. She asked for help when she needed it, and she was feeling proud of her piece with the support of her peers. Everyone was able to point out something they liked in their respective classmates drawing.

Description: Adja’s completed comic Teaching Artist Analysis: Adja’s finished piece was fantastic! The facial expressions, the body gestures as well as the setting help tell a detailed story of her First day in New York in spite of limited text. I was very proud of how Adja worked so hard to complete this project though she started out a bit unmotivated. As the lessons continued she gained confidence in her project, and was very proud of her work in the end. I feel that the step by step instruction gave her the support and information necessary for her complete this work successfully.

CASE STUDY: Student #2 Rama

Description: Rama, a student in ESL 3 class Teaching Artist Analysis: Rama was a highly motivated student who was excited to be working on an art project with the Rubin Museum. Rama was confident in her drawing skills/style. Her work was consistent and she always participated in group discussions. She worked well and was motivational to her classmates.

Description: Rama working on her project Teaching Artist Analysis: Rama continued to develop her story of her first day in New York. Her figures had wonderful details like earrings and bellybuttons. She began adding color with the watercolor pencils. Rama was excited to use watercolor pencils for the first time. She had a great energy and kept everyone in her corner of the room laughing and working.

Description: Rama’s completed comic. Teaching Artist Analysis: Rama’s finished piece was vibrant and energetic just like her! She was very proud of the piece and loved the colors from the watercolor pencils. Rama was a great student and attentive to the art lessons every week. She also asked many question throughout the museum visit. During her presentation she spoke in great detail about her first day in New York. I am very happy with the work she has accomplished in this residency.


Summary Page

Teaching Artist Reflections: Diana Santiago “Another successful residency with Ms. Shaheen! This lesson worked well with her level II students and was easy to edit for a higher level ELL class. I found the students to be very responsive to the comic book material, and telling their personal story really motivated them to do a good job with this project. The Modern art exhibit was also a great instrument during this residency; helping students to see art in a new way, and be able to discuss art in context.“ “Overall , this particular residency helped break preconceived notions of art and culture; even something like ‘museum culture,’ where students were surprised to see comic books alongside ancient Himalayan artwork. “ “Students were well behaved and participated during the lessons. I found it very important to have an assistant available to work one on one with a few students who were having trouble because of the language barrier.” Classroom Teacher Reflections: Amy Shaheen What surprised you? “The different styles the students used to portray themselves and their environment” What discussions were the strongest? “drawing faces, drawing background, narrative” What discussions were the weakest? “I wish they had more time to look at comics in the museum” Any other curricular connections that could be made next time? “Students could choose to tell different stories, not just the first day.” Any suggestions for next year? “Keep up the good work!”

Documents

Thinking Through Art Evaluations 2012