3/26/10 Art History I

Today's Class- Today we looked at the art and architecture of Islam, from the 7th century through the Ottoman Empire. Most of the time was spent looking at mosques and palaces, but we also saw examples of calligraphy and functional objects. For cultural and religious reasons there aren't many representations of figures, but instead a tradition of elaborate non-figural ornament, both geometric and organic, becomes the dominant form of visual expression. The wide spread growth of the Islamic religion through Asia, Europe, and Africa helped absorb and transmit artistic influences around all those parts of the world.

Important terms- aniconic, arabesque, calligraphy, iwan, madrasa, mihrab, minbar, mosque, joggled voussoirs, rosette, quatrefoil

Important artworks- Dome of the Rock, The Great Mosque of Kairouan (Tunisia), Great Mosque of Cordoba (Spain), Arabic Manuscript pages (p. 293), Medallion Rug, Qur'an Frontispiece, Caliph Harun Al-Rashid (p. 305)

Homework- The next current events journal article is due the Tuesday we get back from break.

It is recommended that you read chapter 14 (Early Medieval Art in Europe) in Book 2 to familiarize yourself with the material.

For next class 4/6/10- Bring Book 2 (Medieval Art) and a notebook. We will begin our study of early Medieval art in Europe.

2D Design Color Wheel and Mixing

How to make this up- On a sheet of your 18"x24" paper use pencil to draw a large circle on one side, leaving a little margin between it and the edge of the paper. This will be for a color wheel. Then do the following:

Draw 3 boxes equally spaced around the wheel, half inside the circle, half out. Use these boxes for your primary colors- red, yellow, blue. (one in each) Put the full strength color in the part of the box outside the circle, the color plus white inside.

Draw 3 more boxes, halfway between each of the first 3. These are for the secondary colors that are made from the primaries that each is between. Use the primaries to mix the secondaries (orange, green, violet) making them visually halfway between- neither closer to one color nor the other. Again, full strength outside the circle, color plus white inside.

Draw 6 more boxes, spaced between the earlier 6 boxes. These can be smaller. These are for the intermediate colors, mixed from a primary and a secondary, such as blue-green, red-violet, yellow-orange, etc. For these you just need to make the intermediate color, no white mix is needed.

Complementary Color Mix- In the empty part of your page draw a row of 5 connected boxes, with 3 identical boxes adjacent to the middle 3. Choose a pair of complements, either red and green, or blue and orange. Put the primary in one end box of the row of 5, the secondary at the other end. In the middle box (#3) put a color that is an equal mix of primary and secondary. Add white and put it in the adjacent box. In the box next to the primary put a color that is mostly primary with a little bit of the secondary, and the opposite in the box next to the secondary, adding white to each and putting them in the adjacent boxes. For example, if you use red and green, box #1 would be solid red, #2 red with a little green, #3 equal red and green, #4 green with a little red, and #5 all green. The other 3 boxes are colors #2-4 with white added.

Tints and Shades- Draw a row of 15 boxes anywhere you have space left on the page. Choose a color and put it in the 8th (middle) box. For the remaining boxes, move it in gradual steps in one direction toward white, and the other direction toward black.

Examples of all three exercises can be seen above and below.

This is a portfolio exercise and must be made up by the end of the semester.

3/23/10 Art History I

Today's Class- Today I distributed the Independent Research assignment that is part of this class and reviewed it. Through a randomizing process students were given the opportunity to choose a particular period in art history for their project. After that we continued with our look at Byzantine art and architecture. At the end of the class we had a brief overview of Islam and some general aspects of the art associated with it.

Important Terms- diptych, triptych, icon, iconoclasm, scroll, codex, mandorla, cloisonne, scriptorium

Important Artworks- Anastasis (painting, Church of the Monastery of Christ in Chora), Archangel Michael (ivory diptych), Rebecca at the Well, Virgin of Vladimir, Harbaville Triptych, David the Psalmist

Homework- It is recommended that you read Chapter 8 (Islamic Art) in Book 2 to familiarize yourselves with the material.

Those who have not yet been assigned a particular art history period for the Independent Research assignment should talk to me in class on Friday to get one, as well as a copy of the assignment itself.

For next class- Bring Book 2 (Medieval Art) and a notebook. We will continue our study of Islamic art.

3/19/10 Art History I

Today's Class- At the start of class I distributed and reviewed an extra credit assignment. The assignment must be completed by May 7th to receive the credit. Those who were not in class today may request a copy in class next week. After that we continued our study of early Christian and Byzantine art, covering late Roman and early and middle Byzantine architecture.

Important terms- pendentive, squinch, exedrae, naos, iconostasis, spandrel, tondo

Important artworks- Church of Hagia Sophia, Emperor Justinian/Empress Theodora mosaics, The Transfiguration of Christ with Sant'Apollinare (apse mosaic), Cathedral of Saint Mark

Homework- Your next current events art article is due next Tuesday 3/23/10. It is recommended that you read Chapter 8 (Islamic Art) to familiarize yourself with the material.

For next class 3/23/10- We will finish our study of Byzantine art and architecture and begin looking at Islamic Art. In addition, I'll be distributing the independent research assignment.

2D Design Woodcut Project

Today's Class- Tonight we started a new graded project, composing in black and white using the medium of the woodcut print. We started with a slide review of the history and diversity of printmaking, from the Renaissance to contemporary prints. I also showed some examples of student woodcuts from previous semesters. After that I distributed wood and let the students start working on designs. Later in the class I gave a demonstration of effective and safe procedures for cutting wood.

How to make this up- You can't complete the project until you get a piece of wood. I'll have blocks available next week for students who missed tonight. Meanwhile, you can work out your design on paper. The format is 8"x6" (can be vertical or horizontal). The assignment is to create a black and white illustration for a literary work. It may be fiction or non-fiction, novel, short story, poem, etc. It can not be a children's book, comic book, or anything already well illustrated- I want you to come up with your own images. The illustration you create can be a specific scene from your book, a composite scene with various aspects of the book, or some image that sums up the whole book. The image must be representational, but need not be realistic to be effective.

Successful prints will communicate the idea and have an interesting mix of black and white shapes. Above and below are student examples from previous semesters.

3/16/10 Art History I

Today's class- Today I retuned the graded midterm exams and reviewed the correct answers with the class. Then we began our look at Jewish and early Christian art. This included a discussion of the end of the western Roman Empire and the political structures that followed. Three major world religions have their roots in the Mediterranean/Middle East region, and Jewish and Christian art and architecture of the era shows the influences of different aspects of the former Roman Empire.

Important terms- catacomb, necropolis, menorah, lunette, centrally planned building, basilica, narthex, nave, aisle, ambulatory, apse, clerestory, transept

Important works- Menorahs and Ark of the Covenant (wall painting), Wall with Torah Niche, Old St Peter's Basilica, Church of Santa Costanza, Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

Homework- It is recommended that you read Chapter 7 to familiarize yourself with the material. The next article for your current events journal is due Tuesday, March 23rd.

For next class 3/19/10- We will continue our study of Early Christian art. Bring Book 2 (Medieval Art) and a notebook.

3/12/10 Art History I

Today's class- Today I gave the first midterm exam of the semester. Current events journals that had been turned in last class were returned to the students.

Homework- Students should have a new current events article for their journal for Tuesday, March 16th. Remember, you should provide both a written summary and your reactions to the article, such as what you thought of the artist/artwork/exhibition/event/etc, any ideas it inspired in you, and any particularly positive or negative response you had. Those who still haven't turned in their journals should do so next class to get some partial credit.

It is suggested that students start reading chapter 7, in Book 2, to familiarize themselves with the material.

For next class 3/16/10- Bring Book 2 (Medieval Art) and a notebook. We will be starting our study of Jewish, early Christian, and Byzantine art. The exam will be returned graded and we will briefly review it.

2D Design Value Drawing Assignment

Today's class- Tonight we returned to the concept of value- using light and dark to imply form and space, to emphasize elements in the composition, and to depict local color. We looked at slides from ancient art through the present, seeing how artists used value in each. We also saw slides of student value drawing as examples. Then I set up a still life and had students draw it using charcoal or conte crayon. Toward the end of the evening I returned last week's graded line drawings.

How to make this up- Place a box on a table and drape with a white or light colored sheet. Arrange 4 solidly colored objects on and around the box (either 4 white or light colored objects, or 3 white or light colored objects and 1 darker object). Light the set-up with a directional light to create strong light and shadow patterns. Draw from the still life using charcoal or black conte crayon, trying to match values of the objects and drapery in your set-up. Also pay attention to shapes of individual objects, and relative size and spacing of the objects. Student examples from previous semesters are seen above and below. This is a portfolio exercise and should be made up before the end of the semester.

3/9/10 Art History I

Today's Class- Today we finished a few last examples of Ancient Roman sculpture and monuments, and looked at a few examples of 2D Roman art (wall paintings and mosaics). As a side item of interest, I showed a short dvd about the creation process of a contemporary mural in Belmar. The second half of class was devoted to review for the first midterm exam, which will be this coming Friday, March 12th. I also collected the first 6 weeks of journals (current arts articles) from all those who brought them in.

Important terms- mosaic, tesserae, buon fresco, fresco secco

Important artworks- Arch of Constantine

Homework- The next current arts article for your journal is due next Tuesday, 3/16/10. Those who did not have the journals to turn in today should bring it to class on Friday. Study for the midterm on Friday.

For next class 3/12/10- I will be giving the first midterm of the semester, covering all of Book 1 (Ancient Art), chapters 1 to 6. Bring something to write with.

3/5/10 Art History I

Today's Class- Today we continued our study of the Roman Empire. We backtracked briefly to look again at the Colosseum and the Pantheon, but also looked at other typical Roman structures, such as baths and basilicas. We then moved on to Roman sculpture and monuments. With the former, we saw the evolution of figure sculpture from absolute realism to abstracted symbolism.

Important terms- barrel vault, groin vault, basilica, memory image, rotunda, tetrarchy

Important artworks- Augustus Primaporta, Middle Aged Flavian Woman, Column of Trajan, Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, Carcalla, Tetrarchs, Head of Constantine, Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine

Homework- You should have a new current art events article with your journal reaction to it for class on Tuesday, 3/9/10. Have all your journal articles that day as I am collecting all of them to review. You should have 6 articles by then.

If you have not done so already, I suggest you read chapter 6, particularly about two dimensional work such as paintings and mosaics.

For next class 3/9/10 We will finish our study of the art of the Roman empire and then have a review session in anticipation of our midterm exam on March 12th. Bring Book 1 (Ancient Art) and a notebook.

2D Design- Line Drawing Final

How to make this up- I set up a plant hanging in a wooden tripod as seen below. Students were asked to draw it on their 18"x24" paper at 100% scale (if a leaf is 3 inches long on the plant, it should be 3 inches long on the drawing). The drawings are done in pencil (your choice of hardness) using line only. Contour line alone is fine, although you may add cross contour if you want. Above and below are a few examples of completed student drawings.

To make this up, find a large houseplant. (can be artificial or living) If you don't have a handy tripod, you can sit it on a kitchen or desk chair (as in the example below). Draw the plant at 100% scale, including parts of the chair or plant stand.

3/2/10 Art History I

Today's Class- Today we looked at ancient art on the Italian peninsula. We began with the Etruscans, who dominated north central Italy from the 7th through the 4th centuries BC. We saw examples of their elaborate tombs and skilled sculptures. We then moved on to the Ancient Romans, who supplanted the Etruscans and eventually extended their empire across most of Europe and North Africa, as well as a big chunk of the Middle East. We discussed their architecture through the 1st century AD, including the important innovations of rounded arches and concrete.

Important Terms- rounded arch, voussiors, keystone, arcade, Tuscan order (columns), stucco, aqueduct, concrete, colonnade, coffer, amphitheater, pilaster,dome.
Important Works- Etruscan tombs, Apollo (6-5), Sarcophagus from Cerveteri, Pont Du Gard, Colosseum, Pantheon.

Homework- All students should have a new current arts related article for their journal for next Tuesday, 3/9/10. On that day I will be collecting all the journals to grade. At that point you should have 6 articles and your write-ups about them.

It is recommended that you read Chapter 6 if you have not done so already, to familiarize yourself with the material.

1st Exam- The first exam of the semester is now scheduled for Friday, March 12th. We will have a review session on the Tuesday before it.

For next class 3/5/10- Bring Book 1 (Ancient Art) and a notebook. We will continue our study of Ancient Roman art, first with more architecture, and then sculpture.

Spring 2010

This blog will be serving both classes that I am teaching this semester. The title of each post will carry the date and the name of the class. To make it easier to scan through the list of postings, the text color will be different for each class. For my Art History I class, I will do the postings using red text. For my 2D Design class I will do the postings using blue text. I will use black text for any information that concerns both classes.