Term One Week Five

Yes folks, it's Sunday night and time to write the blog for the coming week.

I'm excited to say we've collected some more followers along the way and can now view the blog at school too! Thanks Mrs Troath :-)

Hope you all enjoyed the Teacher Only Day on Friday and therefore a longer weekend; can you believe we're half way through the first term already ?

"Surely it must be time to make a start on an Achievement Standard", I hear you say.

Indeed it is and we'll get cracking with this in your first lesson this week.Hip hip hoorraaaay!!!!

Examine Media and Process, for 3 credits, is our first internal challenge this year.

Final submission date is: Week 9 - 30.03.10. In class we will make weekly deadline dates to complete and check each task, so that it's not so daunting.

We will be using some of what we have already learned and researching three Renaissance works to demonstrate how the materials and techniques the artist used, determined partly what the art looked like when they had finished. Big brush = big picture (duh).

Don't forget to use the links in Week 2 for Tempera and Oil painting and Week 3 for the History of Colour. In class we'll be watching a DVD about how frescos were painted, but here's two great links also.

By this Friday you will have chosen the 3 pictures you want to study and then you're good to go.

As far as the rest of this week's lessons are concerned, here goes.............

• Completion of the history of Perspective. Make sure you've watched last week's links because there's a Q&A homework on this.
• Applying Perspective to Masaccio's work The Holy Trinity
• Masaccio the master of storytelling in The Brancacci Chapel
• The role of Narrative Painting, specifically Masaccio's epic Tribute Money
  

So as you can see, busy, busy, busy. If you missed a key element last week (ahem, Brooke & Tamara), let me know and we'll get it fixed so you don't fall behind. Enjoy.

Term One, Week Four

Well, it's Sunday evening and it's time to write up the blog for the week.

Hello to our new followers, have you tried commenting on the lesson content yet?

Did you understand everything we covered in class last week? Let me know - Ms Rogers and I are happy to help if you're finding something in our classes puzzling.

Thank you to everyone for remembering my birthday and a special mention to Charlotte and Rebekah for sharing their chocolate with me :-)

Andrea, hope you had a good time at the Lakes, but still got your homework done !

I'm afraid it's another disrupted week with athletic finals ( go George!), a special assembly on Tuesday and Teacher Only day on Friday. Keep calm and we'll still be on top.

One final piece of "Housekeeping", we are still no further with handouts becoming available on the Student Server, so see your teacher if you've missed a handout, or the dog ate it :-(

OK, here's what we're covering in the 3 lessons this week ( roll on the drums please........)

Recap on the factors that contributed to the birth of The Renaissance

Giotto ( 1267 - 1337) and why he rocks - looking at his contribution to European painting

Who was Ptolemy? How do I pronounce his name & why does his map look so funny?

The background to Linear Perspective, (can we remember everything we learnt in Yr10 Graphics?), and it's impact on the Renaissance. It changed the way we viewed our world - maths is sexy - Big Ups Mrs Weissing !

Masaccio and The Holy Trinity at Santa Maria Novella and how his friendship with Brunelleschi is pivotal to the development of perspective.

The problems the Medici's were up against when they decided they should turn the city of Florence into anything as stunning as the original Rome of the Roman Empire. All that Classical learning and architectural knowledge was lost - how could they get it back? Toscanelli meets Brunelleschi and the rest is history. Painting The Baptistry - how it was done. The science of perspective demonstrated in painting.

If we have time: Introduction to the Brancacci Chapel. The most exciting visual experience in Italy, until blooming Michelangelo goes and paints the Sistine Ceiling.

Term One, Week Three - 15.02.10-19.02.10

A very exciting week, what with Valentine's Day yesterday and my birthday this Friday,(21 again), NZ Post are busy, busy, busy. Should you be thinking of a present - chocolate is ALWAYS a winner!

Big shout out to Silvia and Llewellyn who have become followers of the blog.

Where are the rest of the class I wonder?

Anyway, back to work. Again, there are some disruptions to lessons with all this blooming physical stuff. We're up against athletics: field and track events, plus Peer Mediation Training so we're covering only a couple of topics this week:

• Completing Media, Process & Techniques ( check back to week 2 for hyper links). Also check out this site about the history of colour.
  
• Checking our biblical knowledge - who's who in the Old and New Testament and how to spot them in a work of Art, (or in Hello! magazine)
• Background to the topic - where on a map is Italy? Why should we care about Constantinople and which supermarket aisle will I find it in?
• Early Renaissance embarking on a journey towards understanding the context of this period. I've called this topic: Disease, Misery, Politics, the Church, Religion & War. Not exactly a bundle of laughs, but at least the Art will be the light at the end of this very grim tunnel.

On a Housekeeping note, there have been a couple of minor changes to the 2010 Academic Planner. Internal Achievement Standard 3.4 begins Term 2 Week 1 and is due 10.05.10. Please make sure you have amended your planner accordingly. Have a great week.

Term One, Week Two - 08.02.10-12.02.10

This week we are continuing with the Introduction Module, with the theme, Devices Used in Art.

We will cover:

Useful Words ( an ongoing homework for the week) - there are 36 to familiarize yourself with!

Iconography

How Do Artists Use Light?

How Do Artists Use Space, Depth and Composition?

Media, Process and Techniques - 15thC and 19thC onwards:

Oil Painting

Tempera Painting

Tempera Methods

Marble Sculpture

Term One, Week One - 03.02.10-05.02.10

This week is the beginning of an Introduction Module - Introduction to the Subject, in which we cover :

Course Structure & Housekeeping

What is Art History? Why is it similar to CSI?

What is Art?

Which kind of learner am I?

Kia Ora Whanau - How to use this blog

The theme of each Art History lesson, any homework, all reading/research required, plus your internal achievement standard work, will be listed on this blog.

A highlighted title or theme of a lesson indicates that we referred to a website or particular topic which has related web based information. Click on the highlighted words to check out the link.

The themes and topics covered will appear as a blog post on the weekend before each weeks lessons -a kind of WHTBD ( what has to be done) list.

The intention of this is that you can be prepared in advance, particularly if there is a special presentation or a new topic. Should you miss a class, you can catch up any notes/ images/web sites we covered in that lesson. No worries.

Each lesson has a work sheet to accompany it. Eventually, these will be available on the DHS Student Server, under Shared Materials. ( This may take some time to happen, meantime see your teacher for handouts).

Each worksheet, and topic, will be listed as a blog post and will be labeled according to the date and order it is delivered in class.

Any other problems, let me know, either at school or via email on:

cgray@darghigh.schoolzone.net.nz