Introduction Postmodern art is the most challenging of all art movements. It requires careful observation and study as well as knowledge of preceding art movements and world history, as well as social interactions and an understanding of the “art world”. Too often, students are not given a sufficient introduction to the realm of postmodern art and its intricacies; thus, they become bored and lose interest with one of the most fascinating and thought-provoking movements in history. This lesson will provide a brief introduction to decoding and understanding postmodern art, equipping students with the tools needed to become experiencers, and not just observers, of postmodern art.
Subjects Art History, Art Criticism, Art Theory, Studio	Students will engage in: þHands-on activities þ Independent Activities þ Group Discussion
Topic Postmodernism and its effect on art and the world
Guiding Questions 1. What is postmodernism? 2.How do postmodern artists “see” the world? 3. What are the primary concerns of postmodern artists? 4. Have postmodern ideas seeped into other disciplines (sciences, medicine, etc.)
Big Ideas in Art Artist concerns and interests; reasons for making Postmodern art; how Postmodern art is different from Modern art
Lesson length 45-50 minutes, one class period
Objectives The State of Ohio Art academic standards (link) 1.Students will observe a selected work of Postmodern art and explain how the artists’ choices affect the image or meaning (Standard: analyzing and responding; Benchmark 1) 2. Students will explain how sociopolitical and cultural factors influenced artists’ work (Standard: Historical, social, cultural contexts; Benchmark 3) 3.Students will consider how contemporary works of art will contribute to the future of art (Standard: Historical, social, cultural contexts Benchmark1)
Pre- Class Procedures 1. Teacher will create, print, and copy a handout for the students, which will guide their thinking about a work of art.2. Teacher will select a variety of postmodern art images and reproductions, a minimum of one per student. These reproductions will be arranged or piled randomly on a table in the art room.		Materials (consumables) ¨ Worksheets
In-Class Procedures 1. Teacher will greet class, take care of “housekeeping” needs and introduce the lesson. 2. Teacher will explain procedures for the lesson to the class. 3. Teacher will analyze one to three works of postmodern art with the class to help them understand how to analyze art. 4. Teacher will allow class to come to table and take one handout and select one work of postmodern art to analyze. 5. Students will use their handout as a guide to analyzing their work and think deeply about it. 6. After 25 minutes of student work, teacher will re-assemble the class and each student will talk briefly about their work they have selected. Teacher will ask questions about each student work and talk with both the student and the class. 7.Students will return reproductions to the table and turn in handouts to be looked at and graded.8. Teacher will dismiss the class.
1.Gain attention: Describe Question: How many students have been to a museum? Think postmodern art, or any art, is difficult to understand? Postmodern art is actually a lot like a secret code. The secret code has to be decoded to understand the message- today we will learn that the secret code is very easy to understand once you know how.
2. State objective: Describe We will be looking at multiple images of postmodern art to try and determine just what is postmodernism and how we can understand it. We will also learn some basics of talking about and criticizing art.
3. Stimulate recall of former learning: Describe Does anyone know what the difference between modern and postmodern art is? Can anyone name any Modern artists? Postmodern artists? What are some things that Postmodern artists are concerned with? Has anyone ever visited a museum and seen a work of postmodern art?		Tools ¨ Pens ¨ Pencils ¨ Erasers
4. Present new material: Describe Postmodern (PoMo) art is a movement that is interested, in a nutshell, with people. Artists work in many different ways, yet all PoMo artists seek to explore interactions, relationships, thoughts, feelings, ideas and history of people. PoMo art can be tricky to try and understand, but with a little effort, we can all understand how to look at art and understand, at the very least, the basics of what the artist is trying to say. Let’s look at a few works together. (Teacher presents aids, asks relevant questions and talks about ways to understand the artist’s concept.)Now, work on the worksheet by yourself or with a partner tosee what you can find out. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me.
5. Provide learning guidance: Describe If any students have questions or seem to be missing the point or not understanding the assignment, then the instructor can provide personal assistance ( without giving away any information) or show the students some similar works by other artists or the same artist to help the child learn.
6. Elicit performance: Describe Students will be asked questions at the end of the class period (about ten minutes remaining) to see what they have been able to discern from the work of art they have selected from the table. They will show the class their work and then talk briefly about what they could find in the piece.		Other Resources ¨ Visual Aids of postmodern work (one per student)
7.Provide feedback: Describe The instructor will talk with students as they work and observe interactions to see if any students need additional assistance. Also, during the discussion, the student will talk with students to let them know if they are on the right track in their analyzation of the piece.
8. Assess performance: Describe Students will be assessed by a grade given to their worksheet which also takes into consideration their group work and their description of the piece given to the class.
9.Enhance retention transfer: Describe To enhance retention, the teacher will ask the students via the worksheet to think critically and individually about works of art. By being allowed to work in pairs, the students will see perspectives they may previously not have thought of. By talking to the class, the students will re-evaluate their statements and maybe see other possibilities in analyzation of the piece.
Evaluation 1. In-class discussion. 2. Worksheet completion. 3.Pair activity. 4. Artwork presentation.
Click Here to link to the Pathfinder for this lesson
Notes: knock knock forms
Variations Have students create a piece of postmodern art based on the info they have gleaned from the piece they have analyzed
Connections to other disciplines Social studies, language arts, history