Art criticism is an essential part of art education. Too often, teachers think it’s like pulling teeth to get students to talk about art, and students think this means that others will say bad things about their art. Somewhere in between, it gets put on the back burner. The purpose of art criticism is to get students to look at their own art and that of other people, students and professionals, analytically. Through speaking and writing, students identify basic elements in a work of art, and enhance their observation skills.
Here are a few suggestions for fun ways students can talk about ART…
“Art Detective” For younger students, turn it into a game. Tell them to imagine that they are detectives looking for clues inside a painting. First, introduce and discuss the basic elements of art. Then present students with a detective badge (print/write names on large mailing labels) and a magnifying glass (you can pick up a bunch at the dollar store). Students will love it. Here’s an idea….put a spin on it by creating detective hats. Oh, the extremes we go through to get students to critique art!
“Fan mail letters” Art teacher Emily Stewart came up with this great idea for getting students to talk about their art through writing. It began when students in grades 3-5 wrote fan mail letters to contemporary artists. It was so fun for them that she decided to have the entire school write fan mail to each other. Whenever an exhibition of student work went up, she took some time with her classes to tour the exhibition and to write fan mail to artists whose work they liked. Students needed to explain WHAT they liked, WHY it appealed to them, and to ask the artist at least one further question. The teacher monitored who they chose because she did not want students to write to others in the same class, and wanted to assure everyone received at least one letter when it came time to pass them out in class. Although some students received more than one letter, she also had backup teachers to provide letters to students whose work got overlooked. Like Emily, this year I plan to “set up mailboxes next to each exhibition with paper and pencil so lots of people in passing” can “write a note and place it in the mailbox.”
“2 stars and a wish” This activity is a good motivator for students to critique their own artwork and that of their peers. Hang up artwork in hallway (or simply let students walk around classroom and look at each others work). After a museum tour, “students head back to the classroom to fill out a sheet called ‘2 stars and a wish.’ On this sheet students are asked to write down 2 things they liked about their artwork. It can be about technique, how they thought they worked on this project. In general, two things they thought they did well about their project. Then for the wish, they are asked to write down one thing they wished they did differently in their artwork. It could be simply that they wished they worked slower, or they wished they added more color, etc.” Credit goes out to art teacher Nick Camia for this activity.
How do you incorporate ART CRITICISM into your art program?