And Kate Lyman: From Snarling Dogs to Bloody Sunday (pp. 119-125)
Good morning. 9.15 am. As I am posting, it is slowly raining outside--simply delightful. Also delightful, believe it or not, was the Rader reading for today--183-190--about public art. I am going to lead with that post. A few comments about yesterday's posts:
Sarah's post of her idea of creating a mural of deployed parents is very cool in my opinion. Blair posted about when is art finished? was interesting to me. When I taught elementary art in the 80s (don't laugh), I bought a four-part filmstrip series (where there is a beep to tell you to turn to next image) that was called Shoe-view of Art through History, something like that. You looked through the history of arts/mostly paintings looking at shoes that were represented. What I remember was the narrator said that in the very famous Arnolfini Wedding portrait (google it) the artist left the man's shoes unfinished--that there is evidence the artist did not know how to finish the shoes. When is something finished? Could it be that it never is and that everything is temporary? From my perspective as an old man, nothing hangs around or sticks for very long--records, music, buildings, people, rivers--everything seems to be in states of constant flux--that really goes against how I was taught about everything.
Sarah posted she was surprised at subject matter at 2/3 grade age--that's why we are reading Lyman. I was always interested in important things as a kid and teen. Adults seemed to hedge away from anything that was important to me. Lyman is an example of how to begin to bridge those important ideas of students and bring or allow them into the classroom. My WARNING is that all of your colleagues will think you are crazy and inappropriate. That is usually the first, second, third and fifty-eight response. LOL
Andrea's post got me to thinning about in the early 90s when I was a grad TA and teaching an art class for non-art majors (people who were going to be elementary classroom teachers, not art teachers). One female student had her husband assume poses that females do in magazines--like lying on his back with a leg in the air; and she photographed him. Sadly, even in my view, he looked ridiculous--and the bigger question ofr me was why did women not look ridiculous assuming those poses? That's what the Rader article is all about today, what happens when we become immune to what we see and how we see it? Do I see the misogyny? The racisims? Etc. And, it's never comfortable realizing that I participate in cultural racisms, sexisms, etc., especially when I remain silent.
Rader pp. 183-190
ReplyDeleteRoofs, Roads, and Rotundas
Does anyone not have a visual memory like on page 183? As I read I read that it also comes with its subtle and not so subtle forms of racism. As Rader noted on p. 183 that the statue not having a shirt was not random--all planned.
Rader asks about Santa Fe, are the Indian images we see homages or municipal semiotics--all about consuming myths and buying stuff?
I always wanted a cigar store Indian statue for the longest time. Never could afford one. Then in graduate school, I read texts about racisms, and histories about racisms--never in art--usually in a literary or theory course--and I start to feel shitty in terms of how I participated and participate in those racisms. Out went the idea of ever having a statue, but it was replaced with my own art/creations and other visual clutter.
There is the powerful example of the Crazy Horse Memorial and the lingering images of trading post Indian statues. Rader spells out how we all are implicated in creating and continuing these public racist images and messages. What can we do as artists, educators, curators, public citizens?
I'm wondering if one thing we could stop doing in schools is creating mythic Indian imagery out of construction papers. Whether at Thanksgiving, or creating teepee images with no cultural or historic contexts. And replace these mythic images with contemporary images and realities of Natives. Just thinking off the top of my head here.
Your reactions to these seven pages?
DeleteThe image on page 183 does look familiar, however, I am not sure where. My guess would be in front of stores from my travels. I have a faint memory of such an image. I remember road trips to Arkansa and North Carolina where I have sceen that statue of an the Indian standing tall with word Howe writen somewhere on the statue. I never associated it with racism. I considered it more of a welcoming sign from proud to be Indian places.
I recently went to Santa Fe a couple of weeks ago and discovered the square where the native Indians go to sell their crafts. Most of it was jewerly with the famous tourquise. I found it to be expensive, $ 60 for a pair of earrings. A bit prisey for me on my budget, but in the end they were selling their art. While looking through each booth, I stumbled on a sand artist. Sand painting is part of their heritage and I have always taken for granted the value of sand painting. I remember doing this in elementary school and filling up figures with the colored sand at The Texas State Fair. However, these were so amazing, very detailed and symbolic of their culture. I was so intrigued that I bought a small work which was done on a flat stone of a bear symbol. It is titled " Bear Fetish". Therefore, I am embarassed about my judgemens towards sandart and am not considering to even teach a lesson on the process as well as their culture.
CORRECTION: I am NOW interested in teaching this lesson! LOL
DeleteI am not sure if I have ever seen this statue anywhere or not, we traveled a lot as a child so I may have and not have known but it does look familiar.
DeleteBlair I too love the sand art... I remember when I was younger I think high school we traveled to Jackson Hole, Wy there was so much at there. I was fascinated with the Native American art there and spent most of my money to buy a sand art clock. I believe I still have it in storage somewhere. I will definitely be looking for it as I go through things to move at the end of August. I may have to include this into a lesson of some sort.
I am uncertain how to articulate this idea. For the Green Corn Moon--Today I met Mary Margaret Red Fox. Her Grandfather was Chief Red Fox-and part of the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show (see page Rader 189).
DeleteHe capitalized and also to a large extent preserved his "indianess". The other Native Americans I was with were excited to talk about this time.
Racism is awful and terrible and bad.
How do we help preserve culture respectfully?
Regarding the visual memory from page 183: I have a vague memory of some kind of pachinko or slot machine designed like a cigar store Indian that belonged to an ex-uncle of mine (he and my aunt split up when I was very young). I remember having a good time playing on it with my sibling in his weird, smoky rec room. The game was a novelty and its designed had to have reinforced in me the novel association many children make between Native Americans and play (cowboys and Indians, etc). I had not thought about this in years but it suddenly came to me.
DeleteThere was a very familiar sculpture in front of a bakery they called in 'Indian bakery' outside of DC, although it was just like any other donut and éclair shop. Because of the Redskin football team in DC, there are a lot of these types of statues. It is a huge stereotype for these people to see the bare chest, feathered headpiece that Rader describes.
DeleteI would really like to see the Crazy Horse memorial. I did not even know it existed
The thing that struck me about the statue was not the image or where I might have seen it, but the name on the belt. My last name is Howe, and it is a frequent joke that people make is to say my last name like they are playing Big Indian Chief. Because Howe is so close to Howell, people often get them confused, especially when you figure in the accent here in the south. So people either say, "Howe like 'How Now Brown Cow'?" or they do a slow wave (or put their hand up like the statue) and say it like an Native American greeting. Drives me nuts.
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DeleteRader Continued…
ReplyDeleteRader argues that "the main iconography of the Southwest's mythos--for better or worse--is all things Indian" (p. 186). Given the histories that we have read in both books, this seems so odd. Do I only know myths about contemporary Native people? What is your take on this?
Also, any other reactions or stories to the visual images on these pages? I'm thinking back to my idea of a Worker's Center, that celebrates the everyday lives of workers--and I'm trying to think of how workers would be portrayed in a center/museum setting? Thinking how Indians are portrayed in museum settings--never as real everyday people but as objects.. Any additional thoughts on stereotypes and images?
I liked the picture of the Indians on the beach. I thought it was a neat idea to react them, but the more I read I thought it was disrespectful. I thought it would have been better if it were people that reenacted this instead of cut outs. The more I looked at the cut outs they just looked so fake and not a good representation of Native Americans but very stereotypical. Then to read that he sells them for $10000! That's absurd! If he sales them for that much then part of that should go back to the Native Americans. I am pretty sure it did not cost that much to make them and it offends me that he deems them worthy of that amount of money just because. I would not purchase one, unless I knew that the majority of it went back to the Native Americans...
DeleteI have been thinking about this since I both read Rader and met with Red Fox. I think we have to ask. What are the parts of your culture we can be part of, participate in, see or represent. We are so used to simplified things its difficult to get richly textured in a sound bite--so how does that work when portraying a people?
DeleteIt's actually quite troubling to me--I am from a group of people who are also stereotyped--if someone is going to be a criminal or a murderer in a film--you choose an Italian. It was a reaction to this pervasive stereotype that italian actors made the movie--Big Night--its about food.
DeleteHow do we keep from homogeneity--From loosing identity?
How do we preserve what we love about each of our culture and brush the rest away?
I remember learning last fall in the Museum Science Collections Management course about an actual living man, a Native American, belonging to a museum’s collection in California sometime in the early twentieth century. In other words, this man belonged to the museum just as a piece of art or animal skeleton would. I remember reading about this in passing at the time and being shocked. I feel bad that I do not have more information on this at the moment; I am looking through my old notebooks but can’t find any details. I will ask some of my classmates about it so I can tell you all more. If you guys know about this, please elaborate.
DeleteFound it: Ishi of the Yahi people. He was the last of his people and was taken in by anthropologists at UC Berkeley in the early 20th century. It’s a very interesting case, here is the wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishi
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DeleteChapter 23 No Apologies: Asco, Performance Art, and the Chicano Civil Rights Movement
ReplyDeleteI'll mention this book again by Cheech Marin, Chicano Visions, mostly about painters, but a really good visual because I think Gronk and Patssi Valdez are in that book (they are mentioned on page 242). You can probably get a copy for .99 on Amazon though it will cost 3.99 to ship.
Throughout this chapter Lampert tells us that it takes action to change--and these artists took action. What I notice is that they didn't want to stay in historic terms but deal with contemporary social issues and iconography. I notice in schools (I supervise student teachers) that I see a lot of art that apes impressionists, Picasso, Andy Warhol, etc. (notice I didn't mention women), but rarely is there anything contemporary--contemporary artists, imagery, connections to contemporary topics. Please disagree with me, but "school art" often isn't much about real art at times, but school--in terms of what is allowed; what isn't; no nudes--which teaches us that the body is off limits--those kinds of messages and possibly missteps in terms of really educating us.
What did you think of the ideas and performances of ASCO group members? And the issues they were concerned with? Have those issues changed? IS there Chicano representation in our schools, for example? What can I take from this chapter as an arts instructor or curator or community member?
Lampert 23: No Apologies
DeleteWhile reading about Gamboa and the schools in LA, I was shocked how much violence they had in schools during those times. I am also curious what my reaction would be like seeing the Mural Walks among the streets. Would I be to in a hurry to stop and notice or slow down to observe what was happening? I am also curious about the photographs to record what was happening by Gamboa and the Super 8 films, therefore I researched more on the subject through the internet. I found a few websites that might be interesting. I also learned that he is an author of books as well such as Fallen, Azlangst: La La Fotonovela, and Urban Exile: Collected Writings. It appears he is still writing and documenting life through his photographs from his main website www.harrygamboajr.com . I would like to see one of the Super 8 films. I could not find anything on the internet. Anyone else have success?
California was a hotbed in the 70s. Race riots, violence, Indians taking over Alcatraz.
DeleteHas the representation changed 40 years later? I think the growing population is redefining itself--I think the voice has changed.
How has the voice change--maybe 45 years ago- it was one person screaming or a small group making cacophony--Dadaistic.
DeleteMaybe now -its grown into a choir.
The edgy means of making art have also changed.
Outsider art has a following--even in Museum circles
Graffiti has changed since Keith Haring.
Hispanics are now the largest minority in 4 year Universities--From less than 1% to 16.5%-- and over 25% in 2 year colleges
http://www.pewhispanic.org/2012/08/20/hispanic-student-enrollments-reach-new-highs-in-2011/
First off, I agree with your statement on little contemporary art. I took an art educator workshop at Artpace in San Antonio, which is very contemporary, and I loved the project we did.
DeleteIn my first year of teaching I showed the students a lot of abstract/contemporary sculpture, and they did a very good job applying it to their work. I hope this second upcoming year I can addd more.
I think its pretty absurd we are at fear to show the human form. We are human, why not study it and see how it is portrayed beautifully? These chapters and essays have really helped me realize how much we need to be bolder about content matter.
I think it is interesting how threated they felt by this group when they were peacefully trying to make their community better. Its pretty terrible how badly they were treated when marching for anti-war demonstrations. We do not seem much of these anymore despite being in a war overseas for so long.
DeleteI am not really sure how I see the use of 'stations of the cross' in his art walks in the beginning of the chapter. I am not seeing a real meaning behind that.
I agree that there is very little use of contemporary artists, women artists, nudity or other than white races used to show our students art. I know I am guilty of this in the past but this program is showing me otherwise. Almost half the population in my school is Hispanic. I would relate more to my students and probably get more if I used more Hispanic artists in examples.. I will definitely be adding more artists of all kinds to my lessons this year!!!
DeleteSarah, I took a workshop at Artpace in San Antonio when I was there for a museum conference. Probably the best workshop I've taken. It was very abstract and contemporary but so much fun! And I learned a lot.
DeleteI have successfully given tours to groups of kids where the exhibit contains nudes. I tell the kids before we go in that I expect them to be mature young adults and treat the art with respect. I have an occasional problem, but not often. But the teachers are always surprised at how well they behave. Kids want to be treated like equals and respected, and if you phrase it correctly you can give them some pretty "adult" content to work with. I think the same could be applied to abstract and contemporary art. It's complicated to think about and teachers underestimate whether or not their students will "get" it. It's a hard concept that sometimes what students need to "get" from a piece varies according to the individual and that it's okay if they're not all on the same page.
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DeleteKate Lyman: From Snarling Dogs to Bloody Sunday
ReplyDeleteAnother essay/testimony from her 2/3 grade classroom and curriculum. You undoubtedly noticed Lyman's concern for all of her students to participate in the civil rights unit, but notice her different concerns based on students' race--white students had different issues than Black students.
What are your thoughts and reactions to Lyman's pedagogical practices and lived classroom experiences for this unit she writes about? What lessons can we take from this? What actions can we take when thinking about lessons and curricula base don Lyman's experiences?
Right off the bat in her essay, I noticed her motivation to involve the kids oppionions and emotions. I think it is neat that she esspecially looks for cases of segregation and racism among kids to bring their age into a factor when connecting with her students. I think students connect with learning more when they realize you do not have to be so old to accomplish such things and puts things in perspective. I remember thinking, well that person is all grown up and they have had a lot more time to do those things. I remember hearing about younger celebrities with the Olympics accomplishing so much at a younger age and like what am I doing sitting around.
DeleteI love the way she teaches. She brings in multiple, different spectrums of learning to her students. I do not remember elementary school being this way for myself, but I wish I had. Especially living overseas, there are so many things we could have touched on politically with the places I lived. How much different would we see the world if we acted out scenes from our past?
DeleteI feel for the parent of Joanne, however. She wants her child to feel she is in a peaceful world where people do not judge her for how she looks. She wants to shelter her child from the harsh treatment of the past. However, growing up we still realize these things exist and when reading the accounts of the students and them telling the teacher that they would stand up for their friends and when they saw this, it puts it all into perspective how important it is for this to be taught.
The part that stuck out to me the most was how many of the students as well as the adults supported this being taught! I agree that you canst teach Civil Rights without teaching about the horrors of it too. In order to change our future for the better and give our children the knowledge to not treat people so horribly we have to share our past. I would be glad for my son to learn about this is school. The good and bad of all races, I would want him know the ugliness as well as how out of that changed occurred and how much better it is today but that there is still racism today and ways that we can improve it today! I think he already does a lot on his own, he stands up against his dad when his dad talks bad about me, he also stands up to his friends if they are treating someone poorly.. I'm very proud of him! I can only hope that more parents are willing to teach their children to treat others respectfully no matter what race!
DeleteI echo what my classmates have said--the youngest student is made to learn.
DeleteThis is such a complicated issue. I have no experience with teaching kids of this age. I feel that, before having read this article, I would have approached a civil rights unit with extreme prudence. Again, I have no experience with this age group, but I would be very wary of addressing the violence so head on anticipating negative consequences. This trepidation might stem from my own educational background (I have no memory of learning about the Civil Rights movement in 2nd grade), and might speak to my relative ignorance towards many social issues throughout elementary and high school.
DeleteAfter reading this piece, however, I see the value and effectiveness of Lyman’s curriculum and teaching style. As many of you have noted, I found it inspiring how her teaching style went beyond the classroom and engaged the parents as well as the students.
I liked that her unit wasn't confined to February. It's not like racism only happens one month of the year. I have never encountered friction from a teacher about teaching controversial topics. I discuss the Holocaust with everyone who comes through Silent Wings, even Kindergartners. I don't have contact with parents, though, and that can be another can of worms. I think teachers are relieved sometimes when I introduce the Holocaust. It's like they want their kids to learn about it but are afraid of making a parent or principal mad. If I'm the one teaching about it, however, the liability is on me, and if someone complains the teacher can blame me. I don't mind if that's what it takes to teach it.
DeleteI do wonder if and how I can get more in-depth. The last time I tried the kids in my group ended up talking about how Germans are terrible people and I don't want that either...
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DeleteOther reactions to Lyman's essay?
ReplyDeleteI was really impressed at all the different methods she used to teach. Poetry, song, writings, speakers, drama, art. It was all included. In a classroom where everyone has a different learning style she managed to include them all.
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DeletePlease don't forget to look at classmate's projects this week and leave a comment/s. Say something positive or ask serious questions is you think there are issues or concerns that need to be addressed in project. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteSide Observation: I reciently watched a video, Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry, about Ai Weiwei and thought his work and think it would fit in the topic of A Peoples Art History of the United States, except in the more Global aspect. He is a radical artist that is challenging his hometown Communist government with this work. One of his projects was to bring light about the victums from a earthquake who died from kids in poor constructioned schools to others roaming the streets. The video talks about what he could of had investiments with the government to make money, but forfit those becuase of his artwork. There was also an interview where someone asked hime why is he so fearless. " Im not fearless, more fearful. I must act to do something instead of doing nothing " . It took me a minute to understand what he meant, but I am inspired by his actions. He has a whole team of people who are volunteers or employed to help with his purpose. It is also encouraging to see an artist living today to be making activist statements with his art.
ReplyDeleteI too have seen this documentary. Ai Wei Wei is a fascinating and inspiring individual. I know there are multiple documentaries about him – is this the one where the government provides him with a huge studio/workplace only to take it back almost immediately? I love his dedication to his community and, as you said, his activist voice.
DeleteI know, it is so neat. It is on Netflix for anyone else that is interested in watching it.....
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