Cooperation and Competition

Lesson 22: Tradition as Innovation: Apartheid’s Funeral, South Africa

Summary and Objectives

Students explore the history of apartheid in South Africa and discover the important role of artists and the arts in the struggle for freedom and human rights for all. They will deconstruct the funeral of apartheid, as imagined by the artist, and their writing activities will focus on composing a news report of the event. Other curricular suggestions include a study of other art forms that brought attention to the injustices of apartheid, most notably South African music of resistance and anti-apartheid posters. Art and music making follow their study. Finally students have the opportunity to research world peace leaders and the impact their actions have had on global peace efforts. Students will

  • Become “news reporters” and observe and discuss Apartheid’s Funeral and the consequences of change for different people.
  • Be introduced to poster art from all over the world calling attention to the struggle against apartheid. They will create posters to address issues of concern in their own lives, inspired by anti-apartheid posters they study.
  • Respond to multi-media arts addressing apartheid through discussion or creative writing activities.
  • Discuss the role art can play in activism and relate their work of art to current global issues.

 

THIS LESSON IS PART OF:
Curriculum Resource for Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives.
Unit 4: Art and Transformation

Lesson 18: Harnessing Spirits: The Hornbill: Bird of Prophecy, Malaysia

Summary and Objectives

Study of a hornbill mask from Borneo introduces students to the natural history of the bird and to cultural practices related to it. Students’ study leads to visual and performing arts activities and to their understanding of and respect for omens and other beliefs that are centered on observations of the natural world. Students will

  • Explore the natural history and the symbolism of the hornbill in Borneo through research and artmaking activities.
  • Engage in performing arts activities centered on an understanding of indigenous beliefs concerning the hornbill.
  • Contextualize their study of the hornbill in other learning activities related to the study of the art and ritual of rice in Asia.  

 

THIS LESSON IS PART OF:
Curriculum Resource for Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives.
Unit 3: Art and Power

Lesson 17: Harnessing Spirits: Pacific Northwest Arts, United States and Canada

Summary and Objectives

A study of selected works of art from the Pacific Northwest will introduce students to the symbolism, materials, and uses of masks, and serve as inspiration for artmaking. Another activity focuses on students’ discussion of the potlatch with its distribution of gifts. Students will

  • Explore the uses and visual forms of masks in the Pacific Northwest (United States and Canada) through visual analyses and artmaking activities.
  • Analyze the potlatch as a means of exchanging wealth and expressing status through discussion and oral language activities.
  • Express their interpretation of the concept of transformation through the making of masks.  

 

THIS LESSON IS PART OF:
Curriculum Resource for Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives.
Unit 3: Art and Power

Lesson 11: Performing Knowledge: Education as Entertainment: Asian Puppetry, Burma

Summary and Objectives

Students explore Burmese puppetry and as they do so they will make puppets and create and perform puppet plays. Their studies extend to Burmese poetry traditions and to Jataka Tales, around which much of the puppet theater in Burma is based. Students will

  • Experiment with the art of puppetry as they write scripts, create puppets, and perform plays of their own making.
  • Extend their exploration of Burmese arts by creating poetry in the style of Burmese climbing rhymes.
  • Analyze the literary structure of Jataka tales, retell selected tales, and create stories inspired by the tradition.

 

THIS LESSON IS PART OF:
Curriculum Resource for Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives.
Unit 2: Art and Knowledge

Lesson 8: Memory and Cosmology: Cacao and a Ballplayer: Maya Ceramic Vessel, Mexico

Summary and Objectives

As students explore the iconography of a Maya chocolate vessel they explore topics of hieroglyphics, the ancient ball game, and culinary arts. Other curriculum connections include a focus on the Maya epic, Popul Vuh, in which are told stories of the Hero twins, and contemporary sociological challenges for Maya today. Activities involve research, visual analysis, artmaking, creative writing, and cooking. Students will

  • Explore the iconography on a Maya chocolate vessel through drawing activities and compare these with logographs in our writing system.
  • Explore topics of hieroglyphics, the ancient ball game, and culinary arts of the Maya through a variety of activities.
  • Develop a deeper understanding of Maya civilization through a study of the stories in the Maya epic Popul Vuh.
  • Consider and respond to issues and concerns facing the modern Maya today as they assimilate into new homes, far removed from their highland origins.

    

THIS LESSON IS PART OF:
Curriculum Resource for Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives.
Unit 2: Art and Knowledge