In-School Programs
FRACTURED FACES
Grades K-12; Two 90 minute sessions; $14 per student
Curriculum Connections: Visual Art, Social Studies
Pablo Picasso is the inspiration for this two-part adventure into the world of Cubism. Session one introduces students to Pablo Picasso and portraiture. During this session, students will complete a realistic self-portrait. In session two, students explore abstraction and Cubism, the pioneering style Picasso helped create. Students will then apply their curiosity and new skills to create a Cubist self-portrait. All the while, students are actively engaged in looking from multiple viewpoints to see beyond the obvious and express their discoveries.
WEAVING IN TUNISIA AND PERU
Grade 3; 1.5 or 2 hours; $8 per student
Curriculum Connections: Visual Art, Social Studies
This program engages students with two of the countries highlighted in the Grade 3 Social Studies curriculum. Weaving is the common thread we follow to compare and contrast the cultures of Tunisia and Peru. Students learn about the weaving traditions of each country and observe how they inspire contemporary artists. Exploring pattern and repetition as they create their own small weavings, students combine age-old techniques with contemporary sensibilities.
CONTAINS GRAPHIC CONTENT
Grades 7 - 12; Two 1.5 hour sessions; $14 per student
Curriculum Connection: Visual Art, Social Studies, Language Arts
In this two-part program, students will dive into the diverse and action-packed world of comic books and graphic novels. Comics have been an integral part of North American popular culture for over 70 years, quietly evolving into an effective tool to discuss issues of identity, censorship, politics, diversity and social change. In part one of this program, students will explore the history of the comic book and its unique ability to address present and historical concerns. Students will complete a brainstorming activity to develop a graphic or comic character relevant to their personal concerns. In part two, students will explore the choices graphic artists make to communicate their ideas; unmasking the powers of colour, line and form present in visual storytelling. Each student will begin to experiment and relate these ideas to their own character through three sketch based activities.
MONET IN MOTION
Grades K – 6; 1.5 hours; presently $8 per student
Curriculum Connections: Visual Art, Science (Grade 1: Creating Colour), Social Studies
How do we define memory? Can mood, feeling or impression be captured by paint? Claude Monet and his Impressionist contemporaries asked themselves these questions as they explored painting outdoors, or en plein aire. Some of the most beloved paintings in the world, the works of Monet were inspired by social upheaval and change, and a need to reinvent the world’s understanding of art. Students will explore light, shadow, colour, movement and memory while completing their own Impressionist sketches. This program is also an excellent basis for followup exploration in language arts and dance / movement.
LIVING LANDSCAPES: THE ART OF ALEX JANVIER
Grades 4 – 5; 2 hours; $8 per student
Curriculum Connections: Visual Art, Social Studies, First Nations
Dené painter Alex Janvier is not only one of Canada’s most cherished artists; he is a survivor of the residential school system, an environmental activist, and an eloquent advocate for the rights of First Nations peoples across Canada. Following a Power Point presentation that chronicles his earliest works through to his massive dome at the Canadian Museum of Civilization, student emulate the expressive lines, bold colour and abstract quality of Janvier’s work through a combined paper marbling and watercolour pencil art project. This program is also an excellent basis for followup exploration in journaling, language arts and dance / movement.
ALBERTA THROUGH THE LENS
Grades 4 – 8; 2 hours; $8 per student
Curriculum Connections: Visual Arts, Social Studies, Science, First Nations, Language Arts & Identity
The black and white photography of George Webber captures a province that is both dynamic and timeless. His celebrated and sensitive portraits of Alberta’s cultural communities – Hutterite, First Nations and Chinese – provide an ideal basis to discuss community, social identity, personal identity, and cultural change. In a hands-on project, students also explore the choices photographers make in portrait photography by experimenting with digital cameras, and creating photographic portraits of each other.
MY UNCLE, THE ARTIST - NEW
Starts on November 1, 2011
Grades 1 – 5: 1.5 – 2 hours; $8 per student
Curriculum Connections: Visual Arts, Science (Colour), Social Studies, Language Arts
Every kid needs a hero. And James Warhola’s childhood hero was an eccentric, silver-haired, bubble gum chewing artist known to the rest of the world as Andy Warhol who could magically transform soup cans and pop bottles into high art. Using Warhola’s storybook “Uncle Andy’s: A Faabbbulous Visit With Andy Warhol” as its basis, students will explore the inspiration, colour and form of Pop Art, Warhol’s eclectic collecting practices, and the transformative nature of Contemporary Art. The program features a story creation exercise based on objects inspired by Warhol’s infamous “Time Capsules,” and a printmaking project also based on these objects.
ANDY WARHOL’S POP SHOP
Grades 6 – 12; 2 hours; presently $10 per student
Curriculum Connections: Visual Arts, Social Studies, Language Arts, Drama, Media Literacy & Identity
Think “Andy Warhol,” and you immediately think of colourful Pop images of Marilyn Monroe and Campbell’s Soup. Beneath the surface of Pop though lay both a powerful celebration and critical indictment of mass media, celebrity, advertising and pop culture. In this presentation, Students dig beneath the surface of Warhol and his contemporaries, explore the manifestations of Pop in today’s art world, and cast themselves in their own advertisements, working from full body photographic self-portraits and using Warhol’s trace and transfer technique of the 1950s. As a follow-up program for an additional fee, the class may also interview a professional actor in role as Andy Warhol, either in person or via Skype from the Art Gallery of Calgary, as the basis for an exercise in writing for the media.
ABSTRACTION REACTION! - NEW
10 years old to adults; 1 hour; $9 per student
Developed specifically for audiences with learning disabilities
Curriculum Connections: Visual Arts, Drama, Music
The qualities of colour, line, texture and shape are the emphasis of this collective art creation project, where participants work in groups of 4 - 5 to create layered abstract works of art through taping, mark making, painting and collage onto 2’ by 4’ boards. While creating the works, participants respond to music and movement, transferring these joyous forms of expression directly into their works. Be prepared for a mess, but also for an experience of pure joy!