Recreating Artwork: Accept the Challenge!

by Elizabeth Van Allen for scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com 
project by Danette Albino-Rodriguez, edited by Elizabeth T. Van Allen

Subject: 3D art, e-learning, Art Criticism
Level: All Ages

Recreating Artwork: 

Accept the Challenge!

Two museums across the globe from each other have issued a challenge to the world: to re-create your favorite art using objects lying around your home. The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam (the Netherlands) to the Getty in Los Angeles (USA), have both taken to social media to engage their friends and followers in this fun activity.  We are among the many who are going to rise to the challenge as this week we recreate some amazing artworks!

Our Objectives: 

1. To use your art criticism skills by describing, analyzing, and interpreting an artwork.

2. To recreate an artwork by using objects found in your home, yourself, your family or pets, or whatever you have available.  (DO NOT RE-DRAW OR RE-PAINT THE ARTWORK)

Criteria and Steps:  

1) Decide which artwork you want to recreate.  You can choose an artwork from the suggested list or you can choose your own.  I

have provided a list of suggested artworks in EDSBY.  If you want to recreate an artwork that is not suggested and if you are going to look it up online, please do so with adult supervision.

2) Critique the artwork.  You will describe, analyze, and interpret the artwork you chose in a "test" on EDSBY.  It will not count as a test, we're just using that format because it allows for written answers.

3) Look for objects around the house to recreate the artwork.  You can also have "models" (yourself, family, pets, etc.). You are NOT trying to redraw or repaint an artwork.

4) Arrange your objects or model to match the artwork and take a picture.  Pose everything the same way they are posed in the original artwork.

5) Submit/Upload the picture to the assignment on EDSBY.  Please include a note with the name of the artwork, artist, year it was made, and medium (if available)

What is Art Criticism?

Art criticism is about learning to talk about art in a deeper and more meaningful way.  There are four steps to art criticism:

1. Describe- When you are describing a piece of artwork, you are listing what you see in the artwork.

2. Analyze- When you are analyzing a piece of artwork, you are identifying how the artist used the elements (line, shape, form, color, etc) and principles of art (emphasis, movement, etc.) in the artwork.

3. Interpret- When you are interpreting a piece of artwork you are figuring out the meaning or the story of the artwork.

4. Judge- Making decisions about the artwork (This painting works or doesn't work because...)

*In your assignment on EDSBY I have included two .pdf files.  One is the assignment with more examples and details, and the other is a list of suggested artworks.  DISCLAIMER: If you'd like to look for and re-create an artwork that isn't on the list, make sure you have adult supervision... not all artwork is necessarily for all ages!