my last project last year was for students to consider the phrase "Earth without ART is just "Eh"! had some neat concepts come out but almost everyone forgot to take pictures!!! Never AGAIN. Thank You Marqueese, you will be putting yours up on the Art Room Door this year.

Welcome to a Brand New Year

August 16, 2012

Dear Parents and Students Herein is the Syllabus for High School Art (Visual Arts)

Discovering Who We Are

The arts have been part of us from the very beginning. Since nomadic peoples first sang and danced for their ancestors, since hunters first painted their quarry on the walls of caves, since parents first acted out the stories of heroes for their children, the arts have described, defined, and deepened human experience. All peoples, everywhere, have an abiding need for meaning—to connect time and space, experience and event, body and spirit, intellect and emotion. People create art to make these connections, to express the otherwise inexpressible. A society and a people without the arts are unimaginable, as breath- ing would be without air. Such a society and people could not long survive.

The arts are one of humanity’s deepest rivers of continuity. They connect each new generation to those who have gone before, equipping the newcomers in their own pursuit of the abiding questions: Who am I? What must I do? Where am I going? At the same time, the arts are often an impetus for change, challenging old perspectives from fresh angles of vision, or offering original interpretations of familiar ideas. The arts disciplines provide their own ways of thinking, habits of mind as rich and different from each other as botany is different from philosophy. At another level, the arts are society’s gift to itself, linking hope to memory, inspiring courage, enriching our celebrations, and making our tragedies bearable. The arts are also a unique source of enjoyment and delight, providing the “Aha!” of discovery when we see ourselves in a new way, grasp a deeper insight, or find our imaginations refreshed. The arts have been a preoccupation of every generation precisely because they bring us face to face with ourselves, and with what we sense lies beyond ourselves.

The arts are deeply embedded in our daily life, often so deeply or subtly that we are unaware of their presence. The office manager who has never studied painting, nor visited an art museum, may nevertheless select a living-room picture with great care. The mother who never performed in a choir still sings her infant to sleep. The teenager who is a stranger to drama is moved by a Saturday night film. A couple who would never think of taking in a ballet are nonetheless avid square dancers. The arts are every- where in our lives, adding depth and dimension to the environment we live in, shaping our experience daily. The arts are a powerful economic force as well, from fashion, to the creativity and design that go into every manufactured product, to architecture, to the performance and entertainment arts that have grown into multibillion dollar industries. We could not live without the arts—nor would we want to.

For all these reasons and a thousand more, the arts have been an inseparable part of the human journey; indeed, we depend on the arts to carry us toward the fullness of our humanity. We value them for themselves, and because we do, we believe knowing and practicing them is fundamental to the healthy development of our children’s minds and spirits. That is why, in any civilization—ours included—the arts are inseparable from the very meaning of the term “education.” We know from long experience that no one can claim to be truly educated who lacks basic knowledge and skills in the arts.

If our civilization is to continue to be both dynamic and nurturing, its success will ultimately depend on how well we develop the capacities of our children, not only to earn a living in a vastly complex world, but to live a life rich in meaning. Standards identify what our children must know and be able to do. Thus, the vision embedded in the Art  Standards my classes are built around insists that a mere nodding acquaintance with the arts is not enough to sustain our children’s interest or involvement in them. The Standards must usher each new generation onto the pathway of engagement, which opens in turn onto a lifetime of learning and growth through the arts. It is along this pathway that our children will find their personal directions and make their singular contributions. It is along this pathway, as well, that they will discover who they are, and even more, who they can become.

Classroom Requirements

All classes cost money to operate, especially ART. almost everything we make is a consumable the district charges $10.00 per semester for Art classes to help provide materials, since crafts cost more the fee for Craft Class is $15.00 per semester, this money is what buys the paper, pencils and paints and materials that are used in the classes so there is no class list of things for you to buy - you already have!

Classroom Rules

I am looking forward to teaching Art again in the coming year. In order to guarantee your child and all the students in my classes the best learning environment. No disruptive behavior wii be tolerated, remember Respect is the desired attitude Students will

• Respect each other, by following the class and school rules, and by allowing each other to learn in a positive environment;

• Respect the school and its property;
• Respect the equipment and tools and follow all safety rules;
• Respect the teachers and administration.

Because art classes utilize certain products or use equipment that could be dangerous it is important for students to follow the classroom rules. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action.

Be on time be ready to work and stay on task

You make a mess clean it up

What goes into your grade:

•All art classes will include the creation of a sketchbook and portfolio to store 2-D work in

•exams & quizzes will be 5% of the grade

•Attendance is 25% of the grade;

•Sketchbooks are 20% of the grade

•Projects will be 50% of the grade

•all students will compete a semester project which will help me determine differences between A-, or A, or A+ (for example

Grading will be based on the following scale:

90-100=A [advanced]

80-89=B [Proficient]

70-79=C[ Nearing proficiency]

60-69=D [Novice]

0-59=failing

Sincerely yours,

Bruce Morrison

Welcome To Art

Question: What Is Art?

Answer:  I could tell you that art plays a large part in making our lives infinitely richer. Imagine, just for a minute, a world without art! (You may think "So what?", but please consider the impact that lack of graphics would have on your favorite computer game.) Art stimulates different parts of our brains to make us laugh cry, or incite us to riot, with a whole gamut of emotions in between. Art gives us a way to be creative and express ourselves. For some people, art is the entire reason they get out of bed in the morning. You could say "Art is something that makes us more thoughtful and well-rounded humans."

On the other hand, art is such a large part of our everyday lives, we hardly even stop to think about it. Look at the desk or table where you are, right this minute. Someone designed that. It is art. Your shoes are art. Your coffee cup is art. All functional design, well done, is art. So, you could say "Art is something that is both functional and (hopefully) aesthetically pleasing to our eyes."

You might say "Art is in a constant state of change, so nobody can really pin down what it is." The 'constant change' part is true, but the 'not pinning it down' part is going to get you a bad reception. It may even raise a comment or two about your being some sort of wisenheimer. Don't go this route.

You might even say "Art is subjective, and means something different to every single person on earth." This, too, is the truth. I would caution against this approach, however, as it would require a stack of paper from here to the moon to cite all of your 6.3 billion references.

Now, everything just stated has elements of truth, but is largely based on opinion. My opinion is, frankly, useless in your art endeavor. Form your own opinions (that should be the reason you are receiving an education, after all), and be sure to sprinkle them in your answer...which needs a factual basis, so here are the cold hard facts:

Art is form and content.

"Art is form and content" means: All art consists of these two things.

Form means (1) the elements of art, (2) the principles of design and (3) the actual, physical materials that the artist has used. Form, in this context, is concrete and fairly easily described - no matter which piece of art is under scrutiny.

Suppose you've written: "One half of all art is form. Here is how Goya's The Shootings of May Third, 1808 fits in." You would then go on to provide details about how Goya used color, value, space and line (elements of art). He used balance, contrast, emphasis and proportion (principles of design). He composed the aforementioned elements and principles on canvas, using brushes and oil paints (the physical part of "form").

The example just given employed a work of Western art, and was written in English. It doesn't take much of a leap in imagination, though, to understand that the concepts behind "form" could be applied to any piece of art, created anywhere on earth, at any time, using any language. With that, we have successfully covered "form".

Content, now, gets a little more tricky. "Content" is idea-based and means (1) what the artist meant to portray, (2) what the artist actually did portray and (3) how we react, as individuals, to both the intended and actual messages.

Additionally, "content" includes ways in which a work was influenced - by religion, or politics, or society in general, or even the artist's use of hallucinogenic substances - at the time it was created. All of these factors, together, make up the "content" side of art.

Returning to the Goya example, you might comment on the fact that the shootings were an actual event. Napoleon had invaded Spain, at the time, and subjected it to six years of war and revolution (political and social influences). There had been a revolt by citizens of Madrid, and they were summarily executed (historical context). Goya, obviously, didn't think this was good and recorded the stark horror for all posterity. (He was successful at conveying that which he meant to convey.) We react to the painting in our different ways - usually with mixed feeling of revulsion, anger and sorrow.

Again, we are discussing "content" using one picture as an example, but the same parameters apply to any piece of art.

That's my best reply, then. The first four paragraphs are applicable - with infinite variations, up to, and including, "The way my girlfriend puts on her eyeshadow is art." Just be sure that your main argument includes "Art is form and content". You can certainly think of some great examples using works of art that you know and/or enjoy. Now - go get cracking on that art and, next time, don't wait until the last minute.

My switch to high school from 4th thru 6th grades after ten years takes me back to where I started over thirty years ago ... a full circle!  Form and Content stay the same but vocabulary gets kicked up a notch (or two).

 School starts August 20th  See you there Wolves!