Capstone Research Study
Expanding High School Studio art sTUDENTS' Thinking & Practices
Follow the link below to review my blog that I have kept during my study.
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Capstone Defense: Tuesday, May 27, 2014 @ 9:30 p.m.
The following PowerPoint outlines my capstone research. For more information about my research read my personal blog (using the above link) or review the content below for specific details and steps of my study. Thank you to the Spring 2014 Drawing II students at Mount Pisgah Christian School! |
Introduction to Ideation & Brainstorming Lesson
Baselne Blog Post
Blog Post 1: (Baseline)
This initial blog post for the study will provide me a baseline of your understanding of the topic at hand. Briefly answer the following questions in a blog post:
1. Without researching the terms, please provide me a brief explanation of the meaning of ideation (brainstorming) in artmaking?
2. Do you feel you use ideation as a significant part to your artistic process? (Please provide a brief explanation).
3. In your own words, please define the word creativity or define who a creative person is.
This initial blog post for the study will provide me a baseline of your understanding of the topic at hand. Briefly answer the following questions in a blog post:
1. Without researching the terms, please provide me a brief explanation of the meaning of ideation (brainstorming) in artmaking?
2. Do you feel you use ideation as a significant part to your artistic process? (Please provide a brief explanation).
3. In your own words, please define the word creativity or define who a creative person is.
Group Warm-Up Activity using Ideation Techniques
Students used Mind Mapping, brainstorming, sharing ideas with peers, and coming up with sketches for designs in 30 minutes time.
Activity WorkSheets
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Post-It Notes/ Idea Board
Students worked together to come up with as many ideas as possible about defining who middle school students are. They then found patterns/commonalities in their ideas and grouped the sticky-notes together.
Observations
The students went to the middle school art room to observe students in their natural setting. They investigated lockers and sketched images and recorded notes.
Interviewing the Expert
The students interviewed middle school students during lunch to learn about their interests to develop a better understanding of their audience they were trying to reach. They also interviewed the middle school principal to learn more about the mission and future goals for the new middle school.
Check Point Blog Post
Blog Post 2:
Answer the following questions. Attach a picture of your first mural sketch to your blog.
1. Based on your experience so far, what ideation techniques have informed you about the middle school students?
2. What ideas do you have for the mural?
3. Has collaborating with your peers helped you in generating ideas for the mural?
4. Was the interview with the middle school principal informative? What information did you gain from this session?
Answer the following questions. Attach a picture of your first mural sketch to your blog.
1. Based on your experience so far, what ideation techniques have informed you about the middle school students?
2. What ideas do you have for the mural?
3. Has collaborating with your peers helped you in generating ideas for the mural?
4. Was the interview with the middle school principal informative? What information did you gain from this session?
Brainstorming With Peers
The students were in constant conversation with their peers as they talked through personal ideas generated from their experiences. The students used the idea board to document items they would like to incorporate in their design and also used the dry erase board to work through their ideas with their peers. The students sketched their designs on butcher paper and then transferred the design to the primed mural boards. Each student took turns in sharing ideas and taking part in drawing.
Planning & Working through Design Problems
Once the design was complete the students began painting the boards. The brainstorming process continued throughout this stage. The students’ continuously reflected on their work and maintained personal blogs about their experiences. This collaborative project exampled the processes of thinking like artists.
Check Point Blog Post
Blog Post 3 (200+ words)- make a post to your blog about how you feel this project is going.
- What have you contributed to this assignment (ideas or drawing)?
- Do you find collaboration effective in creating the mural?
- Do you believe the steps we have taken so far in developing this mural to be important in generating creative ideas?
- In what ways have your ways of thinking changed when approaching a design problem?
SnapShot of the Mural Project
Check Point Blog Post
Blog Post 4 - Following Mural Project:
1. How did this process of generating ideas inform your creative thinking process when developing the mural?
2. How did working with others inform your own understanding of design solutions?
3. Why is it important to consider multiple ideas and perceptions in creating a work of art?
4. In what ways did learning about ideation techniques inform your creative habits of mind?
5. Which one of the ideation techniques do you think you will use when developing your own ideas?
6. Do you believe this process has enhanced your creativity? (Please explain)
7. Do you believe this process will help you do develop your own work going forward?
8. What was your take away from this project?
1. How did this process of generating ideas inform your creative thinking process when developing the mural?
2. How did working with others inform your own understanding of design solutions?
3. Why is it important to consider multiple ideas and perceptions in creating a work of art?
4. In what ways did learning about ideation techniques inform your creative habits of mind?
5. Which one of the ideation techniques do you think you will use when developing your own ideas?
6. Do you believe this process has enhanced your creativity? (Please explain)
7. Do you believe this process will help you do develop your own work going forward?
8. What was your take away from this project?
Ideation to Independent Art Making
"Emotional Response"
This open-ended, prompt-based assignment was given to the students to provide students an opportunity to demonstrate what they learned from the collaborative mural project and the ideation activities. Each student used the prompt, "emotional response," to generate ideas for their projects. The students had the freedom to use different mediums, as well as, they had the freedom to develop their ideas on their own. These images show how each idea varied greatly and they provide insight on how the students used the tools examined throughout the unit.
Blogging
Throughout this second independent project the students were asked to free respond to their artistic process as they worked on this assignment. In total the students completed five separate entries explaining their ideas, process, and take away from the prompt based assignment. These blogs gave me personal insights into the students thought process and from the posted images I could see how the student progressed in their work. These posts also provided the students with the opportunity to access their progression and to take the time to step back and view their artwork.
Student A: I enjoyed watching this student as she explored the many options she could use for this project. This student used the research tool to explore the meaning of "emotions," using a color wheel of emotions to determine what kind of mood she wanted to portray. From her understanding her ideas began to formulate as she began to think about her personal passion for reading. She wanted to portray the emotion one gets as they are reading a novel and the impact imaginations have over the connections made with the events and characters in the text. As she continued to examine and think through her ideas making notes and sketches in her sketchbook her ideas started to take form. In my research paper I will go into more detail about how Student A came to her final idea and how the ideation process explored in this study impacted her creative process.
Student B: The following student, known as student B, was also another student who stood out in this study. He is what I like to refer to as the "project manager," the one who pieces ideas together and uses his peers to develop and interpret his train of thought. For this project this student was thinking laterally about personal emotions and emotions that root from the natural progression of life and death. His simplistic design of an apple tree has become a symbolic representation of the tree of knowledge and the tree of life. The large apple in the foreground represents life while the fallen apples represent decay. In the students blog he describes this painting as an apple that is experiencing loneliness and perseverance. Student B used his sketchbook to sketch different images, he also did some research to explore different expressions that might spark some ideas for his assignment. His biggest influence on his ability to generate ideas for this project was his peers.
Student C: While this student was not as engaged in the mural project as her peers, she really showed her knowledge of the ideation process when she began independently brainstorming for her project using the mind mapping technique we examined in the first group activity. She was the only student of the eight that used this method to develop her ideas. Her mind/concept map led her to develop a sketch in her sketchbook which eventually turned into this final piece. Her piece was the most expressive piece in considering the pressures that are on teens today. Between family, work, school, social, and personal demands that are constantly weighing people down and at the same time constantly burdening them with the constant reminder of time ticking away. This student represents the girl trapped in a clock which is centered on a maze in which the girl is struggling to get to the end of.
Student D: I truly enjoyed working with this student on this assignment. There was so much passion behind his project. As he sat and contemplated his idea I helped to remind the student about the different tools he could use to approach this assignment. Because this student is a natural writer he began his brainstorming process by journaling and writing about an issue that is constantly on his heart. The student is gay but struggles to find acceptance in a Christian school environment. In addition to his daily trials he is burdened by, this student also has a strong faith and is an avid reader of the Bible. Student D wanted to express the love that God has for all men and his own personal struggle with God being misrepresented as a cruel God. His focus for this project is having God's love and mercy break down his personal walls that he has built up due to being condemned for his sexuality. As I sat with this student as he examined his ideas and personal insight into this topic I could not help but feel excited for him to have an opportunity to speak to something he struggles with and put it into words in a positive way that reflects the emotion and comfort he finds in God's love. We had several powerful conversations about this project and I could see the impact it was having on this student.
Student E: The premiss on Student E's project was the emotion of being caught in the middle of making the right choices. She approached her assignment by working in her sketchbook. Like some of her peers she shared her ideas with her peers and sketched her ideas in her sketchbook. A large impact on her assignment was a speaker that came to talk to the students the day prior about GA law and where teens fit into the law. She depicted her idea by painting an ocean, representing the many choices that are having to be made daily. She distinguishes between right from wrong by transitioning between light and dark. The small person in the painting represents people who get lost in wrong choices and are drowning in their mistakes. This is a powerful piece which represents a true and fierce emotion that many teens feel as they venture through their teenage years.
Student F: When given this assignment this student immediately knew what she wanted to create. She quickly sketched her design in her sketchbook and explained to me that this image was something that she wanted to create for a long time. When I asked her the meaning behind this piece she explained that when she thinks of elephants she always envisions them as the calm and peaceful animals but when angered they can be dangerous and even loud. She wanted to represent this large animal with bright calming colors using large brush strokes like Jasper Johns. While this student shows her talent with painterly techniques, I struggled to see how she used the brainstorming tools to develop her ideas. I do however believe she created this image utilizing her personal passions and interests. One thing that I was able to witness with this student was her trials of working through the painting process. Being new to painting she was forced to problem-solve as she depicted depth in her work. My observations with this student extended beyond the scope of this project but I believe this assignment taught her a lot about technique and artistic skill which is very important in developing an artistic process.
Student G: Like student E this student was representing a meaning using an animal. Only this time this student was representing loyalty and power and the emotions one gets when they experience these two things. Unlike the first student, this student began developing her idea for this piece using the list method examined in the brainstorming activities. She listed several emotions in her sketchbook that were meaningful to her. She then expanded on the ideas and in talking with her peers she made the connection between the words she had listed to the animal she depicted. I am very proud of this piece for this is her first time working with paints in this fashion. Her first experience in using paints was when they created the mural but her experience was very limited. While I would have liked to see further development in her ideas, I believe she had a process in which she used to get to her end result.
Student H: Student H also used the list method; she also used Pinterest to explore other artworks out there that depicted an emotional response. This student put a lot of time and thought into what she would create. She created sketches of her ideas as well and spoke to her peers and family members about her ideas. Out of all of the students in this study, this student took her project home with her each night to continue to work on it at home. In this piece she decided on representing "in all darkness and death there is light and life." This student worked very hard at depicting this image using paint to tell her story. Weeks after this study I had the opportunity to talk with the student's mother and her mom mentioned that she was so happy her daughter was getting so much out of this class and that this study truly impacted this student's love and appreciation for art. This student while she struggled with working through the challenges that this project entailed, she truly connected and found personal meaning to the work she created.
Capstone Project Documents
RESEARCH DOCUMENTATION
Expanding High School Students' Studio Art Thinking and Practices |
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