Collaboratively Printed Identity Shapes

Grade level: Late Elementary

Timeline: 4 Class Periods - 35min

Artist in Focus: Allan McCollum

Students will identify shapes and identity through contemporary artist Allan McCollum.  McCollum works in creating shapes in large quantities that are singular and unique at the same time.  In this lesson students will work with the paradox of mass-produced uniqueness through an introduction of printmaking techniques.  Students will design shape pieces relating to personal characteristics, when collaboratively combined will form a full shape, creating a new identity.  To start off students will consider ways to use line and shape to define aspects of their identity through a think-sheet.  With their shape piece design, students will cut out foam to make a stamp.  These shape pieces will then be printed on the assigned quarter of the paper once.  Students will then rotate, taking their stamp with them, and again print their shape in the assigned quarter.  After four prints, a collaborative shape composed of four students’ community identity will form.  Through discussions, a think sheet and the art making process students will explore personal and collaborative identity through an exhibition of entire class work and discussion [What happens when we combine multiple students’ identity pieces to make a shape? (Through the printmaking process of stamping we are able to mass-produce the imagery but by combining it with other pieces of the whole there are just enough differences to make each of them individual.)]

Objectives:

1. Students will demonstrate an understanding of Allan McCollum by designing a shape piece conveying their identity through the use of line and shape 25.A.1d

2. Students will design a shape piece depicting at minimum two aspects of their identity 26.B.1d

3. Students will demonstrate a basic understanding of the printmaking process of stamping 26.A.1e

4. Students will collaboratively complete a shape that conveys four students’ identities 27.B.1

State Goals:

25.A.1d Visual Arts: Identify the elements of line, shape, space, color, texture; the principles of repetition and pattern; and the expressive qualities of mood, emotion, and pictorial representation.

26.B.1d Visual Arts: Demonstrate knowledge and skills to create visual works or art using manipulation, hand-eye coordination, building and imagination.

26.A.1e Visual Arts: Identify media and tools and how to use them in a safe and responsible manner when painting, drawing, and constructing.

27.B.1: Know how images, sounds, and movements convey stories about people, place and times.

Steps:

-Work Session One:

1. Open a power point; students will first look at the vocabulary words and apply them to various shapes by Allan McCollum. (Attached – annotated images)
2. After the presentation, draw students around rug or demo area to explain the think-sheet and additional ways to illustrate self-adjectives through line.
3. Students will complete think-sheet brainstorming identity characteristics that can be illustrated into shapes using line. (Attached – think-sheet)
4. Students will choose and circle one practice design that they will next draw on the foam sheet.

-Work Session Two:

1. Divide students into four equal groups. (Each group will have an assigned quarter of the page to later print their shape on; ie. Group Red: top-left, Group Green: top-right, Group Blue: bottom-left, Group Purple: bottom-right.)
2. Students will then draw the one design from the think sheet onto the foam sheet. (Attached – illustrated steps)
3. Students will cut out the foam shape pieces.
4. Students will glue the foam sheet onto a sheet of cardboard for backing.

-Work Session Three:

(Arrange students into the same four groups as last week)

1. Open with a discussion on printmaking, its safety & techniques, vocabulary words, and Allan McCollum.
2. Gather students around demo area for visual demonstration on stamp printmaking techniques.
3. Students will then be given a 9x12 piece of paper [color-coded and prepared with gridlines] to print on and each table with three plates of black tempra paint [prepared and thinned before class] to ink up with.
4. (optional) The paper will be secured to the table with pre-ripped pieces of masking tape.
5. Students will be instructed to take their foam shape stamps and matching the gridlines on the sheet, they will print their shape.
6. After this print, students will rotate to another group only bringing their stamp with them.
7. After each rotation, students will print their shape in the same quarter.  After four prints a whole shape will form, composed of four student’s prints.
8. Clean up of prints, material and space.

-Work Session Four:

(Have the class’s shape prints exhibited on a wall before students arrive)

1. Gather students around their work on the wall and discuss the combination of students’ identity pieces to construct a collaborative shape and bring attention to how and why Allan McCollum names his pieces.
2. Students will complete a think-sheet providing them with ideas to invent a compound title, composed of one self-descriptive word and one art-related word.
3. On the Post-Its students will write their name and title word.
4. Students will be called by table up to place a Post-It on each of their four shape pieces, while working on their think-sheet.
5. On the think-sheet students will write a minimum two-sentence narrative of their title word.

*After class, teacher will write the title on the bottom page of each shape in a similar fashion to Allan McCollum, “Shape (a005-b102-c115-d018)”, but using the students’ invent

ted titles, ie. Shape (Runny Brush-Noisy Sculpture-Silly Shape-Energetic Color Wheel)

*Take a Class Photo with every student holding a printed shape in front of his or her face (optional - individual student photos.)

Closure:

Work Session 1&2: Review Identity and how it can be illustrated through Shape and the artist, Allan McCollum.

Work Session 3: Review Identity of the stamp shapes and how it was used in the process of the class’s Collaborative community printing.

Work Session 4: Review Community Identity through the printmaking process, with the ability to mass-produce imagery, but by combining it with other pieces there are just enough differences to make each of them individual

Materials:

-       Black Tempra Paint                                      - Palettes/Plates (3per table)            

-       4x6 Foam sheets (1per student)                     - Scissors

-       9x12 Printing Paper (1per student)                      - 4x6 Cardboard sheets (1per student)

-       Glue                                                                - 1 Foam Brush (to thin out tempra)

-       Color Pencils   (to prep paper)                                       - Post-Its (4 per student)

Motivational Prior Knowledge:

The student will draw from their personal identity traits and give their personal design meaning with varying line (wavy, straight, curved and angular).  The students will recall some traditional geometric shapes that they previously learned and they will build on their knowledge of what shapes be and represent.

Differentiated Learning Activities:

Vocabulary:

Line: A linear mark made on a page that does not connect.

Shape: When the line’s ends connect, a shape is made.

Printmaking: The process of transferring an inked image from one surface (from the plate or block) to another (usually paper) by which a work of art can be recreated in great quantity.

Stamping: The process of producing printed imagery from a design has been cut and inked.

Collaborate: To work jointly on an activity; especially to produce something or achieve a goal

Assessment Rubric:   

A 90-100, B 80-89, C 70-79, D 60-69, F 59-Below

Resources:

N/A