Grades/Level: Lower Elementary (K–2), Upper Elementary (3–5), Middle School (6–8), High School (9–12)
Subjects: Visual Arts
Time Required: Short Activity
20 minutes
Author: J. Paul Getty Museum Education Staff

Activity Overview

By writing down their observations about a work of art and then comparing and discussing different interpretations of it, students learn that the longer they look at a work of art, the more insight they will gain about what they see.

Learning Objectives

Students should be able to:
• interpret and discuss what they see in an image.
• develop new ideas and interpretations about a work of art they have previously discussed.

Materials

• Prints of various artworks. Suggestions below.

Activity Steps

Step 1: Divide the students into pairs and give each pair a printout or photocopy of one artwork above. Next, have students spend a few minutes looking at their images. Allow students 15 minutes to write down a description of what they see.

Step 2: Put the images on display in the classroom in a place where students will be able to look at them each day. Over the next week, ask your students to record at least one additional observation of their artwork per day.

Step 3: Hold a class discussion and ask students to share what they have written. Ask students who studied the same images to share their ideas and compare their reactions. Discuss how the same image evoked varied responses and how we all see and interpret images in different ways. The next week repeat the activity and have each pair of students select a different image to write about.

Extensions

Continue to build your students' looking skills. The following are useful resources for developing lessons on this topic.

Books:
Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. New York: Viking Penguin, 1991.

Broudy, Harry S. The Role of Imagery in Learning. Los Angeles: The Getty Center for Education in the Arts, 1987.

Carr, Dawson W., and Mark Leonard. Looking at Paintings: A Guide to Technical Terms. Malibu, Calif.: The J. Paul Getty Museum, 1992.

Childers, Pamela B., Eric H. Hobson, and Joan A. Mullin. ARTiculating: Teaching Writing in a Visual World. Portsmouth, N.H.: Boynton/Cook, 1998.

Feldman, Edmund Burke. Varieties of Visual Experience. 4th ed. New York: H. N. Abrams, 1992.

Perkins, David N. The Intelligent Eye: Learning to Think by Looking at Art. Los Angeles: The Getty Center for Education in the Arts, 1994.

Yenawine, P. How to Look at Modern Art. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1991.

Web Sites:
ArtsEdge
Sponsored by the Kennedy Center, ArtsEdge includes lesson plans, units, and other ideas for classroom teaching in the arts.

ArtLex—Dictionary of Visual Art
Definitions of over 3,300 terms, thousands of images, pronunciation notes, and links to other resources.

National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.)—NGA Kids
Adventures with art—activities and projects including storytelling and critical thinking.