WELCOME TO THE GETTY MUSEUM!
During today’s visit you’ll be acting as a special kind of detective.  The evidence you have to work with is the art on display here in the Museum at the Getty Center. These artworks may be beautiful to look at, but they’re also artifacts or objects made and used by people in the past and filled with clues about those people and the world in which they lived.

This packet contains five activities that explore artworks as artifacts. Check with your teacher first, and then number each activity in the order in which your group will complete them:

Number	Activity						Location				 

______ 	Italian Painting 					(North Pavilion)
______ 	Portrait Study 					(South Pavilion)
______ 	Courtly Styles					(South Pavilion)
______ 	Detail Detective 					(South Pavilion)
______	Show What You Know 	  			(do this at the end of your visit)

Take about twenty minutes to do each activity. Remember to look carefully at the art, and ask yourself questions about anything that puzzles you.  You’ll find your best ideas and answers this way; check the label on the wall for more information afterward.

ITALIAN PAINTING
By comparing works of art made around the same time and in the same place, you can learn about the society in which they were made. By looking carefully, you can find clues that tell you how people lived and what they valued and believed. The paintings in Galleries N201 and N204 were painted in Italy but at different times. Changes in artistic styles and themes often reflect changes in how a society sees and understands the world.

PART II—GALLERY N204

The paintings in Gallery N204
were made in Italy about 400 to
500 years ago. Looking carefully,
list three or more characteristics
that they have in common:

																					

PART I—GALLERY N201

The paintings in Gallery N201 were
made in Italy about 600 to 700 years ago. Looking
carefully, list three or more
characteristics that they have 
in common:

																											

North Pavilion
Upper Level
Galleries N204
Italian Paintings 1500–1600

North Pavilion
Upper Level
Galleries N201 Italian Paintings 1300–1400 

PART III
Each box below contains a description of the art and culture in Italy at the time when the paintings in Galleries N201 and N204 were made. Draw a line connecting each description to the appropriate gallery above.

STYLE B

Style B developed in Italian art before the Humanist philosophy had fully developed. The art of the time focused on Christian people and stories. Artists sometimes used light and shadow to make objects appear three-dimensional, but they also used areas of shimmering gold for the background to suggest a heavenly realm.

STYLE A

Style A thrived in Italian art at a time when a philosophy called Humanism was at its height. Humanist philosophy focused on the dignity and importance of human activities and human reason. The subjects of art favored by humanists were often secular (non-religious) people and situations. Painters tried to create pictures that were as realistic as possible, using shadows and shading to create the illusion of three-dimensional objects.

Question: If someone discovered your house or your bedroom 1,000 years from now, what would they learn about the way you live? What would they see that would tell them about who you are, or what you like or value?

South Pavilion
Upper Level
English Portrait Gallery S204

PORTRAIT STUDY
When someone takes a picture of you, what do you want him or her to see? Before photography was invented in the mid-1800s, wealthy patrons paid artists to capture their likenesses in painting or sculpture. Portraits were made for many reasons--as family heirlooms, a way to show one’s social standing, or as a historical document, for example. By looking carefully at a portrait, you can discover clues that tell you about the person represented and time in which the artwork was made.

Pick a portrait in this room. Spend a minute looking quietly at the artwork you selected.  Then respond to the following questions:

1. Describe the facial expression of the person depicted. What does it tell you about how this person feels or who she or he is?

2. Describe the person’s pose. Does his or her body seem relaxed or stiff? Does the pose tell you anything about the attitude of the person represented?

3. Describe what the person is wearing. What do the clothes tell you about this person? 

4. Describe the setting. Where is this person? Are there objects in the setting that might tell us about him or her?

5. If this person were to start speaking, what do you think he or she would say?

6. If you were to have your portrait made, what would you want it to look like? What would you want people to know about you? What would you wear? What would you be doing? What facial expression would you have? Would you put any special objects in the portrait to show what is important to you? 

South Pavilion
Plaza Level Galleries:
S109 French Decorative Arts 1750–1760 
S114 French Decorative Arts 1785–1790

COURTLY STYLES
As you know, styles always change. What is fashionable this year may not be the next. Styles change for a variety of reasons. With this activity you will compare two styles of French furniture and discover how and why the look of French furniture changed from a style called Rococo to a style called Neoclassical.

PART I – GALLERY S109
#1	READ a description of the Rococo style.
#2	SKETCH  a piece of Rococo furniture.
A furniture style known as Rococo was extremely popular 300 years ago in France. Rococo-style tables, chairs, chests, and wall lights are decorated with curving vines and leaves, twining plants, scrolls, seashells, and wave forms. Most of the decoration is asymmetrical—meaning that if you were to draw a line down the center the right and left sides would not mirror one another. Straight lines and precise geometric shapes are rarely seen in Rococo furniture.

Pick an object in this gallery that matches the above description. Sketch an outline of it below:

PART II – GALLERY S114
#1	READ a description of the Neoclassical style.
#2	SKETCH a piece of Neoclassical furniture.
#3	DESCRIBE the differences between the Rococo and Neoclassical styles.
In A.D. 79 the powerful volcano Mount Vesuvius erupted and destroyed the Italian city of Pompeii, burying it under ash and lava and killing almost all of its inhabitants. More than 1,500 years passed before archaeologists rediscovered Pompeii in the 1700s. Drawings of the ruins and artifacts at Pompeii were sent to France, where people began to incorporate these ancient styles into their own art, architecture, and furniture. This Neoclassical style reintroduced straight lines, columns, garlands, and symmetry (right and left sides are the same). The ancient Roman era is often called the “classical” period. The word “Neoclassical” describes the “new” classical style resulting from the discovery and rediscovery of ancient Greek and Roman treasures and ruins. Objects in this gallery are examples of the Neoclassical style.

Pick a Neoclassical object to examine. Sketch an outline of it below:

Describe three ways in which the Rococo and Neoclassical styles are different.  Which style do you prefer?  Why?

To find out more about the discovery of ancient Roman ruins in the 1700s, visit the West Pavilion GettyGuide Room on the Plaza Level.

South Pavilion
Plaza Level
Gallery S103
French Decorative Arts 1660–1710

DETAIL DETECTIVE

Part II—Hypothesize

6)  Based on the details you observed and described, develop a hypothesis about the function (or purpose) of this artifact:

I think that this artifact is a:

because of the following evidence:

7)  Most of the objects in this gallery were made for wealthy French aristocrats about 350 years ago. Can you see any similarities between the objects? List three qualities you think these aristocrats wanted in their furniture:

•	Share your ideas as a group.

•	Check your hypothesis by reading the label for the artifact.

•	Did you come close to discovering its true function?

Part I—Observe and Describe

1)  List as many materials as you can used to make this artifact (if not sure, give it your best guess): 

2)  Describe the shape of the artifact: 

3)  Describe the decorations on the artifact: 

4)  List at least six adjectives that describe the 
artifact:

5)  List any clues that might suggest how the 
artifact was used: 

It is important to examine artifacts very carefully, taking nothing for granted. Even the smallest detail can yield important clues about how an artifact was used, how people of the past lived, and what they cared about. Look very closely at one of these artifacts and describe it in detail. Then form a hypothesis (a guess based on evidence) about its purpose and the people who made it.

SHOW WHAT YOU KNOW
Congratulations! You’ve just completed your Getty “Art as Artifact” packet. Now it’s time to show what you know. (Just look back over the activity sheets if you need help.)

Describe your favorite work of art you saw today. Why was it interesting to you?  

What was one thing you learned today?

Did knowing about the history, style, or function of works of art change the way you looked at them? How? Discuss your ideas as a group.

We hope you had a good time exploring artifacts at the Getty Museum. Come back soon and bring someone with you to share what you know and what you have seen. The Museum is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. No reservations are needed. Admission is free; parking is $10. See you there!