How to start a conversation with a work of art

1. Happy 2015!
DO NOW:
What is your biggest concern about
presenting a piece of artwork to the class?

2. Why we’re doing this project

3. For Today…
Pay attention to the way I ask questions
how I respond to your answers.

4. Starry Night
Vincent Van Gogh
Make sure your selfie game is
STRONG
Slide #1 of 4: Intro slide, with selfies and/or images of the work

5. Avoid random colors
Use a large image of your
artwork…but DON’T DISTORT THE
IMAGE!
Slide #2 of 4: Title of work, and a bit of information
Starry Night
Vincent Van Gogh
oil on canvas
1889
29”x36”

6. Starry Night
Vincent Van Gogh
oil on canvas
1889
29”x36”
Slide #2 of 4: Title of work, and a bit of information
Vincent Van Gogh
painted this while
living in Rémy-de-
Provence, France.
What kind of place do you think Rémy-de-Provence is?

7. Starry Night
Vincent Van Gogh
oil on canvas 1889 29”x36”
Slide #2 of 4: Title of work, and a bit of information
Use that first
question to
get the
audience
used to you
asking them
stuff.
Make it
simple and
direct.

8. “I don't know
anything with
certainty, but
seeing the
stars makes
me dream.”
Slide #3 of 4: Artist Quote or Critic quote…begin to build the conversation
Starry Night Vincent Van Gogh
oil on canvas 1889 29”x36”
How do you react when you see the stars?

9. How is this
“landscape”
painting
different
from others
that you’ve
seen?
Slide #4 of 4: Guide the conversation to your final question
Starry Night
Vincent Van Gogh
oil on canvas 1889 29”x36”

10. In other
words…What
makes this
painting
“unique” or
“creative”
Why should
we bother
looking at this?
Slide #4 of 4: Guide the conversation to your final question
Starry Night
Vincent Van Gogh
oil on canvas 1889 29”x36”

11. TRUST IN THE MOMA WEBSITE

12. Question
Techniques
How to build a
discussion around
a work of art

13. What do these questions
have in common?
• What do you see?
• Could you describe the
environment in the painting.
• What type of country do you think
this is taking place in?
• How are the people in the painting
interacting with each other?
• Could you describe how these
people are dressed.
• Why do you think the man
is on the ground?

14. Remember to listen to what your audience says…
Questions that can be
answered in idiosyncratic, or
personal, ways.
Open Ended Questions don’t
have a single answer...but
multiple types of answers.
Open-Ended Questions
Use phrasing like “Do you
think…” or “Describe…” or
“How…”
Use conditional language like
“could” and “would” to get your
audience to think hypothetically.

15. Agrarian Leader Zapata
Diego Rivera
Fresco on cement, 1931
• What type of hat is he wearing?
• What type of tool is that?
• What country is being
represented here?
• Who is this a painting of?
• Who is holding the horse?
• What kind of plant is that?
• When did this painting take
place?
• What kind of horse is that?
What do these questions
have in common?

16. COMPARE THESE QUESTIONS:
HOW ARE YOU FEELING? VS. ARE YOU FEELING WELL?
THESE TYPES OF QUESTIONS
USUALLY RESULT IN EITHER A
“YES” OR “NO” ANSWER.
Close-Ended Questions
Close-Ended questions aim at a
specific single answer.
Example: When was the war of
1812?

17. Agrarian Leader Zapata
Diego Rivera
Fresco on cement, 1931
• Refer to what people have said and USE
THEIR NAMES.
(This validates their opinions!)
• Give the audience information when
they ask for it!
• Turn THEIR questions into YOUR
questions
• Listen for contrasting opinions…if you
sense that there’s two different points of
view emerging in the audience…
…Polarize the class: ask who agrees with
which point of view.
Uniting the Discussion

18. Final considerations for your
audience…
Look for the different
types of answerers
in the room.
Some people you can rely on
being more verbose...others
may be more succinct or brief.
BOTH types of answerers are
important for building a
conversation!

19. Final considerations for your
audience…
Watch out for "designated
answerer syndrome”
When the same person
continues to answer
questions first...and the
people around them start
to respond less and
less....since they now
expect that person to
answer FIRST.

20. To make matters worse, the
class usually starts to believe
what the Designated
Answerer says, simply
because they're the first to
say it.
Avoid the Designated
Answerer Syndrome!
An audience is easily
conditioned to expect that
person to answer first to
"test the waters" or see what
kind of answer the teacher is
looking for.

21. Starting with “WHAT YOU SEE?” is great...it's non threatening, and
you don't need any previous knowledge to answer it.
You'll also be able to tell what the class is most interested in based
on their answers...if they are sticking to the most literal and obvious
things in the painting, then you have a very easy jumping off point.
More resources: wikihow.com/Ask-Open-Ended-Questions