This interdisciplinary unit combines visual art, French, Spanish, and social studies. Students will critically analyze artwork from the Spanish Civil War to understand how art can promote social change. They will consider an artist's role in society and interview community members about the impact of war today. Finally, students will reflect on their own views of war and violence and create an art piece expressing these views, incorporating text in French or Spanish.

1. An Interdisciplinary Unit Combining
Visual Art, French, Spanish, and Social Studies

2.  How can art be used to promote positive
action or change?
 To what extent was it used this way during
the Spanish Civil War period?
 Should art be used for such purposes?
 What, if anything, do artists and art
owe to society?

3.  Students will critically analyze, interpret and compare a variety
of artwork created during or in reference to the Spanish Civil
War.
 Students will consider the question of the artist’s debt to society
and develop a personal position on this issue.
 Students will interview members of the local community
regarding their impression of the impact of war/violence on our
world today.
 Students will reflect upon their own feelings regarding
war/violence and create a work of art that expresses these
feelings, incorporating French or Spanish text from Resnais &
Hessens’ ‘Guernica’.

4.  Personal Reflection: students will consider the artist’s
role as a message maker and compose a response to the
question, what do artists owe to society?
 Interview Process: students will each gather interview
responses from three community members and share
these with the class.
 Collaborative Art Work: students will each produce a
panel that will be part of a collaborative art work.
Ideally this will be displayed publically, at least
temporarily.

5.  CT Content Standard 3: Students will consider, select, and apply a range of subject
matter, symbols and ideas. Students will use subject matter, symbols, ideas and themes
that demonstrate knowledge of contexts and cultural and aesthetic values to communicate
intended meaning.
 CT Content Standard 4: Students will understand the visual arts in relation to
history and culture. Students will compare works of art to one another in terms of
history, aesthetics and culture; justify their conclusions; and use these conclusions to
inform their own art making.
 CT Content Standard 5: Students will reflect upon, describe, analyze, interpret
and evaluate their own and others’ work. Students will research and analyze historic
meaning and purpose in varied works of art. Students will defend personal interpretations
using reasoned argument.
 CT Content Standard 6: Students will make connections between visual
arts, other disciplines and daily life. Students will analyze and compare characteristics
of the visual arts within a particular historical period or style with ideas, issues or themes
of that period or style.

6. Essential Questions
 Can propaganda be art? Can art be used as
propaganda?
 How are political or social sentiments conveyed
through art?
 Is it acceptable to use children’s artwork as
propaganda? How might the meaning of the artist’s
message be taken out of context in this case?

7. Objectives
 Students will critically analyze, interpret and compare
a both propaganda posters and children’s artwork from
the Spanish Civil War.
 Students will consider the question of the artist’s debt
to society and develop a personal position on this
issue.

9. Essential Questions
 How are political or social sentiments conveyed
through art?
 Is art an appropriate vehicle for expressing
political/social commentary?
 How might the anti-war messages of both Picasso’s
Guernica and Resnais/Hessens’ ‘Guernica’ resonate
with modern day audiences?
 What are your personal feelings regarding
war/violence?

10. Pablo Picasso, Guernica (1937)
Alain Resnais & Robert Hessens, Guernica (1950)

11. Objectives
 Students will critically analyze, interpret and compare a
Picasso’s Guernica and Alain Resnais & Robert Hessens’
Guernica.
 Students will interview members of the local community
regarding their impression of the impact of war/violence
on our world today.
 Students will reflect upon both their own feelings
regarding war/violence and those of community members,
and create a work of art that expresses these feelings and
incorporates both English and Spanish or French text.