1. Vincent van Goghan Art History Lesson Incorporating Reading and Writing
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2. Lesson Objectives
California Visual Art Standards: High School Proficient
3.0 HISTORICALAND CULTURAL CONTEXT
• Understanding the Historical Contributions and Cultural Dimensions of the Visual Arts
Students analyze the role and development of the visual arts in past and present cultures throughout the world, noting human diversity as it relates to the visual arts and artists.
The standards listed in the lesson will allow students to :
• Understand the role Vincent van Gogh played in the History of Fine Arts
• Identify and describe post-impressionistic art and how it reflects the time and place from which it came from.
• Analyze a paragraph about Vincent van Gogh and cite textural evidence of what the text says
• Produce an audience, purpose and task appropriate found poem from a text about van Gogh
National Core Arts
Performing, Presenting and Producing:
• Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work.
Responding: Perceive and analyze artistic work
• Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work
Common Core Literacy: Reading and Writing
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.1
• Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9-10.4
• Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
3. Background Info:
Van Gogh’s ambition, support and mental illness all played an important role in making him one
of the most famous painters in history. His struggles with depression gave him the need to
express his angst in his art. With the help of his brother he was supported artistically as well as
financially. His need to continuously seek his purpose in life made him persevere as an artist and
find his unique style and gift for the art world. At this time, there were a number of artists in
France who were influenced by the impressionist painters who were concern with depicting a
visual impression of a given moment, especially in terms of light and color. The post-
impressionists, including van Gogh, pushed the ideas of the impressionists further, by expressing
emotion in their art, using unrealistic color and thick loose brush strokes. Unfortunately, it was
not during his life time that his gift as an artist was recognized and circumstances surrounding his
mental illness caused his life to be cut short. It is important to note his contribution to the visual
arts and how he has changed the way we look at it.
Vocabulary:
• Impressionism-a style or movement in painting originating in France in the 1860’s, characterized by a
concern with depicting the visual impression of the moment, especially in terms of the shifting effect of light
and color.
• Post-Impressionism-Inspired by impressionism, but pushed the ideas of impressionists into
new directions like the use of thicker paint, brighter unnatural colors, and expression of
emotion.
10. Incorporating Reading and Writing Strategies:
After the introduction to the previous slides and learning the importance Vincent van Gogh played in the
history of Visual Arts, students use the following paragraph to analyze and draw textural evidence through
Close Reading Strategies , and then use Found Poetry Strategies to produce an appropriate piece of writing.
The Dutch artist, Vincent van Gogh had a very dramatic life. He was poor and
suffered from a mental illness, but he persevered. One of his great passions in life was to
help others, especially the poor people he came in contact with while being a missionary.
He struggled at finding his unique purpose in life. Though he was never well-known as an
innovative artist during his lifetime, he changed the art world with the stroke of his paint
brush, using thick layers of bright colors and loose brush strokes. His dedication to his art,
and perseverance, along with the support from his brother, Theo, helped him push the
boundaries of impressionism. He used painting as a coping skill for his mental illness.
When showing signs of mania, depression and hallucinations, he was committed to a mental
hospital. During his hospital stay, he painted prolifically, completing 150 paintings in just a
few years. His brother Theo encouraged him through letters and financial support.
Although, Vincent only painted for 10 years, he created 860 known pieces. His thick
textured paintings show his innovative style of movement and color applied in layers of
unmixed paint. His distinct style makes him one of the most famous artists in history.
Sadly, his life was cut short due to injuries caused by a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
11. Five Steps of Close Reading:
1. Number the paragraphs- for referencing
2. Chunk the text- draw lines between the paragraphs to allow for smaller chunks of
information.
3. Underline and Circle- (this will have to be refined by what we decide to have
them read) This would be for specific things we want them to look for, such as what
claims is the author making should be underlined while key terms, names of sources,
power verbs and figurative language should be circled.
4. Left Margin: What is the author saying?
In the left column of the text (We'll have to be specific to what we want the students to
"get" here), but have them summarize each chunk in ten words or less.
5. Right Margin: Dig deeper into the text.
In the right margin, do a quick drawing of what each chunk represents. (And we could
ask them at this place to also offer one power verb to describe it.)
12. Found Poetry
Found Poetry gained most of its momentum during the
twentieth century, paralleling Pop Art. What is Found Poetry?
Found Poems are the reordering of text found in everyday
media. It is a collage of words found in magazines, online
articles, newspapers, and so on. Combining literacy and art,
the author of a found poem pieces together clippings of chosen
words in selected fonts and sizes to form one poem of their
own.
Why Found Poetry?
It gets students engaged in reading fiction and fact; combining
the two, or creating truths out of fiction, or fiction out of truth.
This is done by the author and gets the creator to not only read
the original text, but analyze it, and then create something new
and evaluate it. Critical thinking and creativity balled into one.
13. How to Make a Found Poem:
• Select a theme or lack thereof
• Decide what texts or sources to find lines of
the poem from (e.g. Magazines, books,
speeches, online sources [printed])
• Select fonts of a similar or contrasting style
to fit expression of author/artist
• Cut and clip words out of chosen literary
works
• Determine a palate or canvas (backdrop) to
place the clippings
• Order clippings in creative ways on canvas
• Adhere the clippings in an expressionable
fashion (to canvas)
• Critique the final product
• Write a reflection of the process and the
message being told
14. Found Poem Example:
Van Gogh
Dramatic,
Purpose, perseverance, passions,
Innovative,
Thick paint, bright colors,
Loose brush strokes,
Mental illness, depression
Prolific,
Distinct style,
Life was cut short,
Van Gogh
15. Lesson Extensions:
1. research another post-impressionism artist and find a good piece of text to
make a found poem from
2. compare/contrast 2 different post-impressionism paintings or artists & their
work
3. create their own Impressionistic painting and write a reflection on their
creation process and product.
4. convert poem graphically on the computer, and post to a website or blog
5. Present information and poem to a younger grade classroom
6. Write a list of things that help you be successful as an artist
16. Strategies for Diverse Learners
Since each student doesn't learn the same way as another student, the teacher's job is to create
lessons to meet the diverse needs of their students. Instructional accommodations should be
made in the content, process, product, and learning environment to benefit the learning of all
the students.
For this lesson:
CONTENT
The lesson is presented using presentation slides, while providing verbal and written
directions. This allows for students to understand the material by listening and reading.
PROCESS
The lesson is scaffolded to break up the lesson into comprehensive steps. The teacher
explicitly models how to do a Close Reading of a text by teaching students how to analyze a
text and directly write notes on a copy of the text. Through guided practice, the students are
coached to find evidence to understand author's purpose and explanation. For the Found
Poetry portion, the teacher also models how to complete the task and provides an example for
the students to see a completed project.
17. Strategies for Diverse Learners (cont.)
PRODUCT
The Found Poetry assignment is student-centered, because the students are able to
choose their favorite words and phrases, and how they construct
Depending on some students needs, some modifications will include using a form of
technology and being allowed extra time to complete the assignment.
LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
The lesson is structured: lecture, explanation, Q&A, modeling, and guided
practice. The learning environment is supportive and student-centered, as students
form small groups to work on their projects and the teacher circulates the room to
consult individual students.
