Museum
field trip preparation
The field trip is part of your HSA this semester, so you have a mission when you go, which you need to understand ahead of time!
enter
it'S not just a field trip- it's your research for your hsa project
This field trip is part of your HSA project for this semester, meaning that it contributes to a number of grades in your immediate future this marking period (and potentially the next as well). You will need to make concrete, thoughtful observations about what you see and experience there to help you undertake those tasks (you will have something to fill in as you view the exhibits). This presentation will help you be ready for the trip as well, so be careful and intentional as you go through it!
pay attention!
things to Know before you go
We will have limited time on our trip, so we need to be ready to hit the ground running (mentally, not literally) when we get there. The two videos that follow will help prepare you for your purpose, which is gathering information for your HSA museum project. The first video gives you background into how museums have functioned in the past, and the second video will help you interact with the artwork in the museum.
ABOUT THE MUSEUM...
The museum is in a new complex called the Athenaeum on the campus of the University of Texas at Dallas. The buses will drop us off and pick us up at the spot seen in the image above. This is your chance to show that you're more mature than the typical high school student and can handle a trip like this for academic purposes. You are a reflection of your school, your teachers, and your parents- so represent us well and engage and enjoy the day!
NOTE: Most exhibits are NOT to be touched, but some are interactive and you CAN touch them, so pay close attention to the signs on the displays.
crow collection of asian art at the athenaeum
The exhibits in the museum are either part of the larger Crow collection whose main display is downtown near the Dallas Museum of Art, or are on temporary loan as rotating collection from the artists. The museum is compact, so navigating through it will not be confusing. To help with that, click on the arrows below to know where to go!
abouT their temporary exhibits...
EXPLORE THEirPERMANENT COLLECTION...
Consider this...
Keep an Open Mind
1st
When you walk into an art museum, try not to have any preconceived notions about what you're about to see, says art historian Susie Hodge. Some artworks may be surprising, others might be a let down. And that's OK. "So many people have said to me they're disappointed with the size of the Mona Lisa. They expect it to be huge and it's tiny. So some people will be disappointed by that," she says. And don't let the art intimidate you. "Don't go in and think, 'It's all very heavy, it's art,' " says Hodge. "It can just be fun. It can just be something that tickles my senses and grabs me." So allow yourself to feel however the art makes you feel, she says. You can love it. You can hate it. You can cry, feel angry or laugh. Viewing art can have a profound impact on our psyche, says Hodge. Studies have shown that it can lower stress — particularly when people view images of landscapes and seascapes. And it makes us feel good. Another study found that looking at a gorgeous painting or sculpture increased blood flow to the brain by as much as 10% — the equivalent of looking at someone you love.
Let the Art be a Conduit for your Emotions
2nd
Even though it may not be what the artist intended, let yourself draw personal connections to the art, says Hodge. A color, a pattern or flower in a painting, for example, "might trigger something in the deep recesses of your memory or your childhood," she says. Pay attention to your own emotional landscape too. What's going on in your own life can affect how you view a work, says Hodge. These free associations will help elicit an emotional reaction when you look at a work. Let your mind wander and follow your train of thought wherever it leads you. And a deep connection "will happen," says Hodge.
3rd
Really Look at the Art
Once you're in front of the artwork, what should you do? Get up close and personal. We have the luxury of seeing the real thing at a museum, says San Francisco Fine Arts Museum Educator PJ Policarpio, so take your time to observe qualities about a work that may not come through on a computer screen. That includes its ... Texture: the look and feel of its surface Brushstrokes: the marks made by the brush across the surface Movement: the path your eyes take when viewing the work Stand back. Next, he says, take a few steps back, stand in the center — and observe what's happening in the big picture. What's going on in the piece? How are the figures in the piece arranged? "What are they doing? How are they related? What is the action?" says Policarpio. Look at it from an angle. Then, Hodge says to try looking at an artwork from its sides, because you might catch something you might not have seen straight on. "If you stand to the side, you might see something that from front on looks very different. When you stand to the side, it changes. That's called anamorphic art," she says. Move your body. If you're looking at a painting, you can take a finger to the air and trace the outline of the figure or the movement of the brushstrokes, says Policarpio, who does this exercise with his students at the museum where he works. And when looking at sculptures, try mimicking the poses with your body. This can help you "see and feel what it might be like to make this artwork" from the artist's perspective, he adds.
4th
Reflect & Appreciate
So how does looking at the composition, the brushstrokes, the color, the subject or the kind of artistic technique help you actually make a personal connection to an artwork?Policarpio says all this observation can help us more deeply appreciate how artists express their emotions and make sense of the world around them. In turn, it can open up new pathways and possibilities of how we might make sense of these things in our lives too. "When we look at art and open ourselves to understanding it, we gain a deeper understanding not just of artists, but also different kinds of ways of making and moving," he says.
AbouT lunch...
>>>READ THIS!<<<
the Student union
Following our museum visit, you will be able to go get lunch from the food court in the UTD Student Union, which is a short walk north of the museum across from the campus library. Since we have a set time we're leaving to return to Wakeland, it's critical that you get there and back quickly and also KEEP TRACK OF TIME!
The parent chaperones are on the field trip for a reason. Each one of them will be watching over a group of students, and if they ask or tell you to do something- do it! Two years ago Humanities students from another high school in Frisco damaged an exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art, so act mature, be respectful, and mind your elders like Confucius said!
Museum Prep Guide
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Transcript
Museum
field trip preparation
The field trip is part of your HSA this semester, so you have a mission when you go, which you need to understand ahead of time!
enter
it'S not just a field trip- it's your research for your hsa project
This field trip is part of your HSA project for this semester, meaning that it contributes to a number of grades in your immediate future this marking period (and potentially the next as well). You will need to make concrete, thoughtful observations about what you see and experience there to help you undertake those tasks (you will have something to fill in as you view the exhibits). This presentation will help you be ready for the trip as well, so be careful and intentional as you go through it!
pay attention!
things to Know before you go
We will have limited time on our trip, so we need to be ready to hit the ground running (mentally, not literally) when we get there. The two videos that follow will help prepare you for your purpose, which is gathering information for your HSA museum project. The first video gives you background into how museums have functioned in the past, and the second video will help you interact with the artwork in the museum.
ABOUT THE MUSEUM...
The museum is in a new complex called the Athenaeum on the campus of the University of Texas at Dallas. The buses will drop us off and pick us up at the spot seen in the image above. This is your chance to show that you're more mature than the typical high school student and can handle a trip like this for academic purposes. You are a reflection of your school, your teachers, and your parents- so represent us well and engage and enjoy the day!
NOTE: Most exhibits are NOT to be touched, but some are interactive and you CAN touch them, so pay close attention to the signs on the displays.
crow collection of asian art at the athenaeum
The exhibits in the museum are either part of the larger Crow collection whose main display is downtown near the Dallas Museum of Art, or are on temporary loan as rotating collection from the artists. The museum is compact, so navigating through it will not be confusing. To help with that, click on the arrows below to know where to go!
abouT their temporary exhibits...
EXPLORE THEirPERMANENT COLLECTION...
Consider this...
Keep an Open Mind
1st
When you walk into an art museum, try not to have any preconceived notions about what you're about to see, says art historian Susie Hodge. Some artworks may be surprising, others might be a let down. And that's OK. "So many people have said to me they're disappointed with the size of the Mona Lisa. They expect it to be huge and it's tiny. So some people will be disappointed by that," she says. And don't let the art intimidate you. "Don't go in and think, 'It's all very heavy, it's art,' " says Hodge. "It can just be fun. It can just be something that tickles my senses and grabs me." So allow yourself to feel however the art makes you feel, she says. You can love it. You can hate it. You can cry, feel angry or laugh. Viewing art can have a profound impact on our psyche, says Hodge. Studies have shown that it can lower stress — particularly when people view images of landscapes and seascapes. And it makes us feel good. Another study found that looking at a gorgeous painting or sculpture increased blood flow to the brain by as much as 10% — the equivalent of looking at someone you love.
Let the Art be a Conduit for your Emotions
2nd
Even though it may not be what the artist intended, let yourself draw personal connections to the art, says Hodge. A color, a pattern or flower in a painting, for example, "might trigger something in the deep recesses of your memory or your childhood," she says. Pay attention to your own emotional landscape too. What's going on in your own life can affect how you view a work, says Hodge. These free associations will help elicit an emotional reaction when you look at a work. Let your mind wander and follow your train of thought wherever it leads you. And a deep connection "will happen," says Hodge.
3rd
Really Look at the Art
Once you're in front of the artwork, what should you do? Get up close and personal. We have the luxury of seeing the real thing at a museum, says San Francisco Fine Arts Museum Educator PJ Policarpio, so take your time to observe qualities about a work that may not come through on a computer screen. That includes its ... Texture: the look and feel of its surface Brushstrokes: the marks made by the brush across the surface Movement: the path your eyes take when viewing the work Stand back. Next, he says, take a few steps back, stand in the center — and observe what's happening in the big picture. What's going on in the piece? How are the figures in the piece arranged? "What are they doing? How are they related? What is the action?" says Policarpio. Look at it from an angle. Then, Hodge says to try looking at an artwork from its sides, because you might catch something you might not have seen straight on. "If you stand to the side, you might see something that from front on looks very different. When you stand to the side, it changes. That's called anamorphic art," she says. Move your body. If you're looking at a painting, you can take a finger to the air and trace the outline of the figure or the movement of the brushstrokes, says Policarpio, who does this exercise with his students at the museum where he works. And when looking at sculptures, try mimicking the poses with your body. This can help you "see and feel what it might be like to make this artwork" from the artist's perspective, he adds.
4th
Reflect & Appreciate
So how does looking at the composition, the brushstrokes, the color, the subject or the kind of artistic technique help you actually make a personal connection to an artwork?Policarpio says all this observation can help us more deeply appreciate how artists express their emotions and make sense of the world around them. In turn, it can open up new pathways and possibilities of how we might make sense of these things in our lives too. "When we look at art and open ourselves to understanding it, we gain a deeper understanding not just of artists, but also different kinds of ways of making and moving," he says.
AbouT lunch...
>>>READ THIS!<<<
the Student union
Following our museum visit, you will be able to go get lunch from the food court in the UTD Student Union, which is a short walk north of the museum across from the campus library. Since we have a set time we're leaving to return to Wakeland, it's critical that you get there and back quickly and also KEEP TRACK OF TIME!
The parent chaperones are on the field trip for a reason. Each one of them will be watching over a group of students, and if they ask or tell you to do something- do it! Two years ago Humanities students from another high school in Frisco damaged an exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art, so act mature, be respectful, and mind your elders like Confucius said!