The Contemporary Art issue, May 2024

Filled with opportunities to build critical thinking skills and choice, this brand-new middle school art curriculum for grades 7–8 is designed to help students express their ideas and feelings through meaningful artmaking and see themselves as part of the learning process.

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The internet, computers, smartphones, and digital technology have made access to contemporary art and artists much more available. One of the best resources (along with SchoolArts) for educating your students about contemporary art and artists is Art21.

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The Contemporary Art Issue, May 2024

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As you read the articles about contemporary art in this issue and share the associated projects with your students, keep in mind that you’re not discarding the teaching of traditional artists and art-making approaches, but rather exposing students to a full range of possibilities at their disposal. The journey of artistic exploration knows no bounds, and by embracing the enormity of creative possibilities, we pave the way for an enriched artistic education.

How can we use various shapes to make a robot? Students will learn about the work of Eric Carle and use the collage method to create a robot.

How can motion be shown while drawing figures? Students will draw stick figures to suggest movement.

How can students use geometric shapes to create a kinetic sculpture? Students will deconstruct various materials to create geometric shapes to form a sculpture.

What methods can we use to create community through art? Students will create a mixed-media reduction relief print inspired by someone they look up to.

I took on this art research challenge to expand students’ knowledge of diverse contemporary artists, engage them in creating original works, and teach required skills, techniques, media, and genres. I call it Visual Research.

I’ve found that visual journaling is an excellent tool for steering students away from appropriation and helping them to develop their own diverse and creative approaches.

This therapy dog–centered approach to SEL and art is creating a more supportive classroom environment while connecting students with the art-making process and their peers.

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This book is filled with lessons that will encourage your students to learn about, respond to, and create contemporary art. Organized into chapters on Identity, Social and Emotional Issues, and Collaboration, you’ll find studio lessons based on concepts and essential questions. Engage students in projects that are meaningful and discover what their voices add to the contemporary conversation.

A visiting fiber artist shares his narrative textiles and creative process with middle-school students.

Elementary students investigate the landscape art of Dahlia Elsayed and create collaborative and individual collages

High-school students embrace mark-making as a whole-body exercise while using charcoal-taped drawing sticks.

Jacob Ginga is an art educator, painter, printmaker, and street artist. His passion for art and desire to connect with others are vital components of his practice. His works, even when completely nonobjective abstractions, such as Brackish Waters (p. 51), employ diverse visual languages that invite viewers to contemplate the narratives Ginga believes are inherent in all of his work, though he rarely delivers definitive statements.

Young students contemplate the large-scale paintings of Sean Scully and create multi-panel patterned compositions.

I had learned about handscapes (landscapes the size of one’s hand) from a visiting artist, and I thought pieces this size would be a nice contrast to the large paintings students had recently finished. I decided that postcard-like pieces about places we all long to visit or revisit after the pandemic would be relevant. And that’s how the project Anywhere But Here got its name.

Anyone studying contemporary art will notice that many modern visual artists use adaptation in their work. Adaptation can be a difficult concept for young artists to grasp. It has become so ubiquitous that I knew I needed to find a way for students to understand it so they could apply it in their own work. For my students, I defined adaptation as “taking an idea that already exists and putting your own spin on it.”

Printmaking seems like a magical art form to elementary students. They watch with fascination as they pull back their stamp to see a design transferred to paper. In this project, fourth-grade students make their own stamp, use it to create a patterned background, and then use the stamp again to create a print with a space invader as the subject. This project requires lots of repetition, pattern, and planning.

In 2022, forty-six students and I embarked on a soul-searching task to memorialize and honor the children whose lives were needlessly taken during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The Art Education in Practice Series is the single most comprehensive source for superior content in teacher education and professional development. Each contributor to this series is a nationally known expert on theory and practice in art education.

“We stashed disposable cameras ... all around Kalamazoo in the different neighborhoods with a flier in each bag instructing people to take pictures of the people, places, and things they love in town,” Roeder shared. “When people were done, they took the cameras to the Kalamazoo Public Library.”

SchoolArts articles are written by art educators just like you! Your ideas and advice are valuable to your peers around the world! Share your successful lessons, areas of concern, and approaches to teaching art.

Student artwork examples using Piktotape™. Get a box of PiktoTape™ and find lesson plans and more resources at DavisArt.com/PiktoTape.

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