overview
Lesson 1 | Summary
Activity Pages
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
| lesson 1 | |
collaborators,
dictators,
managers & soloists |
activity | working styles
Artists often play many roles in the creation of their work. No
longer expected to work alone with the skill of their own hands,
contemporary artists have a vast range of new tools, specialists
skilled in the use of those tools, and working methods that incorporate
the collaborative participation of others, including audience members,
actors, unsuspecting strangers, filmmakers, master craftspeople,
and experts in new media technologies. Start a discussion about
the different creative roles involved in the production of art,
writing, theater, dance, etc. Define and discuss the words: collaborator,
manager, dictator, and soloist. What do these terms refer to or
describe? Ask students to consider their own creative process in
writing or art and share the way they receive inspiration and execute
their ideas. Do they depend on the expertise or assistance of others?
Who and why?
To further the conversation, use the links listed above to introduce
four different artists whose creative processes are dependent on
different working methods and collaborators. Discuss how Martin
Puryear, Kiki Smith, Richard
Serra, and Maya Lin all work as
both independent artists, managers of more elaborate or larger scale
projects, dictators conveying specific ideas and expectations for
the fabrication of their work, and collaborators who integrate the
ideas and suggestions of others they involve in their projects.
After becoming familiar with their work discuss the following:
| • |
Describe the process used by each
of the artists. |
| • |
How was their process
different from the artists who work alone? |
| • |
Who were the people
involved in the process and how would you describe their relationship
to the artist? |
| • |
What were the differences in collaborative,
managerial, or dictatorial relationships? |
| • |
How would you define the talents
and skills of the artists? |
| • |
How would you describe the talents
or skills of the people working for him or her? |
| • |
What are the advantages and disadvantages
of being a ‘director,’ a ‘dictator,’
a ‘collaborator,’ or a ‘soloist?’
|
| • |
What creative possibilities are
presented by each of their working styles? |
As a follow-up to your discussion, ask students to work with a partner
or in small groups for this activity. Create a list of different
roles that will be assigned to each member of the group such as
designer, fabricator, technician, archivist or documentarian, publicist,
etc. In their respective roles, have students go through the process
of brainstorming, planning and executing a brief skit or play, photographic
work, or video about an issue or concern that is important to them.
Ask each student to take notes about their role in the project.
Have students present and discuss their finished work and the roles
that they played in its production. How did student partners or
groups work together? How did students carry out their assigned
roles? What impact did these roles have on the creative process? |
|
