Brushpainting (interactive)
Create your own brush-painted masterpiece.
Create your own brush-painted masterpiece.
Students will learn how to paint a lotus flower using Chinese brushpainting techniques.
Students analyze objects from South Asia, West Asia, and China to connect to the travel experiences of ancient merchants and traders, develop an understanding of the breadth of the land and sea trade, and explore how art and ideas travel and change over time and place.
Students will be able to identify, compare and contrast images of traditional Japanese woodblock prints. They will then create their own simulated woodblock prints.
Students will use map resources to label a map of Afghanistan with its current bordering countries, current key cities, and ancient sites/cities: Students will learn the geographical placement of Afghanistan in Asia and its neighboring countries. This knowledge will bring a heightened awareness of the influence and exchange among nearby countries with Afghanistan—culturally, politically, and militarily. They will also become familiar with the names of ancient sites and their location in present-day Afghanistan.
Students will view representations of literary epics, read related excerpts, and discuss how those scenes exemplify the code of the samurai.
Students will complete a map of Japan, identify how its proximity to China and Korea influenced samurai culture, and discuss how its geography informed governing policies.
Students will discuss the ways in which spiritual belief supported and enhanced the military function and cultural values of the samurai. They will experience this practice through an ink painting activity.
Create your own hanging scroll and name seal.
This selection of resources introduces students to the vocabulary, techniques, and values of East Asian ink painting. Lessons and background information compliment the Brushpainting: Nature in Art school program at the Asian Art Museum.
Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry made of three lines (5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables) that is commonly a meditation on nature. Make an image using colorful paper and ink, and then write a haiku inspired by your creation.
Students will use images of samurai armor and weaponry to learn related vocabulary. They will describe the functional and aesthetic aspects of armor through focused viewing and reading, and they will draw conclusions about the changing code of the samurai over the course of 800 years.
Students use visual evidence to convey character by constructing a visual identity for their shadow puppet, and demonstrate principles of shadow-casting and puppet-making by performing their shadow play.
Students will: 1.) Learn that Buddhism is a religion founded by an enlightened young Indian prince who became the Buddha. 2.) Learn how the Buddha’s birthday, a national holiday, is celebrated in Korea. 3.) Discuss how the lotus flower is symbol of purity and wisdom. 3.) Construct a lotus blossom lantern.
Students brainstorm the qualities of good and evil and draw conclusions about the Balinese concept of “dynamic” or balanced opposites. Then, students will relate the idea of “dynamic opposites” in the Ramayana (Story of Rama) to present-day situations by identifying a current problem, creating a visual identify for their own pair of opposing characters, and scripting a dialogue.
Students will become members of the “literati/scholar” class by demonstrating their understanding of Chinese history, philosophy, and poetry. They will also display high achievement in the “Three Perfections”: calligraphy, painting, and poetry. This project is designed to be a creative alternative to daily or weekly assignments which might otherwise be assembled in a notebook or binder at the end of the 7th-grade Medieval China unit.
Students will summarize and illustrate the main events of a folktale from Japan in the format of kamishibai slides and retell their stories using their kamishibai slides.
Included are interdisciplinary suggested activities and downloadable handouts for approaching this subject through skill sets applied across world history studies.
In this project-based unit, students examine the questions, legends, and facts surrounding the Terracotta Army of China’s First Emperor (Qin Shihuang). The goal of this unit is to guide students through the process of inquiry using art objects to explore history, science, and art.
Students create a murakkaalar (calligraphy album) of their name and adjectives that describe their personality written in Arabic. They will make a calligraphy reed and learn to write with it. A kit’alar is a calligraphic work written on a rectangular piece of paper pasted onto a cardboard backing. Equal margins are left around the calligraphy in which the artist decorates with marbled paper (ebru) or illumination. A murrakkalar is a series of kit’alar attached together in an album that resembles an accordion.
Create Balinese shadow puppets with these downloadable templates.
Make a (katazome) kimono using this template.
Students will learn the significance of balancing the military and cultural arts and write their own waka poem.
The term, bushido, is often used to describe the samurai warrior code during medieval and modern times. The definition refers to a late 19th century description and was actually quite different than codes from earlier times. Compare warrior codes from different times with the modern definition of bushido. Then, choose which code you think matches the samurai in the screen painting, the Battles at Ichi-no-tani and Yashima, from The Tale of the Heike.
Students demonstrate mastery of narrative content and develop vocabulary by supplying words deleted from a text of "The Monkey King" story and through an expository writing activity summarizing the "Monkey King" story. Includes a shadow puppet extension activity.
In groups, students will research and present information about the First Emperor’s accomplishments and legacy.
Students will: 1.) create a pocket size version of kamishibai and illustrate a Japanese folktale; 2.) learn the history of kamishibai; 3.) use oral, written, and visual language in presenting Japanese folktales; 4.) discuss the similarities and differences in American and Japanese storytelling traditions; 4.) gain an awareness of Japanese culture and Japanese society in early to mid-20th century.
Create a helmet out of folded paper, called origami. Decorate it with added embellishments and markings to simulate the patterns of lacing and other details.
Students express the Balinese concept of working together to create a community by applying the kecak musical pattern of interlocking parts to "Mary Had a Little Lamb," and design their own chant using words or sounds to represent their characters.
Students are introduced to the Ramayana (Story of Rama) and recall events by sequencing related art objects on a Story Hill. Then students make connections between artistic and literary depictions of character by comparing Vishnu and Ravana.