STANDARDS

Lexile: 960L

Core Art Standards:

VA2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.

VA5: Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.

VA8: Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work.

CCSS Anchor Standards:

R1: Make inferences and cite textual evidence.

R4: Interpret words and phrases.

W2: Write informative/explanatory texts.

Essential Question: How does knowing and using visual art vocabularies help us understand and interpret works of art?

Enduring Understanding: People gain insights into meanings of artworks by engaging in the process of art criticism.

Vocabulary: abstract, analogous colors, contours, emphasizes, flat, highlights, hues, illusion, monumental, motif, scale, shadows, threedimensional, vertical

Materials: computer or interactive whiteboard, “Graphic Organizer: Working With Pattern” skills sheets from Lesson Plan 1

Lesson: Playing With Patterns

Use with pages 6-7.

Objective: Students will analyze Kusama’s use of pattern in three artworks.

PREPARATION:

Review students’ notes from their “Graphic Organizer: Working With Pattern” skills sheets.

PROCEDURE:

Invite students to take turns reading each section aloud.
Encourage students to describe what they see as they observe each artwork. Ask: How does Yayoi Kusama work with pattern? (Kusama uses analogous colors, bright and muted hues, and a series of semicircles in her painting Nets; she uses both nets and dots to add dimension and shape to her painting of a pumpkin; she uses the scale of the dots strategically in her monumental sculpture.)
Have students record their findings in their “Graphic Organizer: Working With Pattern” skills sheets.

DISCUSSION:

What similar techniques does Kusama use in her two paintings? (Both paintings feature a net pattern and highlights and shadows that add dimension.)
How does Kusama create a sense of form in both the two-dimensional and three-dimensional representations of pumpkins? (Kusama plays with the scale of the polka-dot patterns, emphasizing the pumpkins’ shapes.)
Compare these works with those on pages 4-5. What do you notice? (Answers will vary but should refer to the images and text.)

REMOTE LEARNING:

Create an artwork featuring a vegetable. How will you portray the subject? How can you incorporate pattern into the composition?
Create a painting or drawing that contains a net pattern. What colors will you use? How will you use the net pattern within your artwork
Write a few sentences or a short paragraph about Kusama’s portrayal of pumpkins. Why does the pumpkin appeal to her as a subject? How does she portray them?