Altered States
Spring 2004Altered States Home
to Web Board LoginFebrurary Lab Days: M-9, M-16
For Wednesday, 2-4: MEET IN THE CLASSROOM. Please read Ackerman's Introduction and Smell, pp. 5-37, up to the Fallen Angel heading. Be ready to discuss the reading assignment in your diagnostic essay. Two diagnostic prompts will be provided in class.
This is a practice paper. It won't be graded. We'll use it to talk about what's working and what can be improved in future, graded papers. Be prepared to read your work aloud in class.
Also for Friday: Bring something fragrant to class, something that you think smells wonderful. Be prepared to describe the scent in metaphorical terms.
"Why can't this man feel whether or not he's standing up?" -- an article from the APA Monitor.
After the Web Board Discussion on the article above, click the links below to answer the prompt based on these three paintings by Vincent Van Gogh:
Sunflowers
Starry Night
The Sower
Follow the Web Board prompts. Then print this aritcle and bring it to class with you Wednesday:
"Why McDonald's Fries Taste So Good" by Eric Schlosser
March Lab Days: W-3, F-5, M-8, M-31
and
comma splices & run-on sentences
And here's some information regarding your papers' introductions:
UNC Writing Center Handout
Franklin and Marshall Writing Center Handout
English Works Handout
Spring Break
Some Frida and Diego stuff:
Frida Kahlo
another Kahlo site
Diego Rivera Web Museum
Diego Rivera Murals
April Lab Dates (subject to change):
4-7, 4-12, 4-14, 4-19, 4-21
Here are some excerpts from last year's yellow diaries:
...When I step outside, a true yellow isn't easy to decipher, but there is a yellowish glare over everything. The sun gleams off whatever it can...it ricochets off buildings, stings your eyes glaring off metal, and lightens your path. It can even be found in the sky on sunny days, but it is so illusive, yellow may not even be the most fitting description...AB
...Searching through yellow books, I am constantly reminded of why I don't enjoy writing research papers. As I photocopy too many pages, I notice a kid in a yellow shirt giving me a funny look. If I punch him in the eye, will it turn black, blue, and then that disturbing yellow color of damaged flesh? FH
...it is already 7 pm and the sun is slowly starting to set, which makes my way back to Donner quite pleasant because in front of me there is a beautiful pink and yellow sky. Back in my room after eating my sandwich with yellow cheese, I sit at my computer to type my yellow diary...the last thing I see before I finish is a picture of my family, and in it I am wearing a yellow sweater that matches the yellow scarf my mom is wearing. LS
...In my observation, when yellow is the dominant color it seems to be overwhelming, almost irritating. Perhaps the reason could be that yellow is such a dominant color, laced with a subconscious implication of caution. Yet, in small doses, it may be interpreted as invigorating... SH
Colors can tell stories, express feelings, and control people's actions. The color yellow, I believe, is the most powerful color there is...yellow cannot be categorized as easily as the other two primary colors. Yellow has no sex. The color yellow is a free color...TL
Martin Scorsese's The Blues
Read the defining essay.
Read the "12-bar Blues" link.
Three Blues Poems by Kevin Young
"Weary Blues" by Langston Hughes
Visit the website of The Art Institute of Chicago. Check out AIC paintings by these artists. Assign (5) groups and (5) paintings.
Gustav Caillebotte
Georges Seurat
Vincent van Gogh
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Archibald J. Motley,Jr.
Pablo Picasso
Edward Hopper
Georgia O'Keeffe
Paul Gauguin
Claude MonetAltered States Final Project Preview: Group Portion
Print this guide--Make sure to bring it to Chicago!
objectives
•to incorporate the semester's readings and discussions on sensation, color, and creativity in a group presentation
•to use a CAI painting as the focal point for the presentation
•to document source information using an MLA style Works Cited pageassignment guidelines
Each group will be assigned a CAI artist and painting. At the Art Institute, groups will view their artists' paintings together, discuss the work, and take notes about the painting using the outline below. (Groups not going to Chicago should plan dates together in the computer lab, and/or assign a group member to make color prints for each person in the group.)1. Your artist bio will be the first item in your presentation. Write a healthy paragraph or two about the artist belonging to your favorite painting. Make sure to document sources.
2. Next, describe the visual aspects--simply describe the painting as if you were talking to someone who had never seen it before. Be thorough. The painting will be projected overhead—you'll need to make a color transparency of your painting—as your group describes it, so you'll have an added advantage. But you'll still need to describe, in detail, both the readily visible and "hidden" features of your painting.3. What do you find most visually striking about this painting (color, texture, light, movement, etc.)? In your presentation, you'll need to refer specifically to these visual elements and others that enhance the audience's response to your painting.
4. What mood does this painting produce—how would you describe the tone and "attitude" of the painting? Choose specific and appropriate adjectives and metaphors (Think Ackerman!).
*5. If you were asked to set this painting to music, what piece would you choose? If your music selection is not widely known, please preview its instrumentation, tone, and rhythm for us before you play the music.
*6. If you were asked to assign a smell to this painting (and don't say it smells like old paint), what scent would it omit?
7. If you were to plan a dinner party for this painting, what food would be on the menu? Design a menu for the painting, from appetizer to dessert. Make your descriptions very Ackerman.
8. What is unique about this painting's surface, or texture? Describe its "touch" qualities.
* In your final presentation, you will distribute a scent or play a piece of music to accompany your painting.
GRADE-BOOSTER OPTION FOR O'BRIEN PAPER: Make it 2.5 pages, and add two direct quotes. Write "grade" on the top, by your name, and the grades you get, if they are Bs or better, will be added to your other paper grades and averaged to your benefit.
May Lab Date (subject to change)
5-5
F-14: Final Portfolio Due, Radford 209, 2 p.m.