Look Natural
Look Natural Mission Statement
The students in this group explored artistic traditions of naturalism and of representing “human nature.” Our goal was to aid students in enhancing their drawing abilities while developing their abilities to understand and represent their life experiences.
We began the class by teaching skills in representational drawing—measuring angles, gestural line, shading, and color choices—using boxes, ribbons, and ornaments as our subject matter.
We created projects that encouraged students to reflect on the “naturalness” of their experiences of holidays such as Christmas. Students investigated their responses to gift giving and receiving and the nuances of their feelings during family holidays. What feelings do the holidays invoke in us? How are our current feelings conditioned by previous experiences? We created narrative drawings and collages using text and visual imagery. The class implicitly contrasted generic, kitsch Christmas imagery with student projects in which they questioned social conventions and represented more complex stories and emotions. Students in Look Natural learned that analysis, reflection, and deconstruction are just as important as naturalistic drawing in making art.
Look Natural Faculty: Maria Choi, Erin Doherty, & Jennifer Richter Trejo
2002 Spiral Workshop Director: Olivia Gude
Download Look Natural presentation containing project descriptions and examples of student work of the semester long curriculum.