Aesthetic Experience

ays ago, switching channels I stumble upon a show called: "How I Met Your Mother" where the character named Marshall delivers an aesthetic experience description of pizza.

The description was beautiful and funny at the same time; it could be advantageously added to an art lesson perhaps in the form of an attention grabber in which students could successfully learn what aestheticism is all about.

Checking on FB a friend posts information about 12 billboards in NJ that will be showing art pieces by the minimalist artist Felix-Gonzales-Torres.

Once again, technology in this case the “internet” is providing information about current and relevant to the time and place in which we live.

It would be ideal if the students coincidentally were exposed to those billboards during the outdoor exhibition and then share with the class what they saw, and what they thought about it. Reinforcing the connection of life outside the school as well as the nature of inquiring. 

As a future art teacher I want to incorporate knowledge treasures that I find in mainstream media into my lessons plans so that the students relate to.

It is beneficial to stay current with technology and media so we can adapt the lessons to our technological era because the students will truly learn when they make connections with the world that they live in.

Technology is giving educators many more options to be creative, and in regards to art education; art is no longer static.

It is becoming a new vocabulary that expresses itself in many forms.

Moreover considering that a great majority of students is so attached to their phones, ipads, ipods, computers, etc.

There is no question that as teachers we need to embrace technology and be the facilitators that guide the students of what to search, set them goals, and give them suggestions.  

Technology & Pedagogy

The lesson plan I chose consists on the students creating a monochromatic portrait painting based on a printed digital photograph that is altered with Photoshop. (Other software should be available)

Once the students have their own personal portrait altered and printed they are ready to copy the image, (projector to trace should be optional!) and start painting with light values or tints by adding white to the color they choose and shades or dark values by adding black.

I chose this lesson plan because technology and traditional art merge in order to understand principles of art. It is practical and also beneficial to teenagers because to create self-portraits and choosing a color helps construct the sense of self.

The gaps that I found were essentially the lack of some technologies (software and projectors) the technology used is practical but since technology is ever changing some modifications could be suitable.

aramayospreadsheet

I believe that the technologies used to achieve the goal of painting a monochromatic portrait are practical, not necessarily essential although they are indeed very useful when we consider that we have time frames and when we have a clear objective of what the goal for the lesson plan is.

An additional technology that could be useful is a projector or a smart board to show a slide show of monochromatic works of art to inspire the students, but it is not necessary if the teacher provides hard copies.

In my opinion to integrate technology in this lesson plan not only facilitates the understanding that the students attain about color composition and depth but it ensures that all the students in a classroom artistically skilled or not accomplish a successful art piece. 

WHAT WOULD WE THINK ABOUT WITHOUT TECHNOLOGY?

Paper vs Art & Pen Tablet

Traditional art, art that is physically done in surfaces such as paper, canvas, wood, etc. and as technology increases it is progressively being replaced by digital images.

As a future art teacher I believe it is very useful to instruct my students on how to use a graphic art pen tablet so they can become more familiar with graphic design.

Please note that by the word “tablet” I mean a device or medium used to digitally draw, I would consider that a tablet is the evolution of a mouse.

The difference with a tablet and a mouse is that the tablet mimics the shape of your screen so it is not like a mouse where the cursor easily gets lost.  You know that it you place then pen of the center of the tablet you are pointing at the center of the screen.

The pen is cordless and battery free  which gives you a greater control than a mouse, it allows expression permitting free hand drawing or writting, additionally the texture of the tablet against the pen feels like paper so it is easier to handle lines.

 Moreover the tablet is a great medium because it has a pressure sensitivity, meaning that the pressure that we use in the pencil imitates the pressure we can use in a traditional drawing of pencil and paper.

The pen alone cannot do much because it requires the use software.  Usually a graphic art pen tablet is sold along with software.

Software that could be potentially benefited by the use of a tablet and pen are Corel Painter Essentials, Photoshop, Sketchbook pro, Manga Studio, etc.

Brands of tablets are VT PenPad, Wacom, Intuous, Monoprice, Huion in between others.

Digital drawing offers a great flexibility when it comes to create images.  It offers a vast range of choices and tools, it is easy to undo and erase errors. 

Using this medium to create art is one of the most versatile tools because It allows a variety of  finishes, such as the look of a painting, a drawing, etc.

digital drawing changes the technique or strategy of the artist, it teachers the person how to think in layers.  As if thinking about foreground, mid-ground, background and everything in between.

From a practical standpoint the use of digital mediums such as the art tablet allow us to create art in short lapses of time and with a small budget.  I would imagine that tablets could easily be used for minimum three school years and the programs will last maybe even more.

Through digital art the students have the opportunity to produce many more

Visual imagery than traditional art permits in 45 minute class periods. Additionally it enhances their technological literacy.

Digital art It is becoming one of the most widely used mediums in museums and galleries as well as commercial art by professionals such as animator, filmmaker, illustrators, cartoonist, digital artists amongst others.

Art & Technology

Today, art and technology gives everybody an opportunity to explore the potential of our own innate creativity, because we are provided with vast opportunities and many fields to explore thanks to its constant improvement.

In my future art teacher carrier compared to the reality a few years ago I have the advantage to be able to create art with old and new medias that are readily available thanks to the speed of technology and its efficiency.  

Visions, inspirations have more potential to be manifested because of technology, because we have more tools therefore we have more options.

I personally wanted to stay true to traditional Fine Arts but technology is so appealing that it would be mindless to not give in to all of its promises.

On this writing I would like to emphasize the use of two computer programs/software, which open a window to creativity at a higher level.

Maria Jose Cadiz - Japanese Garden (Sketchup design)

When teaching high school students about perspective and they learn how to create depth through one point or two-point perspective the student is more than ready to start exploring perspective through a program called Sketchup (www.sketchup.com) to create 3D drawings, architecture. (Which has a license grant opportunity for k-12 schools in NJ at no cost)

This program allows you to create a design and surf through it dimensionally from all perspectives.

Maria Jose Cadiz - Japanese Garden (Sketchup design)

Although as a future art teacher I am not expecting that all of my students will have extraordinary artistic skills and I do not want them to have a hard time with programs if that quality doesn’t seem to suit what they could be potentially good at.  

I want them to try, and challenge themselves, but at the same time I want them to find what they would like to do and offer feasible tasks.

 I was also looking at an online service that I can’t wait to try, it is called GoAnimate, This animation program could be used by students to create moving pictures without necessarily being skillful to draw,  (technology works on our favor.)

 GoAnimate offers customized characters, scenes and props.  Students could use this program to create an animation where they combine the artistic aspect of the animation with all the subjects they could choose.  Language art for its context of scripting/storyboard, music if they choose to add to it to the background, math and science if they work on that theme.

Students can already expose themselves to the work that professionals can do. They can play with parameters of an architect, an animator, film maker, mathematician, etc.

The world will need all kinds of minds. Technology and art gives us an opportunity for ART to be seen as it is: INVENTIVE and intellectually stimulating.

Technology and art encourages people to try things out, to see what happens when we try to communicate through visuals and the outcome is not necessarily the purpose but to satisfy the curiosity because creativity learns from mistakes,

Art and technology will help students develop problem solving skills that will defend them in an uncertain future that awaits us.  Art and technology will teach how to DESIGN for a better world. 

Technology Autobiography

I believe that in the time that we are living technology is becoming essential.

The three most influential technologies as of this year are my cellphone, computer and television. (All Internet connected)

Smartphone

 Before I got a smartphone I use to think that a phone should only be used for its purpose, which was to make and receive phone calls, not to get online.

It wasn’t until one day I went to an afternoon class immediately after work. I got to class as usual and the professor didn’t show up, nearly 2/3rds of the class were absent as well so some of us decided to go to the computer lab to get access to an email.  It happened that the professor wrote to us last minute stating that we were to meet at the museum as opposed to class.

We were 1/3 of the class who were in disadvantage because we didn’t have access to the computer that day before class.

That’s when I realized I needed to get a smart phone.

When I finally got a smart phone everything became practical.

My cellphone wakes me up with its alarm clock, the weather forecast is accurate to the area code I am at.I can check emails, blackboard for school. I also browse through the Internet, and scan bar codes to identify convenient prices. I make local and international (Skype) phone calls, text, take pictures, record video, write notes and reminders, keep an agenda and even measure the length of a wall for a mural!

The cons of a smartphone are that it keeps me constantly multitasking between applications.  I seem to engage with more than one task throughout intervals of time and that gets carried over to real life as a sort of attention deficit.

For example when I am doing homework, I interrupt it because of a push notification I get from my email and before I am even done reading I receive a phone call and a text.

Bouncing from one activity to another disrupts my organizational skills.

Also when I send a text message and I have it on English but I am typing on Spanish the auto dictionary corrections will entirely change the wording of my texts so I need to constantly reassure to change the language settings.

In addition to wrong auto corrections, texts by themselves could be misinterpreted because each person has a different tone.

Computer:

I use my computer essentially to write papers, access my emails and browse information. I use social networks that make it easier for me to stay in touch with friends and family around the world. I also have the option to interact with them through Skype and lately FB.

I pay bills online and check statements which is to me much more convenient than getting and sending postal mail.

Negative influences:

It is distracting; I have more than one tab open at a time. I may be doing research on one topic and get driven to investigate something irrelevant until I realize I am wasting my time.

It is now very difficult for me to write a paper by hand, because on the computer I have the ability to edit my words, change the order of my phrases, etc.

There is a big chance of identity theft when exposing our life’s online and making purchases.

TV

I watch few shows on TV that I record on the Digital Video Recorder and watch them before I go to sleep.

It is entertaining. Provides information.

Problems

I use the TV for leisure only, and when I don’t record the shows I cant skip the commercials. Meaning I need to be brainwashed for almost 1/3 of the time that I watch TV.

Additionally some of the information provided on the news is not important as information that you could read on the computer, newspaper or radio (NPR news)

I agree with many of the aspects of technology that the young people talk about on the video of 
"Learning to Change, Change to Learn"

I agree that technology is a necessity for civilized people, unless you choose to have a sustainable lifestyle in a very remote place in the world.

Technology does help us become better learners; we could watch a documentary on TV/Computer/or smartphone and probably absorb more information in less time than reading a book.

When the teenager says, “I would say that experimenting with technology is what really makes it technology.” 

It wasn’t until more people started using smart phones that the cellphone companies started making it feasible to have packages of Internet, text and talk at affordable prices.

 I didn’t use to text 5 years ago as much as I do now because 5 years ago people did not text as much as they do now. It takes several people to make it work.

 One difference I can make is that I don't agree with getting a device attached to us as prosthetic or a microchip, we get closer and closer to that reality with new technologies like Google Glasses and I'm Watch.
I am neutral when people use slang or abbreviations when texting because language will eventually change.  Although,  No one is laughing out loud when they type LOL,  It is such a disassociation of meaning.

To conclude technology shapes us everyday, it is up to us to discern what do we want from it and what should we avoid.  We need to be selective and be aware that we are the ones that should control it and not be controlled by it. 
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I placed an image I found because I thought it was suitable to this topic.  For the ones that do not understand Spanish, it says is:

 Expectatives: Send my e-mails!-Take me to my friend's house!-Show me the news!-Send this picture!- and the cell says: Yes sir. 

Reality: Charge me!- Get me wifi, now!-New e-mail, read it!-Pick up the phone call!-465 updates,update! 
Person says: Yes sir.