<p>This collection has students compare and contrast two artistic representations of American writer Gertrude Stein, a sculpture and a lithograph/collage.  Included for the teacher is the National Portrait Gallery's "Reading Portraiture Guide for Educators" from which the questions here were adapted.</p> <p>Resources providing background information for students include a video about the importance of body position and an article revealing philosophical influences on Stein.</p> <p>Use strategies suggested in the Guide, or the following questions, after students have read and reviewed the provided resources:</p> <p>1. Look at the first image (titled "Gertrude") and the second image (titled "Daibutsu Great Buddha") in this collection and write down observations.<br /></p> <p>2. How are "Gertrude" and "Daibutsu Great Buddha" similar and different?</p> <p>3. Watch the video and take note of the ways how the statue (titled "Gertrude Stein") represents Gertrude Stein. In what ways are "Gertrude Stein" similar and different to "Gertrude"? <br /></p> <p>4. In the article "A Sort of Modern Buddha: The Influence of of Yogic Philosophies on Gertrude Stein's Method of Writing" Marcie Bianco suggests in the second paragraph starting with, "What these philosopher's show..." that a statue of Stein was necessary to capture her character and personality. How do the ideas in this paragraph reflect how Stein is depicted in the "Gertrude"? <br /></p> <p>5. In the article paragraph eleven starting with "What these philosophers show..." the writer suggests how Gertrude Stein wrote poetry utilizing a mind-body connection. How does this idea connect to how she is depicted in "Gertrude"?</p> <p>6. After completing these steps, type in "Gertrude Stein" in the Learning Lab search engine and look at other portraits of her. How is she represented in other portraits? <br /></p> <p>7. How are the portraits alike and different? Compare these portraits with "Gertrude," "Gertrude Stein," and "Daibutsu Great Buddha". </p> <p>Tags: Gertrude Stein; poetry; American novelist; literature; Buddha; sculpture; visual art; portrait; analysis</p>

<p>This collection includes paintings of Harold Hart Crane, Edgar Allan Poe, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman that are blurry or undefined, and three photographs to show the actual appearance of these writers. In this student activity, students will be asked to look at the photographs and paintings of these American authors and form hypotheses to explain why the artists chose to blur them.  Students  will explore the commonalities and differences between the  paintings and photographs and use textual information or research to confirm their hypotheses. </p> <p><strong>Hart Crane:</strong> Known for his poetry, he struggled financially and personally throughout his short life. See more information in the description box. </p> <p><strong>Edgar Allan Poe:</strong> A poet and story writer of great originality, Poe suffered great poverty as one of the first Americans to try to make a living only as a writer. See more information in the description box. </p> <p><strong>Charlotte Perkins Gilman:</strong> A feminist and social pioneer, Gilman also wrote stories, novels, and poetry. For more information on Gilman, see <a href="https://www.radcliffe.harvard.edu/schlesinger-library/exhibition/woman-human-life-and-work-charlotte-perkins-gilman">https://www.radcliffe.harvard....</a></p> <p>1. What commonalities and differences do the paintings have? Create a list.</p> <p>2. What emotions do these commonalities and differences provoke?</p> <p>3. How do emotions affect the way one perceives an image? Compare and contrast the artworks with their photographic portraits. </p> <p>5. What information do photographs provide to deepen understanding of the paintings? </p> <p>Tags: poets; authors; mystery; creative writing; memoir; poetry; experimental writing.</p>

<p>This collection includes a video that presents the question: "What did the artist keep the same and what did he change? Why?" In this collection, there are multiple images of individuals who have made a strong contribution in society. The artists have  placed emphasis on the hands of the sitters. The objective is for students to compare and contrast multiple paintings, with the goal of gaining insights into ways portraitists convey personality with details.</p> <p>1. Watch the video and write down the similarities between the two paintings that are presented. What are some comments the narrator said about the people in the paintings? </p> <p>2. The narrator says the hands of the people are given great importance. Why do you think so?</p> <p>3. Write down the similarities of the people's hands in the portraits.</p> <p>4. Using that information,  create a T-Chart. On one side of the chart write the overall similarities of the people in the paintings (build upon the findings of the narrator) and on the other side, the differences. </p> <p>5. Using that information compare and contrast the second image and third images with the two paintings in the video. Add another column to the T-Chart and write down your findings. </p><p>6. Discuss or write about your conclusions as to what the painters were trying to express about the sitters.  Do you think they were effective?</p> <p>Tags: una troubridge;  statue; representation; character; photograph; painting; visual.<br /></p>