8th grade Interdisciplinary Project - Renaissance Art Project

The first art project of the year for 8th grade was a Renaissance Art project.

Students were studying the European Renaissance in History.  The project was an opportunity for students to combine Renaissance concepts with important aspects from their own lives.  They created unique artwork based on 1 of 3 Renaissance concepts:

Observation as Poetry:

Leonardo Da Vinci believed the aim of art was to examine the world and imitate the world’s features – human forms and anatomy, architecture, animals, machinery, and beyond. Challenge #1 is to create artwork from observation.

This student created a series of observational drawings of hands.

Invention: Science Meets Art:

Da Vinci’s designs were spectacularly ahead of his time. If they had actually been built, they might have revolutionized the history of technology.  Challenge #2 is to create an invention that we need now or in the future.

Humanism: Changes in the Human Condition:

Da Vinci’s art reflected major social changes, as society moved out of the Dark Ages into the Renaissance.  Challenge #3 is to combine classical imagery with a modern message.

Botticelli's Birth of Venus becomes a modern commentary on the world.

The Mona Lisa is transformed into a commentary on celebrity worship.

The Mona Lisa is transformed into a commentary on social media and technology.

The Mona Lisa (a popular piece!) is transformed into a commentary on teen pregnancy.