PBL in the Arts: What Came Before the Selfie?

The lesson is an entry point to PBL in Arts: "Why do people sit for portraits?". It introduces topics such as determining messages about the subjects of historical portraits, recognizing various styles in painting through portraits, and analyzing portraits painted in the past and those created in the present. Another important aspect of the lesson is the creative expression task – drawing a portrait. The project is based on the students looking for and analyzing portraits in their immediate environment.

Objectives:

• The students know what a portrait is.
  
• The students know how portraits painted during different periods differ from each other and can give an example.
  
• The students can say something about a work of art (portrait) that they are looking at, and use learned art vocabulary.
  
• The students can determine the messages communicated by an image.
  
• The students create an artwork – portrait – using the methods and materials given.
  

Vocabulary: portrait, official portrait, historical portrait, self-portrait, Picasso

First, the students watch a film featuring an artist who uses modern technology to create portraits. The video is a starting point for a class discussion. Next, the students take a quiz in groups, in which they guess the identity and occupation of persons depicted on paintings from various epochs. The next task is creative expression: students draw a portrait of a well-known person on the basis of an oral description. They also find out how portrait artists used to work in the past. Finally, the students look at portraits painted by Picasso and see how 20th century artists approached creating portraits.  

With this lesson plan, you get four multimedia presentations with reproductions of portraits, which you will need for the quiz and other exercises. You also get a description of a mystery man – a text to read as a basis for the students to draw their “dictated” portrait. The lesson plan also includes the film featuring the artist who creates portraits using new technology, and background knowledge about portraits, which will make it easier for you to prepare for and deliver the lesson. 

The lesson is an introduction to PBL in Arts and includes detailed tips for carrying out the “Why do people sit for portraits?” project and student materials – Project Sheets and Feedback Tickets.  

The materials you will need to gather before the lesson are: pencils/pens and paper for each student.