Surrealist Parlor Games - The Exquisite Corpse

Ms. M : Today we are going to make Exquisite Corpse drawings.
Student: We are going to draw a bunch of dead people!? 
Ms. M: Not exactly... 

The game of Exquisite Corpse drawing began as a Surrealist Parlor Game in which players take turns drawing on the same sheet of paper. The paper is divided into three sections. The first player draws the head of the corpse, then folds the paper to conceal part of the drawing, and then pass it to the next player for a further contribution (body and legs). 

Below are some of the Art 1 & Art 2 Exquisite Corpse Drawings. 

Happy Creating, 

Ms. M

Surrealist Parlor Games- Name Game

What is in a name... ? 

Well in at class today we saw everything from creepy crawlies to beautiful jewels. 

This activity, variously called “Seeing Into” by Max Ernst or the “Paranoiac Critical Method” by Salvador Dali, enables artists to access content from the unconscious mind.

Seeing into is best compared to looking at the sky and seeing a rabbit in the clouds. You know there is not a rabbit in the sky but your mind associates shapes with familiar objects. 

Today, students painted their name on one half of a piece of 11x16 construction paper. They then folded the paper while the paint was still wet creating a Mirrored or Symmetrical design. 

Once the paint was dry, the students "saw into" their names. 

Below are some the their works in progress. 

Happy Creating, 

Ms. M 

 

Play.

What is creating without playing? This month in Art, we will be exploring the idea of play. Turning to the Surrealists for guidance, we will use the Surrealist Book of Games  (available on Amazon) as our guide. Each week we will play a new game, creating projects on the way. 

We will start by evaluating the Paranoid Critical Method by Seeing Into the world around us. Following our class discussion, we will join the Surrealists by creating Exquisite Corpse drawings, writing Poem of opposites, and concluding our lesson with a Seeing Into fumage and sand project. 


Check back for Student Art in the coming weeks! 


Happy Creating, 

Ms. M. 

Welcome 2013-2014 School Year

Hello Students and Readers. Welcome back for the 2013-2014 school year. This year, Art I and Art II will-

• express personal creativity and grow their abilities to communicate visually
  
• explore a wide variety of media, techniques, and processes
• gain knowledge and understanding of the elements and principals of Art
• choose and evaluate a range of subject matter, Art styles, movements, and ideas
• comprehend the visual arts in relation to history and cultures
• reflect upon and evaluate the characteristics & merits of personal work and the work of others
• make connections between visual arts, other careers
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Happy Creating, 
  
  

  Ms. M