Art 1301
Intro to Art
Art & Social Justice Project
1. DUE (Mar 12)_10pt: Homework #4_Art & Social Justice Preliminary Draft
2. DUE (Apr 2)_100pt: Final Submission of Art & Social Justice Project
This project considers how art engages with social justice causes. Art has been a catalyst for generating
dialogue about social issues, with artists affecting change on critical concerns and problems. Your project
will focus on issues faced that affect us all regionally, nationally, and globally. Think about how your
project could create a greater awareness of social, public, or political problems via art history and visual
studies.
CT Assessment: This research project will assess your interpretation of artworks based on thematic,
visual, and contextual analyses of them. It will evaluate your understanding of the concepts we have
studied thus far this semester.
I will use WSSUàcritical thinking rubric to qualify your analytic and interpretative abilities and skills
(see attached) for this project.
Learning Outcomes: (1) To analyze how artists engage in diverse social justice causes, (2) to interpret
different artists0erspectives in advocating activist causes, (3) and to present this project in an interactive
format that cultivates digital literacy skills.
Guidelines: This project will be formatted as an Adobe Express (old name: Adobe Spark) web
presentation. Here is how to organize your project:
1) Title page in Adobe Express (old name: Adobe Spark) with your name, title of your
project, date, and class (Art 1301). Be creative and professional in developing your title.
It sets the tone of your project and captures the readerïaudienceàattention.
2) Introduction in Adobe Express (old name: Adobe Spark) (75-100 words for the introduction)
a. Your projectàintroduction states your projectàthesis and identifies the works
of art you will analyze to demonstrate your critical thinking and reasoning.
b. The introduction is organized to present a thesis or controlling idea that explains
your reviewàmain point(s).
c. The thesis statement should be one to three sentences long to state your ideas in a
focused and concise way.
3) Analyses of four works of art (75-100 words for each analysis, about 300-400 words for
these analyses in total)
a. In writing about four artworks, analyze the works4hemes and how visual elements
and design principles convey their messages visually and conceptually. How and
why are these works of art relevant? Important? Meaningful?
b. Illustrate your Adobe Express (old name: Adobe Spark) presentation with images
that you saved from the artists7ebsites or other online resources; you can also
include links to artists)nterviews as additional materials or references for your
reader. The aim is to write creative, informative, and professional analyses of works
of art. Label each image by providing the artistàname, title, date,
medium/materials, and location (i.e., museum, gallery, or site).
c. Think about your audience, i.e., peers and academic community at WSSU. Imagine
if a professor in another department read your project: Would he or she have a clear
sense of your point-of-view?
4) Conclusion (75-100 words for the conclusion)
a. Your conclusion should briefly restate the main points you introduced in your first
paragraph and develop a central idea that leaves your reader with ¯od for
thought. hat central idea should build on what you have said about the
exhibition previously so that you connect all your points in the conclusion.
5) Works cited/reference page
This project requires that you consult at least (1) a scholarly peer-review source and (2) an
artistì museumì or galleryàwebsite that supports your research. We will review art
resources relevant to this project. Oålly Libraryàresources, namely the art lib-guide, will
help in finding sources: https://wssu.libguides.com/art.
Any sources you refer to need to be 1) cited correctly as direct quotes or paraphrases and 2)
acknowledged in parenthetical notes (following MLA format) and in the works cited page
appended to your Adobe Spark presentation. See the following link for MLA style:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/
mla_forma tting_and_style_guide.html
**Please make sure to paraphrase or quote any sources carefully to avoid plagiarism.**
To access Adobe Express (old name: Adobe Spark), log-in to MyWSSU.
https://www.adobe.com/express/ Please see the instruction on CANVAS.
The assignment submission will involve copy and pasting the link to your presentation in the Canvas
text-box. To do this step in Adobe Express (old name: Adobe Spark), make sure to publish and share
your presentation so that you obtain the link for it.
Note: This assignment counts toward 20% of your final grade.
Please make sure to submit your work on time. No extensions will be permitted (unless you have a
documented excuse). For each day the assignment is late, a half-grade step will lower your grade. For
example, your initial grade is an 80 (B-), but you submitted the assignment two days late. Your final
grade for the project will then be a 70 (C-).
**Before you submit your project, you should carefully edit and proofread it. Please note that Adobe
Spark does not have a spell- or grammar-check. I recommend that you type your text into a Word
document, run the spell- and grammar checks, and then copy-and-paste the edited copy into Adobe Spark.
Presentation matters and will be factored into your grade. If you need assistance with improving your
writing, you should consult the Writing Center or UpSwing.**
Academic integrity policy:
The WSSU Academic Integrity policy is in effect. Here is the link to the document so that you can
familiarize yourself with it: https://www.wssu.edu/about/offices-and-departments/legalaffairs/policies-and-procedures/chapter-300-undergraduate-and-graduate-students/301general/301.1.html
Project Grading:
Title slide:
5 pts.
Introduction:
10 pts.
Analyses of art works:
60 points (4 @ 15 points each)
(NB: These analyses will be assessed following the Critical Thinking Rubric attached to the assignment).
Conclusion:
10 points
Works cited/reference page:
10 points
Overall presentation and proofreading:
5 points
Total:
100 points
Suggested topics:
Here is a list of suggested topics. This list is by no means exhaustive, so you can also identify other
interesting topics to you; clear the selection of your topic with me to best advise you about relevant
research resources. These themes are broad so that you can think about them critically and creatively. I
have also included links to relevant websites to get you started.
Whenever possible, the links provided come from museums, galleries, and cultural institutions; some
links come from online encyclopedias, news sources, and magazines due to the recent nature of the
artworks, such as BLM murals painted summer of 2020.
Suggested topics:
Artists as Activists
Artist Collectives and Social Justice Organizations:
– Black Lives Matter: https://blacklivesmatter.com/
-For Freedom Project: https://forfreedoms.org/
-Souls Grown Deep: https://www.soulsgrowndeep.org/artists
-Wide Awakes: https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/wide-awakes
Individual Artists:
-Mark Bradford: https://www.hauserwirth.com/artists/2838-mark-bradford
-Jordan Casteel: http://www.jordancasteel.com/
-Sonya Clark: http://sonyaclark.com/
-Theaster Gates: https://www.theastergates.com/
-Kerry James Marshall: https://jackshainman.com/artists/kerry_james_marshall
-Hans Willis Thomas: https://www.hankwillisthomas.com/
-LaToya Ruby Frazier: http://www.latoyarubyfrazier.com/
-Lava Thomas: http://www.lavathomas.com/
-Kara Walker: http://www.karawalkerstudio.com/
-Kehinde Wiley: https://kehindewiley.com/
Black Lives Matters murals (national and international projects)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Black_Lives_Matter_street_murals
Black Arts movement
http://www.caareviews.org/reviews/3699#.X2YdN9YpBAY
Chicanx/Latinx art movements
Example: Judith BacaàThe Great Wall of Los Angeles
http://www.judybaca.com/artist/the-great-wall-history-and-description/
Climate change/environmental justice
http://artsboston.org/2020/07/28/10-artists-focused-climate-change-environmental-justice/
LGBTQIA+ Artists
https://www.essence.com/culture/16-lgbtq-visual-artists-to-know/#1064654
Mass incarceration
https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/5208
Migration/immigration
https://www.nga.gov/education/teachers/lessons-activities/uncovering-america/immigrationdisplacement.html
Pandemics
https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2020/07/06/art-pandemic-readers/?arc404=true
Voter rights
https://knightfoundation.org/articles/next-stop-democracy-seeks-find-if-public-art-can-increase-civicengagement/
Cri$cal(Thinking(Rubric(for(General(Educa$on!
Analyze,!synthesize!or!deconstruct,!interpret!and!evaluate!informa7on!and!concepts!to!solve!problems.!
(
Iden$fy/(
Summarize(
Problem/(Issue
Capstone((4)
Issue/problem!to!be!considered!is!
stated/represented!clearly!and!
comprehensively,!delivering!all!
relevant!informa7on!necessary!for!
full!understanding.
Milestone((3)
Issue/problem!to!be!considered!is!
stated/represented,!described,!
and!clari?ed!so!that!
understanding!is!not!seriously!
impeded!by!omissions.
Analyze(
(Synthesize/(
Deconstruct)
Separates!and!dis7nguishes!the!
cons7tuent!parts!of!something!(as!a!
substance,!a!process,!a!situa7on,!a!
statement)!and!!indicates!important!
similari7es!and!di?erences,!
contradic7ons!and!con7nui7es,!
cause!and!e?ect!rela7onships,!or!
paFerns.!!
Separates!or!dis7nguishes!the!
Separates!or!dis7nguishes!the!
Ignores!key!points!or!shows!
component!parts!of!something!(as! component!parts!of!something!(as! confusion!about!rela7onships!
a!substance,!a!process,!a!
a!substance,!a!process,!a!
among!key!points;!fails!to!
situa7on,!a!statement)!to!reveal!
situa7on,!a!statement)!but!the!
create!order!from!details!or!
unique!elements.
organiza7on!is!not!e?ec7ve!in!
detail!from!order.!
revealing!important!paFerns,!
!
di?erences!or!similari7es.
Interpret/(
Evaluate
Thoroughly!examines!informa7on!at!
hand,!as!well!as!that!which!is!
inferred,!to!iden7fy!facts,!data,!
contexts,!points!of!view,!
assump7ons,!biases,!etc.,!using!
appropriate!criteria!and!standards!
(e.g.,!laws,!rules,!values,!credibility,!
reliability,!validity,!depth,!breadth,!
currency).!
Examines!informa7on!at!hand!to!
iden7fy!facts,!data,!contexts,!
points!of!view,!assump7ons,!
biases,!etc.,!using!appropriate!
criteria!and!standards!(e.g.,!laws,!
values,!credibility,!reliability,!
validity,!depth,!breadth,!
currency).!!
Examines!some!but!not!all!
informa7on!to!iden7fy!facts,!data,!
contexts,!points!of!view,!
assump7ons,!biases,!etc.,!but!the!
process!is!either!not!transparent!
or!fails!to!use!appropriate!criteria!
and!standards!
!
Fails!to!examine!relevant!
informa7on,!or!examines!the!
wrong!informa7on,!or!
examines!informa7on!using!
inappropriate!criteria!and!
standards.!!
!!
!!
!
Conclusions/(
Outcomes
Conclusions!and!related!outcomes!
(consequences!and!implica7ons)!are!
logical!and!re?ect!informed!
evalua7on!and!ability!to!place!
evidence!and!perspec7ves!
presented!in!priority!order.
Conclusion!is!logically!7ed!to!a!
range!of!informa7on,!including!
opposing!viewpoints;!related!
outcomes!(consequences!and!
implica7ons)!are!iden7?ed!clearly.
Conclusion!is!logically!7ed!to!
informa7on!(because!informa7on!
is!chosen!to!?t!the!desired!
conclusion);!some!related!
outcomes!(consequences!and!
implica7ons)!are!iden7?ed!clearly.
Conclusion!is!inconsistently!
7ed!to!some!of!the!
informa7on!presented;!related!
outcomes!(consequences!and!
implica7ons)!are!
oversimpli?ed.
4!
Milestone((2)
Benchmark((1)
Issue/problem!to!be!considered!
Issue/problem!to!be!
cri7cally!is!stated/represented!but! considered!cri7cally!is!stated/
descrip7on!leaves!some!terms!
represented!without!
unde?ned,!ambigui7es!
clari?ca7on!or!descrip7on.
unexplored,!boundaries!
undetermined,!and/or!
backgrounds!unknown.

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