Developed by Susan Schofield, Jessica Booth, Ondrian Duncan, and Natalie Hudson.
6th Unit 2 Three Dimensional Art
Lesson: Monument Sculpture
Big Idea: Using the visual language of art to communicate
personal meaning in sculpture
Unit 2 Standards & Elements: link to curriculum guide
Resources:
Art as Community
Selected reproductions, slides, digital images related to
sculpture and monumental sculpture.
Monumental sculpture power point
Links to county website
Art Teachers’ Monument
Instruction/Motivation:
A power point slide of the side of Stone Mountain will be up when the students enter the room to spark interest. The
teacher will use the local monument to explain the concept of creating a sculpture in the environment that is a tribute
to a specific event or group of people and link it to the clay sculpture on a slab base that the students will create in the
course. The teacher will show monuments in North America, South America, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia
on the monument power point noting how the sculptures interactive with the viewer and the environment.
Instructor’s Procedures:
 Introduce the unit through the monument power point and lead micro-labs contained in the unit
 Micro-labs (short 1 to 2 day sessions to learn technical or concept development skills): learning about how
memorial sculpture is created, working with clay, As work progresses, hold in-process mini-critiques with
individual students, tables, or small groups, and the entire class as needed to help students understand the
high level of craftsmanship and observation expected.
 Display visual and verbal evidence of this unit’s learning journey (journal pages) together. Show at least part
of the work in a public area in the school. Be sure the writing in public displays is technically correct and
appropriate.
Materials and Materials management:
 Monument Power Point slide (link)
 Clay
 Slip
 Clay tools
 Acrylic or tempera paint
 Erasers
 Pencils
 Students’ visual journals
 Students’ portfolios
Student Procedures:
 View and discuss examples of monuments in Atlanta and in other parts of the world.
 Complete micro-labs on: monumental sculpture, basic clay building techniques, aesthetic writing experience
explaining how the elements and principles symbolize certain emotions in the monument.
 Research an event or person that you want to memorialize in your sculpture and add the information and
pictures to your journal for reference.
 Create a series of thumbnail sketches of your clay monument in the round.
 Create a monument in miniature in clay utilizing a combination of hand building techniques on a slab base.
 Consider composition to create interest by utilizing off center area of emphasis while attaching the pieces of
clay together to form the final monument.
 Participate in individual (with teacher), small group, and class critiques of artwork
 Discuss issues of craftsmanship in art, writing and life and work tasks beyond art and writing.
 Reflect by writing about how your monument symbolizes the event or person chosen.
 Reflect on learning in this unit (in journal) by self-assessing unit work using rubric.
Developed by Susan Schofield, Jessica Booth, Ondrian Duncan, and Natalie Hudson.
Art History
Micro Lab 1- History of Site Specific Memorial Sculpture (2 days)
 Using Atlanta’s own Stone Mountain, students will begin to see the similarities in meaning between the
public sculpture they see at the park and memorial sculpture around the world. The teacher will need to make
the link to students between using the elements to communicate meaning in sculpture and the meaning
imbedded in the public monuments presented in the presentation. At the end of the presentation have students
create a web in their journal of an event or person and the qualities they want communicate to the viewer
about them. Based on the webbing activity students will create a series of three thumbnail drawings in the
round showing the back side and front of their monument.
Art Production
Micro Lab 2- Hand building techniques (5 days)
 Students will need to be introduced to the three major hand building techniques, pinch, coil, and slab. In this
micro lab students will turn their sketch into a miniature monument. A slab will be used for the base that is 4
to 5 inches in diameter with coil and pinch techniques used to create the actual monument. Students should
take ideas directly from the previous journal assignments and use the elements of art as a way to
communicate meaning in their sculpture. Students will need to be instructed on the proper way to construct
and store clay.
Micro lab 3- Color theory and painting a three dimensional object
 Tempera or acrylic paint can be used to paint the fired monuments. The teacher needs to review color theory
with students and create several small color activities and painting seminars (how to hold a brush, how to
apply paint to a three dimensional artwork, how to layer colors) for the students to do in their journal before
allowing students to paint the mini monuments. Students should create color schemes for the monuments that
help to communicate the emotion and meaning to the viewer.
 The color lesson incorporated into the two dimensional unit should be fresh on students minds but painting a
three-dimensional object as it’s own special problems. The teacher will need to go over leaving an area
unpainted everyday so you can move it for clean up, painting from the lowest layer of clay to the farthest in
the foreground, painting with the piece turned upside down in order to get all of the white spots and using the
correct size brush for the item being painted.
Aesthetics
Micro lab 4- Aesthetics- Color as communication
 Artists have used color to express emotion in artworks throughout history. When you see a blue painting by
Picasso how does it make you feel? Do you feel differently when you look at Matisse’s red room? Using
prints to show students examples of how different colors affect mood ask them what color should their
memorial be. With several prints on the board have students write in their journals about how the color of
each of the artworks makes them feel when they look at it.
 Students will compile all of the previous research and notes into a paragraph about the meaning of their
sculpture that will be displayed with the final project.
Art Criticism
Mini Lesson 7- Class Critique of final project and in process informal class discussions at the end of each micro lab.
Assessment:
 Student self-assessment and teacher assessment using unit rubric for art work
 Student self-assessment and teacher assessment of degree of “evidence” of thinking and learning shown in
journal pages from this unit.
Assessment Instruments:
Assessment should include both ongoing and end of the unit assessment. Assessment for learning uses on-going
checks for students to self assess whether they have meet the learning goals and skill mastery for the day, the lesson,
the skill, etc. Teachers use this ongoing assessment to be sure all students are reaching the appropriate level of
mastery. If problems are noted, teachers either coach individuals or small groups, or reteach the entire class if needed.
Some recorded grades should come from this ongoing assessment for learning. End of the unit assessment is the final
culminating check for both students and teachers.
Rubric for artwork
Rubric for writing
Visual Journal/ Sketchbook Review