970.925.8050590 North Mill Street Aspen, Colorado 81611aspenartmuseum.org

Exhibition in a Box

Teachers Guide For School Tours and Classroom Presentations

Rob Pruitt: An American Folk Artist

Rob Pruitt, Manic Panic,2011. Acrylic, enamel paint, and flocking on canvas. 90 x 72 inches (left panel), 87 x 69 inches (right panel). Berezdivin Collection, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Image courtesy of the artist and Gavin Brown’s enterprise, New York.

About the Aspen Art Museum

MISSIONThe Aspen Art Museum is a noncollecting institution presenting the newest, most important evolutions in international contemporary art. Our innovative and timely exhibitions, education and public programs, immersive activities, and community happenings actively engage audiences in thought-provoking experiences of art, culture, and society.

HISTORYThe Aspen Art Museum is a kunsthalle, or noncollecting museum for contemporary art, located in the historic mountain community of Aspen, Colorado. It is one of only four art institutions in Colorado accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and the only museum on the Western Slope with this accreditation.

Founded in 1979, the Aspen Art Museum continues to be at the center of Aspen’s renowned cultural community, which includes the Aspen Music Festival and Aspen Institute. In addition to exhibiting contemporary art, the AAM is committed to public and educational programming for communities in the Roaring Fork Valley (Aspen, Basalt, Carbondale, Redstone, Marble, and Glenwood Springs) and the surrounding region (New Castle, Parachute, Rifle, Grand Junction, Avon, Eagle, Vail, Crested Butte, and Leadville). Through free public programs and guided tours of museum exhibitions, collaborations with other organizations, and art outreach programs in regional schools, the museum provides a wide variety of community-based programming.

In July 2005 the AAM welcomed Heidi Zuckerman Jacobson as its Director and Chief Curator. Among her accomplishments, Zuckerman Jacobson has fostered collaborations with organizations like the Aspen Skiing Company to bring contemporary art to new audiences in innovative ways. She has reimagined the AAM Distinguished Artist-in-Residence program, launched the Aspen Art Press, founded a special annual artist honoree prize (the Aspen Award for Art), launched the AAM’s award-winning local television program Art Matters!, and created Exhibition in a Box.

CONTACTAspen Art Museum590 North Mill StreetAspen, Colorado, 81611Phone: 970.925.8050Fax: 970.925.8054www.aspenartmuseum.org

Danielle StephensEducation CuratorE-mail: dstephens@aspenartmuseum.orgPhone: 970.925.8050 ext. 33Fax: 970.925.8054

Annie HenningerEducation CoordinatorE-mail: ahenninger@aspenartmuseum.orgPhone: 970.925.8050 ext. 24Fax: 970.925.8054

GALLERY HOURS Tuesday–Saturday, 10 am–6 pmThursday, 10 am–7 pmSunday, Noon–6 pmClosed Mondays & major holidays

ADMISSION FREECourtesy of Amy and John Phelan

Photo: Karl Wolfgang

Exhibition in a Box

One of the Aspen Art Museum’s most relevant and successful community-based programs is Exhibition in a Box (EiaB), an outreach program that offers elementary students a curriculum-based classroom introduction to contemporary art and a behind-the-scenes glimpse into how an art museum functions using current AAM exhibitions as a starting point. Following the classroom visit, the program continues with an all-expenses-paid visit to the museum, where students tour the facility, meet museum staff, and see the work of artists discussed in the classroom.

The AAM believes that museums are a cultural resource for everyone. EiaB introduces contemporary art as the expression of living artists who share and respond to the world we all inhabit. With this program and other education activities for people of all ages, the Aspen Art Museum is committed to creating lifelong learners who continue to develop skills to better decode, interpret, and navigate the highly visual, aural, and material realities of the 21st century.

The program is offered free of charge to all public and private elementary schools located within a 2 1/2–hour drive from Aspen. The program premiered during the 2007–08 school year with a focus on third-grade classrooms in the Roaring Fork Valley. Based on the success of its first year, the EiaB program has since expanded expanded to Eagle, Garfield, Gunnison, and Lake Counties. Due to Colorado’s unique topography, many of these schools are in isolated locations with limited access to cultural resources. EiaB responds by bringing the cultural resources of the Aspen Art Museum to them.

This education guide provides multidisciplinary activities to capture the interest of students and inspire their creativity, and it is designed to help teachers connect the classroom presentation and museum visit with Colorado’s third-grade curriculum and state standards. The guide also includes background information on an artist featured in the museum’s current exhibitions. In addition, this guide provides a glossary, pre- and post-visit questions, and links to online art resources.

MEMBERSHIPTo thank them for their participation in EiaB, teachers will receive an Aspen Art Museum Individual Membership ($35 value). Benefits include:

• Subscription to the AAM’s Members Magazine• 15% discount on summer and winter workshops for children• 10% discount on AAM SHOP purchases• Invitations to all exhibition openings• Special viewing hours and events • Online educational resources

TRANSPORTATION REIMBURSEMENTThe AAM will reimburse round-trip mileage for EiaB museum visits. When scheduling your tour please request a transportation reimbursement form.

Following the field trip, return the form with a transportation invoice or receipt along with a breakdown of the associated costs on school letterhead. Reimbursement will be issued within four weeks from the date of submission.

FEEDBACK As an educational resource for teachers, the AAM welcomes feedback regarding the classroom presentation and your trip to the museum. Please let us know what worked well and what might improve your next Exhibition in a Box experience.

After receiving an evaluation form in the mail, please fill it out and mail or fax it back to the AAM at your convenience. Your evaluation is crucial to helping the education department strengthen the program for future years. We also appreciate receiving thank-you letters or student artwork made in conjunction with your visit. We hope you enjoy your visit and greatly look forward to working with you and your students.

There are countless benefits to including art in the classroom. Exhibition in a Box is tied to the National Standards of Learning and focuses on object-based learning, visual literacy, critical thinking, and the creative process. The program offers each student the opportunity for the personal reflection that takes place as a part of viewing art as well as the benefits of discussing art in a group setting, which allows for better listening, thinking, and concentration. The program also offers teachers the opportunity to work with their students on the following:

• Understanding the arts as a universal language• Using art as a way of communicating feeling without writing or speaking• Talking about art to promote discovery and alternative modes of learning• Learning to see an object, problem, or situation in multiple ways• Looking at art to trigger the imagination

When visiting the Aspen Art Museum, please remember that you are in a space that encourages the contemplation and quiet discussion of art by all visitors. A few guidelines to remember:

• Raise your hand if you have a question or something you would like to share.• Speak quietly in the galleries using your inside voice.• Stay at a safe distance from the artwork and do not touch it unless you are given permission to do so.• Please walk and do not run in the museum.• Enjoy food and beverages before entering the museum, or save them until after the tour has ended and you have exited the gallery. • Have fun!

Take a moment to prepare your class for their visit by asking them a few questions about their experiences with art and museums. When you return, share the postvisit questions to encourage students to think and talk about what they saw at the AAM.

PREVISIT• Have you ever been to the Aspen Art Museum before? What do you expect to see when you visit?• What materials do artists use to make art?• Is art always beautiful? Should it be? Why or why not?• Should art tell a story or have an important meaning? Why or why not?• Can anyone make art? Why or why not?• Why do people make art?

POSTVISIT• Describe what the art museum experience was like for you.• Did you see or learn something unexpected at the art museum? If so, what?• How was seeing the work in person different than looking at the photograph in the classroom?• Which work of art was your favorite? What did you like most about it?

The following pages provide an in-depth look at the integration of the museum and classroom visit with the Colorado third-grade classroom curriculum standards.

MAKE ART A PART OF YOUR CURRICULUM

MUSEUM MANNERS

MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR VISIT

Exhibition in a Box

Current Exhibition

ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

Since the early 1990s, Rob Pruitt’s investigations into American popular culture have taken many forms. From glittering paintings of panda bears to bottled water fountains, Pruitt has employed a post-Pop sensibility to playfully satirize the art world and its ambivalent relation to celebrity and popular culture. His exhibition at the AAM is the artist’s first-ever solo museum survey in America, charting a path through a diverse body of work that is characterized by incisive humor and exuberant visual flair.

Rob Pruitt: An American Folk Artist is organized by the AAM and funded in part by the AAM National Council with additional support from Allison and Warren Kanders. General exhibition support is provided by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. Exhibitions lectures are presented as part of the Questrom Lecture Series and education outreach programming is made possible by the Questrom Educaiton Fund.

Sponsored by

May 3–July 14, 2013

Rob Pruitt: An American Folk Artist

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Rob Pruitt (b. 1964, Washington, DC) Lives and works in New York City

Rob Pruitt’s conceptual projects have included performance-based artworks like his Art Awards, presented at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (2009, 2010), as well as simple gestures that promote possibilities for creativity in everyday life, as demonstrated in the series 101 Art Ideas You Can Do Yourself (1999, 2001, 2010). His work has been shown internationally since the early 1990s, at venues including the Tate Modern, P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center, and the American Academy in Rome. In 2011, the Public Art Fund installed Pruitt’s Andy Monument, a chrome-plated, seven-foot-tall statue of Andy Warhol, near Union Square.

Rob Pruitt, Sweet Revenge, 2012. Acrylic, enamel paint and flocking on canvas. 90 x 76 inches. Collection of Lance Armstrong. Image courtesy of the artist and Gavin Brown’s enterprise, New York.

Rob Pruitt

Rob Pruitt, Keeping Warm, 2001. Glitter and enamel on canvas. 96 x 72 inches. Image courtesy of the artist and Gavin Brown’s enterprise, New York.

Rob Pruitt

Rob Pruitt, People Feeder, 2012. 4 rubber tires, shellac and acrylic paint. 4 parts: 11 x 20 x 20 inches; 11 x 26 x 26 inches; 9 x 31 x 31 inches; 11 x 41 x 41 inches. Collection of Leon Amitai Liberman, New York. Image courtesy of the artist and Gavin Brown’s enterprise, New York.

Rob Pruitt

Rob Pruitt, Cardboard Monster: Jonathan, 2010. Baled cardboard, socks, shoes (all man-made materials), refitted electric clocks, wood, Comme des Garçons Odeur 53, extension cord. 102 x 36 x 36 inches. Image courtesy of the artist and Gavin Brown’s enterprise, New York.

101 Art Ideas You Can Do Yourself

In 101 Art Ideas You Can Do Yourself, Rob Pruitt offers simple gestures and activities that promote possibilities for creativity in everyday life. These DIY prompts delight and amuse the viewer into action; here are just a handful taken from the ongoing project.

101 Art Ideas You Can Do Yourself

No. 1 Make a leaf out of paper and tape it to a tree.No. 2 Write captions on the glass for the view outside your window.No. 21 Pour a glass of water to look at. No. 26 Do an interpretive dance to environmental sound. Car alarm. Baby crying. Clock ticking.No. 33 Watch TV without sound or listen to TV with the screen covered. No. 46 Put googlie eyes on things. Turn your vacuum into a monster, your toilet into a funny face (eyes on tank). No. 49 Talk nonstop for fifteen minutes, let your consciousness stream. No. 51 Make mud. 2 parts dirt, 1 part water. Use as paint or clay. No. 53 Name your plants. No. 62 Translate your phone number into a word.No. 68 Make an interactive portrait by writing positive descriptions on a mirror. No. 73 Use a magazine as a sketch book.No. 85 Invent a new color by mixing paint and then name it. No. 87 Make a monochrome meal. Macaroni and cheese. Steamed carrots. BBQ chips. Orangeade. Appropriate M&Ms. No. 91 Score bananas with a pointed implement. Drawings appear soon thereafter. No. 97 Write lyrics to a classical music composition.No. 99 Type single line messages on paper and cut into strips. Toss as confetti. No. 101 Title your life.

Choose one or more of Rob Pruitt’s DIY art prompts for students to complete, and then ask them to share their experiences. By participating in these activities, students investigate how “thinking tools” can be used to support the creative process. The result can be a work of art in-and-of itself or serve as inspiration for further development.

Connections to 21st Century Skills and Readiness Competencies

Critical Thinking and Reasoning Students are encouraged to ask questions and think critically in order to form a conclusion. After observing and collecting information, students often propose hypotheses about a work of art’s meaning or context.

Information Literacy Using the visual information presented by works of art, students articulate commonalities and identify meaningful patterns. Students understand that critical processes such as observing, interpreting, and evaluating lead to informed judgments regarding the merits of a work of art.

CollaborationStudents participate and engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions, asking questions and linking their comments to the remarks of others in order to find various meanings in works of art. Students explain their own ideas while interacting with others by sharing knowledge, stories, and interests. Together as a group, students explore ideas that might not otherwise be reached by a single individual.

Self-DirectionIn evaluating works of art, students assess their own thinking and search for patterns, relationships, causes, and effects, and consider events and people throughout time. Students also develop the confidence to create a work of art, express their own ideas, and reflect on the choices and directions made in the process of creation.

InventionMaking art is the patient and dedicated quest for originality through exploration, experimentation, risk taking, and problem solving. This process involves a commitment to openness, creative thought, and vision where the deconstruction, re-purposing, and synchronicity of ideas generate personal revelations that inspire divergent thinking and illuminate the multiple pathways we use to redefine and expand our unique points of view.

ACTIVITY

I’ve seen him make art out of nothing. It’s as if there’s almost no distinction between the studio and the rest of the world. —artist Will Cotton on Rob Pruitt

Connection to ExhibitionThird-Grade Standards

Standard 1Parts of a whole can be modeled and represented in different ways.

Standard 1There is a limited amount of water available for human use.

Standard 2 The duration and timing of life cycle events such as reproduction and longevity vary across organisms and species.

Standard 3Living organisms have predictable stages within their life cycles that allow scientists to study patterns in the lives of species.

MATHEMATICS

SCIENCE

• Students determine equivalence in a work of art by visually breaking down two and three-dimensional objects into two fractions. Students compare the properties of each fraction and determine whether or not the content is balanced. The results help them find meaning and determine the mood within a work of art.

• Students investigate Rob Pruitt’s El Dorado Fountain: Demilune, an artificial fountain made of bottled water and cardboard boxes, and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this modern water source.

• Students look at a series of paintings by artist Rob Pruitt that focus on the panda bear and discuss why this animal is endangered. Students explore what it means when representations of an animal far outnumber the actual thing.

• Students explore Rob Pruitt’s paintings inspired by the experiments of Dr. Peter Witt, a Swiss pharmacologist. Dr. Witt studied the effects of drugs (e.g., caffeine, sleeping pills) on a spider’s ability to spin a predictable web.

VISUAL ARTS

• Students learn to “read” a work of art, hypothesizing, and discussing artist intent and mood. In addition, students will use multisensory information to construct visual narratives. Students understand that critical processes such as observing, interpreting, and evaluating lead to informed judgments regarding the merits of a work of art. Students discuss and debate the idea of what is art and learn to critique the works of others in a positive way.

• Students will investigate Rob Pruitt’s use of popular and art historical references, as well as articulate commonalities and patterns observed in each work of art in the exhibition. Students can practice using terms introduced in the glossary of this guide, discussing whether each use is appropriate.

• Students explore a range of purposes in art and design, recognizing that the making and study of art and design can be approached from a variety of viewpoints, intelligences, and perspectives.

Standard 1The identification of characteristics and expressive features in works of art and design help to determine artistic intent. Art has intent and purpose.

Standard 2 Artists, viewers, and patrons use the language of art to respond to their own art and the art of others. They make connections among the characteristics, expressive features, and purposes of art and design.

Standard 3Works of art connect individual ideas to make meaning. Historical and cultural ideas are evident in works of art.

Connection to ExhibitionThird-Grade Standards

• When looking at art, students use prior knowledge about a certain time period, event, or technological development in our society to make connections and consider how these events may have influenced the artist.

• Students look closely at the work of Rob Pruitt and consider what cultural commentary the artist is making while carefully observing what kind of interactions are represented in his work.

• Students can study the Aspen Art Museum as a means of understanding producers and consumers and how goods and services are exchanged. Although the Aspen Art Museum is a noncollecting institution (which means that it does not buy, sell, or trade works of art) it does play an important role in connecting contemporary artists to the community, including art patrons, through its exhibitions. Students can explore the production and consumption of the art market while considering whether or not they would rather be a producer or a consumer, how an individual knows when an exchange benefits both parties, and how relative value is calculated and assigned.

• During both the classroom presentation and the museum tour, students participate and engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions, asking questions and linking their comments to the remarks of others in order to find various meanings in works of art. Students explain their own ideas while interacting with others by sharing knowledge, stories, and interests. Together as a group, students explore ideas that might not otherwise be reached by a single individual.

Standard 1Social, geographic, and economic events of the past typically determine the present conditions in a community.

Standard 2 The continuous cycle of interactions and contributions of various peoples and traditions (past and present) determines community culture.

Standard 3Describe producers and consumers and how goods and services are exchanged.

Standard 4Respecting the views and rights of others as components of a democratic society.

SOCIAL STUDIES

Connection to ExhibitionThird-Grade Standards

• Students are asked to look closely and think critically about works of art in small groups. Through the process of inquiry, students participate in group discussions and are asked to clearly articulate their ideas to peers. They collaborate effectively as group members who listen actively and respectfully pose thoughtful questions, acknowledge the ideas of others, and contribute ideas.

• Students increase word understanding, word use, and word relationships to build vocabulary through the process of decoding words found on the museum’s wall labels and text panels, as well as from studying the words included in the glossary section of this guide. Students also interpret works of art using age-appropriate descriptive vocabulary and compare and contrast the works while discussing form and content.

• The skills required to read a work of art are not unlike those needed to read and understand texts. Through observation, inquiry, and open discussion, students learn that works of art reflect different points of view based on the interpretation of the viewer. Students learn to infer meaning and assess the points of view of their peers using fairness, relevance, and breadth. There are no wrong answers when talking about art and all opinions are valid.

Standard 1Humans communicate to express ideas, values, opinions, and different points of view.

Growth and change often result from conflicts or interactions with people who may hold different opinions.

Sharing information in a collaborative discussion allows participants to inform each other and be informed.

Standard 2 Increasing word understanding, word use, and word relationships increases vocabulary.

Standard 3Inferences and points of view exist.

READING, WRITING, COMMUNICATING

Notes

GLOSSARY

CompositionThe arrangement of parts or forms (e.g., within a work of art, music, or literature).

Contemporary artArt created by living artists.

CuratorThe person at a museum who is in charge of selecting and arranging the works in an exhibition.

ExhibitionA public display of the workof an artist or group of artists.

GalleryA room, series of rooms, or building devoted to the display of works of art.

MuseumA building where works of art, scientific specimens, or other objects of permanent value are displayed.

MediumThe substances an artist uses to create his or her artwork.

NoncollectingA museum that does not have a permanent collection but instead focuses on changing exhibitions.

Pop ArtArt based on modern popular culture and the mass media.

SurveyTo examine as to condition, situation, or value; to view or consider comprehensively.

This education guide provides multidisciplinary activities to capture the interest of students and inspire their creativity, and it is designed to help teachers connect the classroom presentation and museum visit with Colorado’s third-grade curriculum and state standards. The guide also includes background information on artists and works featured in the museum’s current exhibitions. In addition, this guide provides a glossary, pre- and post-visit questions, and links to online art resources.

The AAM’s education programs are made possible by the Questrom Education Fund. Additional support is provided by Mary and Patrick Scanlan, the Marcia and Philip Rothblum Foundation, and Colorado Creative Industries. The Colorado Creative Industries and its activities are made possible through an annual appropriation from the Colorado General Assembly and federal funds from the National Endowment for the Arts.

ONLINE

Aspen Art Museum

http://aspenartmuseum.org/event/rob-pruitt/

Colorado Model Content Standards

www.cde.state.co.us/StandardsAndInstruction/ColoradoStandards.asp

TEACHERS’ GUIDE

EDUCATION SUPPORT

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