Impressionist Art
Impressionist Art (ages 13-14)
This scheme of work introduces students to the style of art known as Impressionism. The lesson workshops are each based on a different work of art by a well known Impressionist artist including Monet, Renoir, Sisley, Degas, Cezanne and Pissarro. It enables the students to develop such drama forms as thought tapping, role on the wall, creating and maintaining a character, hot seating, slow motion, monologue, thought aloud, dramatic pause, developing a character and narration. Throughout the scheme imagery, lighting and observations of people are used to help develop character, plot and relationships. Through practical workshops and their own independent learning students gain an insight into their own thoughts and feelings about life and relationships and how these develop with time and age.
This scheme of work contains 6 drama lesson plans.
- Lesson 1: Monet. This introductory lesson is based on Monet’s ‘Poppyfield’. A Stanislavski style approach to the painting helps students to understand and develop the characters and their relationships with one another.
- Lesson 2: Sisley. This lesson uses ‘Pont Argeteuil’ to learn further techniques used to develop a character such as a visualisation exercise, hot seating style interviews and role on the wall.
- Lesson 3: Degas. ‘Tanzklasse’ explores the background and history of one character in the painting using flashbacks, slow motion and frozen pictures to recreate his life, further developing the character.
- Lesson 4: Cezanne. ‘The Card Players’ is recreated as a starting point for a piece of drama which is then set in an alternative location. This gives the students an opportunity to use their imaginations to develop their own piece of drama, thus developing plot and the idea of mis-en-scene. A smoking pipe prop is included!
- Lesson 5: Pissarro. ‘The Harvest’develops a story across time, using the changing seasons to develop plot and develop characters. Lighting changes and states are used to explore and enhance the atmosphere of the students work.
- Lesson 6: Renoir. This lesson is an assessment piece based on Renoir’s’ ‘Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette’. All key Drama forms learnt and revised in the topic are used by the students to recreate their own story and characters, recorded for self-evaluation.
Supporting materials include
- Monet – Poppyfields
- Sisley – Pont Argenteuil
- Degas – Tanzklasse
- Cezanne – The Card Players
- Pissarro – The Harvest
- Renoir – Dance at Le Moulin de la Gazette
- Role on the Wall Sheet
- Cut out pipe
- 1 piece of French Accordian music
- The images as a powerpoint slide
Additional resources are included in the appendices
- End Of Unit Self-Assessment Form
The scheme of work is supplied as a zip file containing a PDF file, readable on most computers, 1 piece of music (Mp3 format) and 1 Microsoft PowerPoint slide.
