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Component
Teachers
Name:
Date of
Lesson:
School:

Explanation
Alethea C. Roy

Grade:

8th

Length of
Lesson:

Instruction time: One 7 minute instructional period at the start of class 1

and class 2. An additional demonstration for students ready to move on 30
minutes into the class.
Total lesson time: One 50 minute class as part of a 3 class unit.

Title of
Lesson:

Understanding Surrealism and Dali for Adobe Photoshop Elements

Jonas Clarke Middle School, Lexington, MA

Understanding Surrealism and Dali for Adobe Photoshop Elements is the

first lesson in the third unit using Adobe Photoshop Elements. This is
intended for an eighth grade visual art and media course. This lesson
provides students with a better understanding of Surrealism and the work
of Salvador Dali so they can apply their knowledge and create an original
digital artwork borrowing from the style and themes of Salvador Dali.
Relationship The work of Salvador Dali is rich with symbolic visual language,
to Life:
metaphor, and symbolism all of which are of growing importance for
eighth grade students academically and personally. Their cognitive
development begins to shift to more abstract thinking that allows for such
expression. Academically, students are expected to demonstrate and
increasingly sophisticated and poetic understanding of the English
language as well as an ability to analyze and create works of art that use
metaphor to present a complex and multifaceted narrative. Personally, the
middle school student seeks to find meaning and personal connection to
the world around them. Students use and understanding of symbolic
visual language helps them to express their unique perspective in a more
complete and expressive way.
The use of technology holds varied transferable skills as fluency with
computers becomes increasingly essential as our society is constantly
modernizing and developing technologically.
Problem/Act Students will consider themes such as time, mythology, childhood,
ivity
transformation, nightmares, and dreams and create an original work of art
statement:
that, while inspired by Salvador Dali, has personal relevance.
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Goals:

Students should
Understand:
Students will demonstrate knowledge of the elements and principles of
design . (MACF Standard 2)
Know:
how to demonstrate their powers of observation, abstraction, invention,
and expression in a variety of media, materials, and techniques.
(MACF Standard 3)
Be able to:
demonstrate their understanding of styles, stylistic influence, and
stylistic change by identifying when and where art works were created,
and by analyzing characteristic features of art works from various
historical periods, cultures, and genres. (MACF Standard 8)
apply their knowledge of the arts to the study of English language arts,
foreign languages, health, history and social science, mathematics, and
science and technology/engineering. (MACF Standard 10)

Objectives:

Demonstrate an understanding of Surrealism and be able to describe

the work of Salvador Dali. Identify the themes in Salvador Dalis art
and use similar themes in an original art work. Use a variety of tools
and techniques learned in Adobe Photoshop Elements to create an
original art work
Demonstrate an understanding of foreground, middle ground, and
background in a composition.
Instructional "Progressive art can assist people to learn not only about the objective
Concepts:
forces at work in the society in which they live, but also about the intensely
social character of their interior lives. Ultimately, it can propel people
toward social emancipation.
-Salvador Dali
Formal Concepts:
The illusion of distance/space can be achieved by placement on the
picture plane, size, clarity (atmospheric perspective), and in placing
objects in a way that overlaps.
Emphasis can be achieved using color, size, and placement.
Artistic Behaviors:
Students use visual symbolism and metaphor to express and idea or
feeling, this develops improved visual and verbal skills.
Students previsualize their response piece, planning and executing their
work, considering theme and composition. This helps students develop
skills needed to conceptualize and carry out inspired or creative tasks.
Students work from memory and/or imagination, inspired by dreams or
entirely from creative whim developing their ability to be innovative
and creative through making vital connections to personal experience
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Resources
and
materials:

and point of view.

Materials:
Computers
Adobe Photoshop Elements
Color printer
Projector set up at teacher computer
Handout binder
TeacherWeb or other file storage site
Online handout
Exemplars (from Salvador Dali):
The Persistence of Memory (1931)
Swans Reflecting Elephants (1937)
Sleep (1937)
Metamorphosis of Narcissus (1937)

Motivation:

Questions:

Procedures:

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The students will research the work of Salvador Dali and synthesize an
understanding of the common themes, metaphors, and visual language
he used to communicate with the viewer.
The teacher will demonstrate how to create a surrealist inspired
composition using the overhead projector showing how to create a
foreground, background, and middle ground using images form the
internet and with layers and cut and paste and various other tool
options.

Topic questions
What is Surrealism?
What are the defining characteristics of the artwork of Salvador Dali?
Association questions
Have you ever seen the work of Salvador Dali before?
What does his art remind you of?
Visualization questions
Does the work of Dali remind you of any dreams you have had? Any
nightmares?
What metaphors can you imagine making an interesting piece of art?
How can you use placement in a composition to create a realistic yet
impossible scene in the style of Dali?
Transition questions
Think of the words you used to describe the artwork of Salvador Dali
and to define Surrealism, how will your artwork embody these
qualities?
Introduction & distribution Teacher will review how to find and open
handouts on the TeacherWeb server and review the steps of handout the on
the overhead projector as the students follow along, clarifying about

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expectations for research. See attached handout. Adaptation: Students may
work with the adjusted handout. It must be loaded onto their account or
computer prior to class.
1. Visit the following websites:
http://artsmarts4kids.blogspot.com/2008/04/salvador-dali.html
and
http://www.mykidsart.com.au/Salvador_Dali_Famous_Artists_My_Kids_A
rt.html Students can click on links or copy and paste into the browser
window. They must read the pages over.
2. Define Surrealism in a way you can understand it, you may use bullet
points Students are not allowed to copy the definition word for word
from a source. They are expected to define it in terms that they
understand.
3. Look up Salvador Dalis:
The Persistence of Memory
Swans Reflecting Elephants
Sleep
Metamorphosis of Narcissus
Google search these images by looking up Dalis names and the name of
the artworks. Take a good look at these pieces, your observation of these
pieces will help you respond to the question in Step 4. What qualities
make Salvador Dalis paintings unique? How would
you describe his work to someone unfamiliar with it?
Imagine you are explaining what his artwork looks like to someone over
the phone. If you described it as cool would that be specific enough? What
are some specifics?
When you have completed this handout you may begin the studio portion
of this assignment. In thirty minutes I will do a brief demonstration as to
how to begin for those of you ready to move on. I will repeat this
demonstration at the start of next class
Vocabulary students are expected to be familiar with:
Layers: a feature that allows users to move elements within a piece of
art being made in Adobe Photoshop Elements
Effects and Filters: a feature that allows users to adjust the style of a
layer in Adobe Photoshop Elements
Selection Tool (magnetic lasso, etc.): a tool used to select an area in a
specified layer in Adobe Photoshop Elements
Foreground: in a piece of art the part of the composition that is nearest
to the observer
Background: in a piece of art the part of the composition that is furthest
from the observer
Middle ground: in a piece of art the part of the composition that is in
the middle distance
Composition: the way in which an artist places elements or objects
within a work of art
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Work period Students will do research online while filling out the
handout. Teacher will check in with each student and initiate peer-to-peer
teaching when appropriate.
Small group demonstration number 2- The teacher will as all students
ready to move on to the art-making portion of the assignment to gather
around her desk. The teacher will demonstrate image searching four to six
elements for a sample Surrealism inspired piece, copy and pasting first a
background, then middle- and finally a foreground. The teacher will
demonstrate adjusting colors and using tools, filters, and effects to
individualize the piece and bring it together in a cohesive composition.
This demonstration will be repeated for the entire class at the start of class
2 of this unit.
Clean-up Students will save work to their Art folder on the computer,
return any handouts to the handout binder, tidy desk area, push in chairs.
Closure Great job today! If you did not finish the handout you may do
it at home or in the first ten minutes of the next class. At this point if you
havent begun your piece, you at least should have a sense of what you
would like to do. Perhaps something dream or nightmare inspired, maybe
with references to mythology If you havent begun or dont have any
ideas your homework is to think of what you want your final piece to look
like.
Evaluation:

References:

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Formative assessment:
Questions that dipstick for understanding throughout class
Summative assessment:
Student completed research handout correctly.
Final piece demonstrates an understanding of the aesthetic qualities of
surrealism and the work of Salvador Dali.
Students have a foreground, middle ground, and background in their
piece. Adaptation: Students have a foreground and background in their
piece
Use of selection tool, filters, and effects is evident.
Salvador Dali quote. Retrieved April 17, 2013 from
<http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/s/salvador_dali.html#
ItFFABcDtk1WDc8R.99>
Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education. (1999).
Massachusetts Arts Curriculum Framework. Malden, MA:
Massachusetts Department of Education.

NAME:

original handout
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Art and
Computer:
Dali and
Surrealism
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Step 1. Visit the following websites:

http://artsmarts4kids.blogspot.com/2008/04/salvadordali.html
and
http://www.mykidsart.com.au/Salvador_Dali_Famous_Artist
s_My_Kids_Art.html
Read
them over.
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Step 2. Define Surrealism in a way you can understand it, you may use bullet points:

Step 3. Look up Salvador Dalis

The Persistence of Memory

Swans Reflecting Elephants
Sleep
Metamorphosis of Narcissus

Step 4.

What qualities make Salvador Dalis

paintings unique? How would you describe his
work to someone unfamiliar with it?

You will create an original artwork INSPIRED by DALI.

Consider the following THEMES for your artwork: time, mythology,
childhood, transformation, nightmares, dreams.
Use images from the internet to combine in an interesting piece
of art. You will need a background image and several middle and
foreground images. Be creative.
Experiment with Photoshop Elements; dont forget FILTERS and
EFFECTS !and the magnetic lasso tool!
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