simply asking "what do you see?" can elicit surprisingly insightful responses.

this is a collection of some of these insights that i've encountered while teaching at an art museum and in the community.

newer entries come from a new program called "the art of looking," that brings mobile art galleries to disabled adults and children.

just a reminder, the entries do not reflect personal commentary on art pieces or collections.

integrated dis/abled summer camp

these lessons come from a summer camp that serves an integrated population of individuals with and without disabilities.  accordingly, the responses come from typically-developing campers and from campers with a range of developmental disabilities.


Nighthawks - Edward Hopper

teen group

from an activity that encourages participants to break down art pieces into simple shapes and colors using felt pieces:

"this is a great job - why don't you explain this to everyone."
camper: "okay, well the red square is the building on the outside and the grey square is the outside sidewalk.  the green is the wall outside and the red is the counter on the inside.  the red circle is the woman because she is all red and the orange is the chef.  the white is the light coming from the restaurant."
"you did a great job."
camper: "really?  are you proud of me?"
"yes, very proud. you did really great."


ages 9-11
"so what do you think is going on here?"

camper 1: "i think that the two men are secret spies."
camper 2: "and the chef passed the lady a note telling her 'you're being watched.'"

camper: "if they're on a date, i don't think the lady likes the man very much."
"what do you see that makes you say that?"
camper: "well, she's just picking at her fingernails, which all girls do when they're bored on dates."

ages 5-8
"tell me about the characters you see in this piece."

camper: "the man on the left is very mysterious."
"okay, what do you see that makes you say that?" 
camper: "the other 3 characters are in bright light and you can see their faces, but the man on the left is in the shadows and his face is hidden."


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