Welcome to the UMMA activity American Culture 204 - Gendered Racial Capitalism in the Twentieth-Century United States. This is designed to be used for guided discussion or for asynchronous work by students alone or in groups.
We will be using a three-step process of visual analysis for these activities: See - Think/Feel - Connect
See - What do we see? We will describe what we are looking at. Pay attention both to what's depicted but also all the choices that the artist made about how to depict these things. Ask yourself about the artists' use of line, shape, texture, color, space, and perspective.
Think/Feel - What does it makes us think about? How does it make us feel? There are no right answers here and responses don't need to be fully formed or complete. Be speculative. Go with what you're thinking and feeling.
Connect - What connections can you make between the art, our discussion, and material from your class? What are you reminded of? What themes/questions from class can we bring into the discussion to get meaning out of the image?
Let's start by considering these three artworks as a group.
See
1) What similarities do you see between these works in their use of materials?
Think/Feel
2) What moods or feelings do the materials in these works evoke? What thoughts do they generate?
Step 2
Let's now consider each of these works individually. For each work, answer these questions.
See
3) Describe the work in detail. What do you see? Pay attention both to what's depicted but also all the choices that the artist made about how to depict these things. Ask yourself about the artists' use of line, shape, texture, color, space, and perspective.
5) How does the artwork connect to your class's discussion of labor in the period of deindustrialization? How are workers represented (even when not visually depicted)?
6) Why does it make sense to characterize these artworks as art of the Rust Belt? Read about the Rust Belt here and respond.
Carl Weese Untitled toned black and white photograph on paper 11 in x 13 1/2 in (27.94 cm x 34.29 cm) Gift from the Collection of David S. Rosen MD, MPH
George Vargas Michigan Worker welding goggles, metal, hanging bells, rusty bottle cap, pulleys, chains, and padlock mounted on plywood 20 7/8 in x 10 3/8 in x 2 9/16 in (53.02 cm x 26.35 cm x 6.51 cm);20 7/8 in x 10 3/8 in x 2 9/16 in (53.02 cm x 26.35 cm x 6.51 cm) Gift of the artist
Tyree Guyton Untitled (Paint Cans) paint cans, wooden crate, American flag, rearview mirror, and ceramic figurine 33 1/2 in x 28 1/8 in x 12 in (85.09 cm x 71.44 cm x 30.48 cm) Gift of H. David Zucca