Representations of Women in British Paintings

1.Look at the painting.React and comment on it. You may use the "How to Analyse a Picture" toolbox to get ready to discuss the first painting by Thomas Gainsborough.

2.You may want to note downelements in the mind map below to sum up your answers. You can draw it in your notebook, fill it in online or download it.

How to Analyse a Picture

1. Observe and react.
What captures your attention? 
How does it make you feel at first glance?

2. Describe and analyse.
What do I see? Landscape, people, animals, objects, etc.
Action or actions? 
Time of day, season, weather, inside/outside, environment, historical period, etc.
Organization: composition (background, foreground, position of the different elements), contrasts, emphasis, movement, etc.
Colors and light
The people: possible age, social position, relationship, body language and attitudes, etc. 
How does the artist get the viewer's attention? 
What do you think the artist wants you to think or feel? 
How does the painting make you feel now that you have analysed it? 

3. Interpret and judge.
If I could ask the artist one question, it would be ... 
I like ≠ dislike this painting because ... (you can also ask a partner) 
I would  ≠ would not hang it in my home because ...

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Toolbox
The artwork is about ...
The artist wants to …
It reminds me of …
There are symbols such as ...
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4. Recap.
a.Sum up in a few sentenceswhat has been said about the painting.
b.Think of 3 different adjectives or nounsand be ready to justify.

Giovanna Baccelli(1782), oil on canvas, by Thomas Gainsborough.

Thomas Gainsborough, a British portrait and landscape painter, was born in Suffolk in 1727 and died in London in 1788. He is considered one of the most important British artists of the second half of the 18th century and was a founding member of the Royal Academy.

D’après Wikipedia

Lady Lilith

Lady Lilith(1868), oil on canvas, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti.

Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (born in London in 1828 and died in 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti, was an English poet, illustrator, painter, and translator. He founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood in 1848 with William Holman Hunt and John Millais. Rossetti inspired many contemporary artists and writers, and his work also influenced many European artists. 

D’après Wikipedia

Comparing the Paintings - Worksheet 2

1. Use the mind mapsto describe, analyse, interpret and judge the two paintings (Giovanna BaccelliandLady Lilith). You can draw them in your notebook, fill them in online or download them.

2. Work with a partnerand use the mind map you created inActivity 1 to compare and contrast the three paintings (The Byam Family,Giovanna BaccelliandLady Lilith): 
a. What do the three pieces have in common?
b. What are the differences? 
c. What do they show about the evolution in the representation of women? 
d. How could you describe this evolution?
e. Would you say that one is more beautiful than the others? Why? Why not?

3. What you learnt.
a. What did you learn about how to analyse a painting?
b.What did you learn about the different ways of depicting women?
Do not forget to fill in your "Personal Recap Chart."

Prepare a short presentationof the paintingLady Lilithand record it.
Make sure to give:

Visual elements and the effect they produce on the viewer.
Biographical elements about the artist.
Historical and social context.

To make your presentation more lively and easier to follow, do not write the whole text but use notes with the essential elements.

Recap what you have learntso far and imagine what the key question of the unit may be. You may use the elements in the toolbox below. Do not forget to fill in your "Personal Recap Chart."

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Toolbox
The first two documents of the unit show ...
I had no idea that ... but now I know ...
The representation of women in art has evolved from ... to ... in the United Kingdom
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Representations of Women in British Paintings

The Byam Family - Worksheet 1

How to Analyse a Picture

Giovanna Baccelli

Lady Lilith

Comparing the Paintings - Worksheet 2

Representations of Women in British Paintings - Record an Audio Guide

Representations of Women in British Paintings - Recap