Sarah's Art History - Wilton Diptych and International Gothic

Hi there!

How are you all doing? In this video we’re talking about The Wilton Diptych, from the late 1300s, you can find it at the National Gallery.

Before you watch the video, your three questions are:

1. How many angels are there with wings?

2. How many Kings with Crowns?

3. Can you find the mushrooms ?

…and here are some activities you might want to do afterwards:

• Make a drawing of the painting.

• Explore early English Kings - Look up Richard II and find out about his rather challenging life, and sad ending, and then there is also Edward the Confessor and King Edmund. Draw a picture of your favourite bit of their life. Or make up a play about them!

• Decide what symbol you would have if you were in a painting, and what animal would you choose for your badge (it is a white hart/deer in the painting).

Next time: We will be looking at Masaccio’s Virgin and Child, 1426 (in the National Gallery) Look it up at www.nationalgallery.org.uk and click on the ‘-‘ so you can see the whole image on your screen.

Questions:

1. What is the baby doing?

2. What position is his hand in?

How many angels are there and what are they doing?

Thanks for watching. Do like, follow, share! See you next time and stay safe.

Sarah xxx

1. Sarah's Art History - Byzantine and Margarito

We’re talking about Margarito of Arezzo, The Virgin and Child Enthroned with Scenes from the Lives of the Saints, 1260s so watch the video and here are some activities you might want to do….

Activities

• Read the information on the National Gallery website about this painting. Choose 1 most interesting fact each. Let me know!

• Choose your favourite tiny detail that you think other people might not notice.

• If you want to know about art in the west you need to know the biblical stories, they were the main subject matter of painting for many years. So use this to explore the birth of Christ (nativity) and generally Christ’s life – this will be sooooo useful for understanding paintings. If you want to broaden this out, compare his life and teachings with the other major religious teachers – the Old Testament Jewish figures, Buddha, Mohammed, etc (this could be art of a longer project).

• Or you could focus on researching the Virgin Mary, or the saints – Benedict has some giggly bits for teenagers, St Margaret is pretty interesting too.

• Look up the Saints in this painting and find out what they are saints of (sometimes surprising things!). Saints always have a symbol (s) that they hold – what are the symbols of the Saints in this painting? Can you draw your own saints with their symbols? If you want further reading the historic Golden Legend by Jacopo de Voragine has all the apocryphal stories of the lives of the saints… it’s on my shelf as yet unread!

• Prepare a little play from the life of Christ. Kids choose. Any scene, any how. Wear costumes! Use props! Send me a video!

• Design a different throne for Mary and Jesus to sit on. Send me a picture!

Next time:

We will be looking at The Wilton Dyptich, late 1300s (we don’t know who painted it), also at the National Gallery. Look it up at www.nationalgallery.org.uk (copy the painting info and national gallery in google and it should be the first link) but also find a good image of it in google/bing search to look at with me online.

Questions:

1. How many angels are there with wings?

2. How many Kings with Crowns?

3. Can you find the mushrooms (close looking please!)

Thanks for watching. Do like, follow, share! And Happy Mother’s Day and see you next time!

Sxxx

Sarah's Art History - Introduction and Painting no. 1

Hi there, welcome to first of Sarah’s Art History.

Where we’ll go through the history of art painting by painting, I’ll give you some activities and three questions about the next painting we are going to look at… so first up –

Copy and paste this into google: Margarito of Arezzo The Virgin and Child Enthroned National Gallery

And it should be the first link (if not find it through the National Gallery website – www.nationalgallery.org.uk, click on the magnifying glass, click on paintings, type in ‘margarito of arezzo’, click on painting)

Find the little box lower left with the painting in small and click on the – so you can see the whole painting. And answer these questions for when we meet up again soon.

Questions before we begin!

1. Where is the mother and baby?

2. How many boxes on either side? (look at the pictures in them. Which is your favourite?)

3. Can you find the dragon? How many heads has he got?

Spread the word, follow on Instagram/Facebook/Twitter and look for Tours For My Kids!

See you soon to learn about the painting!

Sarah xxx