November 23rd, 2020 
Social Responsibility: Cultural Engagement Essay
Description of assignment
PREPARATIONS
Read: Chapters 3.3, 3.4 and 3.5 in GATEWAYS TO ART and view any videos or exercises.
Choose Artwork: For this assignment you will virtually visit a museum of your choice to choose an artwork from one of the cultures covered in chapters 3.3, 3.4 or 3.5 as the subject and focus of this essay.
The best local museums for this project are listed below, but you may visit another as long as it is a fine art museum that includes artworks eligible for this activity and has complete label information and a picture available.
Important: If you are a member of one of the cultures suggested, please choose a culture different from your own.
Assignment: Write an essay about this artwork exploring the culture that produced it and the place of the artwork in that culture.
Research of 3 or more sources is required for this assignment.
Objective: The point of this essay is to use art as a means of engaging in cross-cultural understanding based on research and art instead of assumptions.
Choosing the artwork
1. CULTURAL CHOICES and TIME PERIOD allowed. Artwork must be from one of the following cultures and must have been made within the time period given. NO OTHER CHOICES accepted.
The Islamic World (any date, but must be an Islamic work)
South and Southeast Asia before 1200 CE (AD)
China and Korea up to 1279 CE (AD)
Japan before 1333 CE (AD)
Art of the Americas before 1400 CE (AD)
Africa before 1800 CE (AD)
2. USE the following chapters 3.3, 3.4 and 3.5 in GATEWAYS TO ART 3rd ed. to help you find the more about specific cultures included in the choices above.
Why? Continents are made up of many countries and even within those countries there may be many cultures. For example, there is no single representative African culture, or a single Southeast Asian culture.
Many cultures around the world are linked to one or more religions. Remember that connection when choosing and writing about your artwork.
Use the chapters to help you choose the one culture whose artwork interests you.
3. The museum where you find the artwork MUST be one of your sources.
4. Links to local museums. Look at the Collection or Collection Highlights section of the site. You only need to choose one (1) artwork, but start with more than 1 choice. This allows you the chance to change artworks easily, if needed. Other museums are possible, but local is easier.
Dallas Museum of Art
Crow Collection of Asian Art, Dallas
Kimbell Museum, Fort Worth
5. Select one piece from the museum that was made by one of the cultures listed in #1 and fits within the time period as given above.
The piece can be from anywhere in the general region listed.
You must name the specific country/region in your essay.
6. While you are at the museum Online, take detailed notes on the piece based to have the full label information. (If not available change artwork!)
If the artist is listed as Unknown or no artist is listed at all, give the culture and country in place of Artist. This is more common than not, so expect to give culture or religion and country.
You should also look at every available link with that artwork. For example, the DMA Collection will list related materials below the picture of the artwork. Explore every one, they are sources that are credible and may be useful.
7. Research for information about the culture that produced this artwork and the use and meaning of the artwork itself. Appropriate research sources explained after Outline.
You should have at least 3 good quality sources.
A starter list of acceptable sources is given separately.
Writing the ESSAY – Outline
The essay should cover the following information in items and paragraphs, in order.
(SAMPLE in Assignment Folder for Picture, P2, P3 and Works Cited.)
FIRST item: PICTURE OF ARTWORK AND FULL LABEL INFORMATION
FOLLOW this outline when writing your essay.
Use Heading for each paragraph.
Paragraph 1. Introduction
Start with a 1 or 2 sentences NAMING THE MUSEUM, and DESCRIBING YOUR VIRTUAL VISIT experience.
NAME THE ARTWORK you have chosen (by title). REMEMBER art title formatting.
Explain why you chose this artwork. What made it interesting to you? You may mention
subject, style, anything that made this work stand out to you visually.
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT TO LEARN about the artwork and its culture from this analysis. What do you think it represents or is about in relationship to its culture?
Paragraph 2. Cultural Context Use your research when writing this paragraph.
NAME the culture/religion and give the time period (date) of the artwork, which sets time period for culture too.
DESCRIBE THE CULTURE/RELIGION during the time relevant to the artwork. Include any historical events in that culture (and country) relevant to the artwork.
ARTWORK’S GENERAL CULTURAL/RELIGIOUS SIGNIFICANCE, specific use, & meaning.
Includes meaning of art form, materials, style, beliefs, customs, and other factors.
ARE THE MATERIALS SIGNIFICANT to the culture and/or to the function or purpose of the artwork? May be both.
Paragraph 3. Artwork in Cultural ContextUse your research when writing this paragraph.
Next fit the artwork into its cultural context; the one you described in P2. Consider materials, style, beliefs, customs, and other factors like function or symbolism.
Be clear about the place of this artwork within its culture.
Give/apply the following information – list from Rubric.
Form – Name the art form. Use label information found to help.
Style – Culture, Label and research based answer.
Materials – Name the materials used.
Significance of the materials used. Are they commonly used in the culture?Do the materials have a cultural meaning or symbolism?
Paragraph 4. Conclusion
Reconsider your first responses in paragraph 1.
How has learning about the artwork and its cultural context expanded, or even changed, your understanding and appreciation of the artwork? Must explain.
How has learning about the artwork and its cultural context expanded your understanding of a culture other than your own? Must explain.
Last page: WORKS CITED
List of citations for all research sources all in MLA format.
3 or more research sources required. ALL quotes/ paraphrases require in-text citations.
List of approved type sources on page 3. ALL are online accessible.
WORKS CITED must be MLA formatted.
OWL Purdue site for MLA formatting for in-text citations, full citations and Bibliography. Similar information and link is also found in the TOOLKIT on eCampus in the left menu.
APPROPRIATE RESEARCH SOURCES
MUST include the Museum website where you chose the artwork.
MAY include the textbook, give specific pages that provided information used.
Video (source matters!), journals, professional documentaries (PBS, BBC, etc.).
Magazine and eZine articles that are informative, not notices or simply reviews.
Must be based on scholarly research or experience not opinion. NO non-academic blogs, travel sites, or other sites that have no sources listed. Your research should be based on research.
Use only academic sources, such as the textbook, books or e-books from the college library, library databases, professional documentaries (PBS, BBC, etc.), or websites used in this course (Smarthistory.org, Khan Academy, and museum websites.)
If your best information is from one of the no sites, then look for the source of the information given on that site. That may lead you to a better source.
ALL historical or cultural information from ALL sources including the museum plaque, books, websites, etc., must be properly cited in MLA format, including in-text citations and a separate Works Cited page.
NO – ancient.eu, sacred-destinations.com, history.com, ancientpages.com, Wikipedia.org, other encyclopedias, and any other commercial/ad-supported sites are NOT acceptable.
Papers that do not cite quotations or paraphrases properly (in-text) and URL only Works Cited will lose significant points in grading.
NOTE for future college work: As you go forward, not giving citations for information used in a paper can be considered plagiarism. That is a serious breach of the Student Code.
FORMATTING the Paper
WRITE the paper outside of eCampus in a WORD document.
Proof and edit BEFORE you submit. Compress images too.
This is a formal essay! No slang, no text speak (u for you), no dialogue.
DO NOT use the following: NO highlighting, NO shading, NO colored text.
NO bullets, no numbered lists, AND NO borders or other decorations.
FORMATTING REQUIRED:
FILE TYPE: MUST BE A WORD DOCUMENT. No other file type will be accepted.
NO COVER PAGE.
USE PARAGRAPH HEADERS like the ones in the SAMPLE.
LENGTH: Image with label, 4 paragraphs, bibliography. 3-4 pages – Longer is not needed.
FONT SIZE: 12 point, standard fonts only Calibri, Arial, Times New Roman
MARGINS: 1″ margins, left-justified.
SPACING: DOUBLE SPACE the essay and bibliography. Header single spaced.
HEADER: Use a header for your name, title of paper, and course name/number.
SUBMIT to eCampus in the ESSAY Assignment Link.
DUE Monday, 11-23-20, by 11:59 pm. Submit in Submit LINK in assignment folder.
NO EXTENSIONS will be given.
GRADING The highest possible grade on this assignment is 100 pts.
I use the Essay GRADING RUBRIC which will be provided in the folder on eCampus with this assignment.
You will not receive points for items omitted from the essay. Added information outside of the assignment will not be included in the grading. This includes added pictures.
Grading also includes some specific writing skills, the required citations and bibliography, and the inclusion of the image of the artwork
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