Activities
A
Guide for Looking at Art
Based on Feldman’s Critical
Performance
Asking questions can help us use our minds, imaginations, past experiences, as well as our eyes and other senses to discover meaning in works of art.
These questions are designed for use with students when looking at artwork as a group. They can be distributed for individual reflection as well. The questions encourage students to use all their senses to look beneath the surface and get involved with works of art.
The activity can be done with any age group by varying the complexity of the questions, and can be applied to any work of art.
Beginning with a visual inventory of the work provides students and teachers with a common entry point and sets the stage for deeper exploration. There are no wrong answers when students put their imaginations to work. Encourage creative answers and explore them.
What do you
see? 
Describe the lines, shapes,
colours, and textures in this work of
art. Can you see people, animals, objects, or plants? What
materials did the artist use to make the work? If you could touch it, what
would it feel like? Is it flat or three-dimensional?
How is it
all put together?
What catches your eye
first? Which element is
most prominent or ‘in charge?’ Is anything repeated? Can you find any
patterns? How are things connected? Do some shapes appear closer to you
than others?
What’s it
all about?
What if you found yourself inside this artwork - what
would you hear, smell, taste, feel? Does it remind you of anything you’ve
seen before? Is the art telling you a story, giving you a feeling, or
sharing an idea? If you could ask the artist one question about this work,
what would it be?
What do you
think?
What do you like about this work of
art? Would you change anything? Do you want to learn more about this
artist and his or her work? What makes this a successful (or
unsuccessful) work of art?
Looking At: Bears in Art – BEARS – Whyte Museum – Contact Us