Welcome to Make a Masterpiece

Congratulations on choosing Make A Masterpiece for family fun! This creativity center will stretch your imaginations. Curiosity and a playful attitude are all you need to launch it.

With Make A Masterpiece, each of you can try familiar and exciting new art techniques on your computer! There are some terrific ideas for school projects in this guide, too. You can probably think of many more.

Make A Masterpiece adds to the creative possibilities of traditional art materials such as markers, crayons, and paint. Let’s find out what your family—perhaps along with teachers and artists in your community—can do with Make A Masterpiece.


Journal

Additional information about art tools, creativity, art styles, and history. Includes images from the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. and The State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.


Suitcase

Scribble’s sketches and photographs from all over the world are inspiration to create masterpieces, think about ideas, and write or draw stories


Frame

Hang your masterpieces in your own Gallery


How Could You Use Make A Masterpiece at Home?

Most people are eager to get started with a new computer program, so let’s get clicking! When you launch Make A Masterpiece, the first thing you see after the introductory product information is a short animation about the host character, Scribble. He introduces himself and gives a snappy description of the fun that’s in store. From there, you choose where to go. Here is a brief description of Make A Masterpiece’s choices.


What You Can Do with Make A Masterpiece

Drawing Space: A plain drawing surface—a 640x480 digital canvas—with containers of tools to create and explore

Tools: Choose from Scribble’s Journal , Suitcase , chalk, colored pencils, crayons, markers, watercolors, oil paints, popcorn, image hose, airbrush, neon, ribbons, line, pattern, shaving cream, food, smudge, animated stickers, text stencils, photos, magic effects brush, erase, undo, clear, print, save and quit, and Frame


Imagine the Possibilities!

When you are familiar with what Make A Masterpiece can do, try some of the following suggestions. Some of these ideas build on typical school and community projects. Find many more imaginative ways to use Make A Masterpiece with other families and friends. These activities may involve all of Make A Masterpiece’s tools, depending on your imaginations.

Hear All About It!

Self-portraits

Friends & Family Portraits

Pick up on Music, Stories, or Poetry

Catch a Favorite Picture

Journal Jump-offs

Wacky Fun

How Do We See Our family?

Invite the Neighbors!


Hear All About It!

Find an event that needs publicity, perhaps a family reunion or block party. Plan your schedule and create ways to publicize the event (posters, brochures, stickers). Determine the best places for display. Draft messages and design attractive posters. Print out (or recreate in a larger format) and display posters.

Values for children: language arts, teamwork, problem solving, art/design, family and community, computer literacy

Extensions: Plan an event from start to finish, perhaps a neighborhood computer art show. Everyone helps prepare, promote, set up, and act as hosts.


Self-portraits

Take pictures of each other. Most commercial film processors provide pictures on disk that you can import into Make A Masterpiece. Just drop digital images into a special import folder before starting the program. Once you are in the program, click on the Camera tool. Design your own portraits by playing with Make A Masterpiece’s Magic Effects tool. Frame and hang portraits where they can be appreciated.

Values for children: self-knowledge, observation, art techniques, teamwork, social skills

Extensions: Write your autobiographies, interview family members for details about their early years. These may become family treasures. Share self-portraits with a relative. Or scan a collection of photos from newborn to present into Make A Masterpiece to create a whole computerized family album.


Friends and Family Portraits

Make portraits of people you know, such as neighbors, like you did with self-portraits. Experiment with different styles and art periods using the tools in Make A Masterpiece.

Values for children: personal histories, similarities among families and cultures, family ties, community involvement

Extensions: Write biographies or fictional stories about people you know. Explore your family tree. Do portraits of famous people about whom you are studying in school.


Pick Up on Music, Stories, or Poetry

Find or write music, stories, or poetry that picks up on the same theme as something you create with Make A Masterpiece, or vice versa. For an impressionist-style painting, for example, find out about music written during the period. Learn about the cultures where Impressionism was popular. Or think about the last book you read. What made a strong impression on you? Draw a scene from the book with Make A Masterpiece.

Values for children: language arts, music, history, cultures, art techniques

Extensions: Find out where local writers, poets, and musicians perform. Go there often.


Catch a Favorite Picture

Collect a variety of artistic images, such as from Make A Masterpiece, a museum on the Internet, or postcards or prints of fine art. Choose a favorite image (it might be the topic, such as an animal; or a memory, of a bustling summer beach, for example).Create a new image with Make A Masterpiece that uses the same techniques/colors/topic.

Values for children: art, history, science (depending on the image)

Extensions: Work in black and white, then color. Pair up to do the activity together.


Journal Jump-offs

Choose an appealing tool or idea from Scribble’s Journal. Read/listen to information about the topic. Then find out more about it: Who are some famous artists who used the tool or techniques that had similar visual effects? What effects is it intended to create? What types of art are created in other places around the world? Use the Internet, the library, or people you know to find out more.

Use the tool to create a piece of art, first on Make A Masterpiece, then perhaps with traditional art materials.

Values for children: library/Internet research skills, creativity, computer literacy

Extensions: Find someone in the community who uses this tool. Ask them to demonstrate its possibilities.


Wacky Fun

Some of Make A Masterpiece’s tools are for use only on the computer. With Popcorn, children can paint a whole bin of the fluffy stuff. Children who are frustrated, for example, might be soothed as they Airbrush or squirt Shaving Cream.

Curriculum links: social skills, creativity, fantasy

Extensions: Younger children play at the computer with older children.


How Do We See Our Family?

Describe yourselves with Make A Masterpiece tools. In the process, you might interview a distant relative illustrate a story with a photo, collect family mementos from another era or country, or do architectural drawings of your home.

Values for children: families, cultures, community, language arts, problem solving

Extensions: Plan a neighborhood celebration in which you share your heritage with each other.


Invite the Neighbors!

After everyone has had a chance to try out Make A Masterpiece and save work in the Gallery, hold a neighborhood computer art show. Show friends how to use Make A Masterpiece. Display your whole collection of work, both on screen and printed, for all to enjoy.

Values for children: families, community, language arts, problem solving

Extensions: Spearhead a school or community computer art show. Let everyone try out Make A Masterpiece on demonstration computers.


Why is Make A Masterpiece for Families?
Why Make A Masterpiece for Families?

Art is truly one of the best ways for the young at heart of any age to grow and learn. The arts—music, visual arts, drama, literature, dance—are essential for school and life success.

Children who explore with art are more likely to be curious, to use their time constructively, to be creative, and to really think about ideas. Art nourishes children’s development in all areas—physical, emotional, intellectual, and social. Possibilities for school- and home-related projects abound.

Make A Masterpiece  complements nearly every subject and skill that children from ages 5 to 10 are learning. Math. Science. Social studies. Language arts. Music. Getting along with people. Physical dexterity. Computer literacy. Self-knowledge. Problem solving. Observation. History. Research skills. And of course, art.

Best of all, Make A Masterpiece makes it possible for adults and children to joyfully explore together with art.


Tune Into Art

Make A Masterpiece is an interesting place where you can try out artistic ideas, explore your interests, learn new things, and feel proud of your accomplishments!

Technology opens new doors. With Make A Masterpiece, your family can sample a tempting selection of artistic tools and techniques. Sometimes, you may want to follow up your Make A Masterpiece creations by using traditional art materials.

On the Internet, you can tour museums around the world (from the National Gallery to the Louvre and The Hermitage), or exchange family pictures with distant relatives. Online Links are listed in the last section of this guide.

Develop your own family collector’s items by printing out your Make A Masterpiece creations and displaying them in your home. Art and beauty are all around you.


Whay to Say About an Artist's Creations

All of us feel more confident about our art when people express genuine interest. What do you say when a young artist comes running and exclaims, “Look at what I did all by myself!”?

It’s so easy to respond “What is it?” or “Isn’t that pretty.” But what if the artist was experimenting for fun and didn’t make anything specific? What if the work is your portrait, and you don’t recognize yourself? What if the artist isn’t pleased with the way the technique turned out and wants to discuss changes she is planning?

Rather than make a guess or jump to conclusions, say things that support artists’ ideas, stretch their imaginations, and help them refine their artistic thinking. Ask open-ended questions and offer supportive comments about each other’s creations. Here are a few suggestions:

Ask the artist to describe what she or he has done or thinks about the piece. You might say, “Tell me about your drawing” or “What’s happening here?”

Notice some specific aspect of the work, such as “I see that you used zigzag lines. Why did you choose them?” or “These different textures are really intriguing.”

Inquire about how the artist accomplished an effect. “I wonder how you made that orange line go around the red.” “What Make A Masterpiece tool did you use to make that brushed style?”

Usually simple, nonjudgmental observations will prompt artists of all ages to analyze their efforts, and to talk at length about them. For more ideas about how to respond to children’s creations, you may want to read to Considering Children’s Art: Why and How to Value Their Works (Engel, 1995).

Get ready for some delightful conversations!


Books on Children and Art

Engel, B.S. (1995). Considering children’s art: Why and how to value their works. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Fowler, C. (1996). Strong arts, strong schools: The promising potential and shortsighted disregard of the arts in American schooling. New York: Oxford University Press.

Gardner, H. (1991). The unschooled mind: How children think and schools should teach. New York: Basic Books.

Getty Education Institute for the Arts, The. (1993). Discipline-based art education and cultural diversity. Los Angeles, CA: Author.

Langer, E. (1997). The power of mindful learning. New York: Addison-Wesley.

Pinciotti, P., with D. Berry, C. Sterman, & R.L. Gorton. (1998). Art as a way of learningª: Explorations in teaching. Bethlehem, PA: Northampton Community College.

See also:

 Children’s Books

 Online Links

 Arts Organizations


Children's Books

Bjork, C. (1987). Linnea in Monet’s garden. New York: R & S Books.

Brown, L.K., & Brown, M. (1990). Visiting the art museum. New York: Dutton.

Catalanotto, P. (1995). The painter. New York: Orchard.

Davidson, M.B. (1984). History of art. New York: Random House.

Lamarche, H. (1985). Picasso for children. Montreal, Quebec, Canada: The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

Lepsky, I. (1984). Leonardo daVinci. Woodbury, NY: Barrons.

Locker, T. (1995). Sky tree: Learning science through art. New York: Puffin.

Meyer, S.E. (1990). First impressions. New York: Abrams.

Myers, W.D. (1993). Great migration, The: An American story. New York: Harper Collins.

Perl, L. (1987). Mummies, tombs, and treasureÑSecrets of ancient Egypt. Boston: Clarion.

Raboff, E. (1988). Art for children. New York: Doubleday.

Venezia, M. (1988). Getting to know the World’s greatest artists. Chicago: ChildrenÕs Press.

Voss, G. (1993). Museum colors. Boston: Boston Museum of Fine Art.

See also:

 Books on Children and Art

 Online Links

 Arts Organizations


Online Links
Online Links*

* Note: IBM recommends that parents control their children’s internet usage

Architecture of Islam

Photos of doors, arches, and beautiful entryways

http://rubens.anu.edu.au/islam2/Part1.html

Ardeche Cave Art Discovery—France

Prehistoric cave paintings

http://www.culture.fr./culture/gvpda-en.html

ArtServ

More than 10,000 images primarily from Mediterranean cultures

http://rubens.anu.edu.au/

Bayler Art Museum

“African Art: Aesthetics and Meaning”

http://www.lib.viginia.edu/dic/exhib/93.ray.aa/African.html

Binney & Smith

Product information, resources, and educational information www.crayola.com/crayola OR www.crayola.com/art_education

Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, The http://www.hermitage.ru/indexeng.

Images from Japan

A gallery of photos of shrines, temples, and other buildings

http://www.cs.uidaho.edu/~marac9442/japan.html

Internet Art Resources

http://www.ftgi.com/

Le WebLouvre—France

The unofficial site

http://sunsite.unc.edu/louvre/

Library of Congress

Archives and exhibits

http://www.loc.gov

Mosaic

Art prints

ftp://ftp.sunset.se/pub/pictures/Art

http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/SDG/Experimental/anu-art-history/prints.html

National Gallery of Art

http://nga.gov

Smithsonian Institution

Access museums

http://www.si.sgi.com/sgistart.htm

World Arts Resources

http://www.cgrg.ohio-state.edu/Newark/artsres.html

World Art Resources

Galleries, online exhibits, commercial, government, private links

http://www.concourse.com/wwar

See also:

 Books on Children and Art

 Children’s Books

 Arts Organizations


Arts Organizations

Getty Education Institute for the Arts, The

1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 600

Los Angeles, CA 90049-1683

(310) 440-7315

http://www.artsednet.edu

http://www.ahip.getty.edu/

John F. Kennedy Center Alliance for Arts Education Network

Education Department

Washington, DC 20566

(202) 797-0083

http://www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org

Metropolitan Museum of Art

255 Gracie Station

New York, NY 10028-9998

(212) 570-3930

http://www.metmuseum.org

Catalog of reproductions, videos, and children’s activities

National Endowment for the Arts

Arts in Education Program

1100 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.

Washington, DC 20506

(202) 682-5426

http://www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org

National Endowment for the Humanities

Division of Education Programs or Museums and Historical Organizations Programs

1100 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.

Washington, DC 20506

(202) 606-8428

National Gallery of Art

Publications Mail Order Department

2000B South Dr.

Landover, MD 20785

(301) 322-5900

fax (301) 322-1578

http://www.NGA.gov/shop/shop

Catalog of reproductions including postcards

See also:

 Books on Children and Art

 Children’s Books

 Online Links