Portraits and Identity

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The following has been designed to give you information in advance of your visit to Manchester Art Gallery so that you can get the most out of your morning or afternoon workshop session.

Aims:

Secondary school boy making an artpiece with coloured tape

  • To make the pupils' visit to Manchester Art Gallery an enjoyable and memorable experience
  • To introduce and welcome students to the variety of portraits in the gallery's collections
  • To discover the different techniques and media employed by artists who explore portraits and identity within their work
  • To expand pupils' vocabulary by describing artworks whilst considering interpretation through a critical studies approach of analysis

What happens in a session:

  • The tour will be led by a gallery educator who will stay with the group
  • Pupils will learn how to use the gallery as a learning resource and will become familiar with a number of portrait-based works
  • Pupils will discuss the use of portraits through different time periods
  • Each pupil will complete a contextual analysis of artworks, and explore alternative drawing techniques and composition through the use of photography

Preparation:

  • Before you visit, discuss the value of experiencing ‘real’ artworks in an art gallery setting
  • Discuss what the students think a portrait is and the different types of portraits they have experienced at home, school and in galleries
  • Encourage discussion by addressing different media, styles, interpretation and scale
  • Collect images of different portraits – reproductions, photographs, newspaper and magazine images
  • Explain why students are not allowed to touch, eat or drink at Manchester Art Gallery (to protect the works on display from accidental damage and general wear and tear)

Follow up:

  • Create further portraits incorporating techniques and methods experienced through the gallery visit
  • Use the materials collected to produce studies/painting/ICT related artworks back in the classroom
  • Consider creating a 3D gallery space, allowing students to curate their own exhibition using information collected within the workshop

For more information including booking, parking, facilities and a downloadable risk assessment, please go to plan your visit.