Longform Projects
Longform projects feature a sustained engagement with one artwork or idea present in the collection. Each project includes a filmed virtual tour and art lesson, as well as written instructions downloadable as a PDF. These five, fun projects explore monuments, walking as art, comics, architectural design, and puppetry. Artists highlighted in this series include Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, Richard Long, Ilya Kabakov, Roni Horn and Donald Judd. The final video, Making with Friends, looks at the friendships, collaborations, and connections between all the artists in Chinati’s collection.
Making Monuments
Our first longform lesson is on making monuments to home. This lesson takes you on a video tour of Chinati’s Monument to the Last Horse, an artwork by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen.
To access a PDF lesson plan for this project, click here.
The Long Path
The Long Path will get us up out of our seats, engineering, and transforming our spaces and how we move through them. Richard Long, a British artist, creates art through going on walks around the world. Though many of us can’t go outside right now, this project will bring the walk indoors.
To access a PDF lesson plan for this project, click here.
Illustrating Our Stories
Several visual art forms tell stories- painting, set design, puppetry, and, for today’s lesson, comics! Bringing together text and imagery, comics, cartoons, and graphic novels meld several artistic disciplines into one format. This longform lesson is based on Ilya Kabakov’s School no. 6, an imaginary, abandoned Russian schoolhouse that tells stories of life in the Soviet Union. Kabakov creates total installations, which completely immerse the viewer in experiencing the artwork. As part of his installations Kabakov also composes art books. Today’s lesson asks us to imagine what is happening in our empty schools while we’re home. What new life have these spaces taken on?
To access a PDF lesson plan for this project, click here.
Making Space
I’ve always questioned the design of what I’ve seen and I’ve always designed… the things and spaces around me.
– Donald Judd, Art and Architecture, 1987.
A strong believer in reusing existing buildings, Donald Judd designed architectural renovations that reflect his interest in space, clarity, and order. Judd also maintained a strong vision of museum architecture, believing the environment art is placed in should work in concert with the artworks. In this longform project, we are going to be exploring the idea of designing the spaces around us. If you could design the space around you to fit your vision of life, your passions, or your dreams, what would that space look like?
To access a PDF lesson plan for this project, click here.
Making with Friends
Across time, artists have maintained strong, life-defining friendships with other artists. These friendships create conviviality among contemporaries and promote an exchange of ideas, allowing art to progress and, at times, be revolutionary. Donald Judd was friends with many of the artists featured in Chinati’s collection; not only was he their friend, but he deeply admired their work. In this longform project, we will explore friendship and what it means to stay connected in a time of isolation by making puppets who love to catch up over video chats.
To access a PDF lesson plan for this project, click here.