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PICTURING THE STORY: NARRATIVE ARTS AND THE STORIES THEY TELL

ESPECIALLY FOR EDUCATORS

Frans Snyders (and workshop), Flemish, 1579-1657 The Fox and the Heron, ca. 1630-1640 Oil on canvas, 47 ⅛ x 61 ¼ in. Gift of Dr. and Mrs. James V. Aquavella, 72.75

CONTENTS: Classroom Copy:

Printable, condensed version of online materials, copy-ready for classroom use. Curriculum Connections:

Organized by subject area: Social Studies, ELA, Science, Art/Art History Lesson extensions, children’s book recommendations, and activity suggestions,

some with accompanying activity sheets. Learning Skill-based Activity Sheets: See Learning Skills Chart

Printable, copy-ready sheets that address specific learning skills, for classroom use with online materials or printed Classroom Copy.

Picturing the Story: Narrative Arts and the Stories They Tell is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, with additional support from the New York State Council on the Arts. Support is also provided by Dominion, Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation, Thomson Reuters, Hammer Packaging, the Estate of Estelle B. Goldman and two anonymous donors.

m a g . r o c h e s t e r . e d u / P i c t u r i n g T h e S t o r y / F a b l e _ F o x H e r o n . p d f 9/2009




Frans Snyders (and workshop), Flemish, 1579-1657 The Fox and the Heron, ca. 1630-1640 Oil on canvas, 47 ⅛ x 61 ¼ in. Gift of Dr. and Mrs. James V. Aquavella, 72.75

The Fable of the Fox and the Crane by Aesop

Once upon a time, there was a Fox who decided to play a trick on his friend the Crane. He invited Crane over for dinner, but served soup poured into a broad, flat dish. Fox lapped up his soup easily with his tongue, but Crane, unable to scoop up the soup with her long, pointed bill, went home hungry. Fox laughed and laughed at his clever trick. Then Crane decided that Fox needed to be taught a lesson. The next day, she thanked Fox for a lovely time, and invited him to come have dinner with her. Fox accepted the invitation with delight, and arrived hungry and eager. However, Crane served dinner in a tall jar with a long narrow neck. Crane easily dipped her bill into the jar and enjoyed her dinner, but Fox, with his short snout, could not even begin to reach in to eat. What is the moral of this story? Some say, “One bad turn deserves another.” Others say, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” a lesson known as the Golden Rule.



READING THE ART The main scene takes place out of doors under the branches of a leafy tree, at the edge of a shallow stream. The two large, long-necked birds at the right side of this painting are Grey Herons. One of the herons bends its head down into a long-necked glass jar, and slurps up a long snake-like fish called an eel. The jar contains water for the live frogs and fish inside. On the other side of the glass jar, a Red Fox with a long bushy tail watches hungrily. The landscape stretches out beyond this scene to show a grove of trees, and distant hills. Another grouping of fox and heron appear together in the middle distance, above and behind the fox. Their arrangement is nearly identical

to the main action, except the glass jar is missing. Instead, the fox watches as the heron bends over a shallow bowl or plate.

This painting type is known as a continuous narrative, because it shows two different episodes of the story at the same time. The two scenes appear to be occurring at the same time, but one actually happened first. Despite the “realism” of the animals and the believable natural setting, this painting depicts an imaginary scene. The title of the painting, The Fox and the Heron, refers to one of the many animal tales attributed to the ancient Greek storyteller Aesop. CONNECTING THE CULTURE Fables are simple teaching tales, mostly with animals playing the main parts. Aesop (AY-sop) is credited with creating and telling over 600 popular fables. Little is known of Aesop’s life, but he is said to have lived at the beginning of the great Classical Period of ancient Greece. Over the last 2,500 years, Aesop’s fables have demonstrated proper behavior and consequences of misbehavior, and continued to be used for teaching children (and adults!).


ABOUT THE ARTIST Frans Snyders (1579-1657) lived in the historic region of Flanders, which once included overlapping parts of modern Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. Snyders became well known for his animal paintings, and was one of the first to specialize in fable pictures. He eventually produced about 25 fable paintings, including two versions of The Fox and the Heron. His careful observations from nature resulted in richly detailed, believable animals and colorful settings. Snyders chose to replace the Crane of Aesop’s story with Grey, a familiar bird he could easily observe in the wetlands near his home. Master painters like Snyders often ran workshop-studios, where students and apprentices trained by working alongside the master and his assistants. As the master, Snyders likely painted the most difficult or important parts and left the rest to his workshop. Even master painters at this time often collaborated on paintings with fellow masters, contributing their specialty to the project. MATERIALS AND METHODS The use of oil-based paints likely began during the High Middle Ages, gradually replacing traditional tempera paints (pigments mixed with egg yolks). Flemish artists combined tempera and oil painting during the 1400s, but by the 1600s commonly used pure oils for painting on panel or canvas stretched on a wood frame. Artists first created oil paint by mixing colors into vegetable oils. Linseed oil became the most popular choice. Because oil dries very slowly and does not evaporate during drying, oil paints do not lose color intensity, are waterproof and durable, and remain flexible when dry, ideal for work on canvas.





ESPECIALLY FOR EDUCATORS: THE FOX AND THE HERON

Curriculum Connections: Social Studies (Associated Activity Sheets) Research ideas of education in ancient Athens in about 600 BCE. (Compare and Contrast) How are they different than ideas about schools today? Locate the region of Flanders on a modern political map of Europe. (Map It – Western Europe) How do the modern country borders relate to the region today? Who were the different groups of people who lived in and around Flanders in the 17th century? Research the issues that united and divided them. Curriculum Connections: English Language Arts (Associated Activity Sheets) Describe the characters, scenery, and other images inspired by hearing the story. Write a poem or myth about the fox, heron, or other animal in the painting. Have pairs of students create animal drawings inspired by each other’s story writing. (connected to Art lesson idea)

Write your own Aesop-style fable. What moral will your story teach? Which morals do you think are most important to know? Which animals did you choose to tell your story, and why? What kind of language do you use in a fable? Think about animals and their characteristics. How do we describe them? (Animal Attributes) Why do people use animals as characters in their stories? Read the story, then test your skills of understanding. (Reading for Meaning) Listen to the story, then test your listening skills. (Listening to Learn) Reinterpret the story as a play, including appropriate background information, (Playing the Parts) characters, setting, etc. Role-play an interview with one of the characters at different stages of the story. (Imaginary Interview)




Curriculum Connections: English Language Arts (con’t) (Associated Activity Sheets) Role-play an imaginary interview with the artist that created the work of art. (Ask the Artist)

Create a storyboard showing the main events of the story. (Storyboard: Scene by Scene) Compare this story with another of Aesop’s fables. (Compare and Contrast) Suggestions: The Lion and the Mouse, Tortoise and the Hare, The Bird Trap Curriculum Connections: Science Research the different animals that inspired this artwork. Animal Study: create detailed studies of a bird or animal, then incorporate it into a larger work by pasting it onto a large sheet of paper, and draw or painting a setting around it. Curriculum Connections: Art/Art History (Associated Activity Sheets) Take a closer look at this object. (Examine the Elements) Compare the story and the object. (How do they Compare?) Animal Study: create detailed studies of a bird or animal, then incorporate it into a larger work by pasting it onto a large sheet of paper, and draw or painting a setting around it. Create a storyboard demonstrating the artist’s creative process, from (Storyboard: Picture the Process) assembling materials to finished piece. Narrative Illustration: choose a historical or fictional narrative; write a synopsis of the narrative, pinpoint one of the most dramatic scenes and make a drawing of that scene. Collaborative Project: work collaboratively on a single drawing or painting as a workshop of artists in the 17th century. Have each group discuss ideas for the work of art and make decisions about the subject matter and composition of the work before they begin.




Curriculum Connections: Art/Art History (con’t)

Have pairs of students create animal drawings inspired by each other’s story writing. (connected to ELA lesson idea)

Role-play an imaginary interview with the artist that created this object. (Ask the Artist) Explore other works by Franz Snyders, Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony Van Dyck, or other artists from this culture and time period. HOW TO READ A MUSEUM LABEL: Artist name, culture and life dates Frans Snyders (and workshop), Flemish, 1579-1657 Title of work, date made The Fox and the Heron, ca. 1630-1640

Oil on canvas Materials used by artist Gift of Dr. and Mrs. James V. Aquavella, 72.75 Identification number for object in museum

source of money or gift




Curriculum Connections and Learning Skills

Activity Sheet Title

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Sum

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Animal Attributes X X X X

Ask the Artist X X X X X

Compare and Contrast X X X

Creature Features X X X

Drawing Conclusions X X X X

Examine the Elements (object) X X X X X X

Examine the Elements (painting) X X X X

How Do They Compare? X X X X X X X

Imaginary Interview X X X X X

Listening to Learn X X X X X X

Map It X X X X

Playing the Parts X X X X X X X

Reading for Meaning X X

Storyboard: Picture the Process X X X X X X

Storyboard: Scene by Scene X X X X X X

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date_____________

v. 7/08

Animal Attributes People have described certain human attributes by associating them with animals, probably for as long as people and animals have lived together. Have you ever heard someone say…

"strong as an ox" , "wise as an owl", or "hungry as a horse" ?

Think about the animals listed below -- what words would you choose to describe them? Use words provided in the list below, or add your own descriptive words.

annoying clever busy fierce friendly noble silly

dangerous powerful loud scary stupid witty lazy

beautiful angry ugly crazy brave curious slippery

generous sad lazy selfish quiet tired timid

_____________________________ as a tiger

__________________________ as a chicken

_____________________________ as a bear

____________________________as a spider

____________________________as an eagle

_____________________________ as a shark

______________________________as a cow

_________________________ as an elephant

____________________________as a snake

_____________________________ as a fish

____________________________as a sheep

_____________________________ as a wolf

____________________________as a mouse

_____________________________as a crow

__________________________ as a penguin

___________________________ as a donkey

Follow up: Think about the word choices you made to describe each animal. What characteristics of that animal made those descriptions fit? How have folktales used these animal characteristics to tell the story and teach a lesson? What animals would you choose to tell your own folktale?


Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date___________

Ask the Artist Imagine being able to talk to the artist that created this object. What questions would you ask? How might the artist answer? Remember, you speak for the artist, so answer the questions as he or she might. Object Name or Title: _______________________________________________________________________ 1. What is your name? _____________________________________________________________________ 2. Where are you from? ______________________________________________________________________ 3. Describe the place where you are right now. What are you doing there? _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How would you describe your artwork? ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 5. What tools do you use to create your artworks? ________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 6. How did you decide what to include, and what to leave out, when creating this object? _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 7. What part of this object was your favorite to work on? Why? ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________

more questions on back…

8. If you made an object like this again, what would you do differently? _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. Is there any other information that you would like to share about yourself or your artwork? ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ Imagine what the artist looks like while working, and make a drawing. Include any details you think might be important. Don’t forget the tools and the artwork!

Picturing the Story: Narrative Arts and the Stories They Tell is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, with additional support from the New York State Council on the Arts. Support is also provided by Dominion, Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation, Thomson Reuters, Hammer Packa

ging, the Estate of Estelle B. Goldman and two anonymous donors. v . 7/08

Name___________________________________________________ Class___________________________Date_____________________

Compare and Contrast

v. 7/08


Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date___________

Picturing the Story: Narrative Arts and the Stories They Tell is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, with additional support from the New York State Council on the Arts. Support is also provided by Dominion, Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation, Thomson Reuters, Hammer Packaging, the Estate of Estelle B. Goldman and two anonymous donors..

v. 7/08

Drawing Conclusions 1. Listen to or read the story. 2. Summarize the story, including main points and important details. __________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

What specific scene or element of the story does the artwork apply to, or depict? __________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Does the story help the art to make sense, or does the art help the story? ___________________ Why is that? __________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

What is the purpose of the artwork in storytelling? __________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date___________

Picturing the Story: Narrative Arts and the Stories They Tell is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, with additional support from the New York State Council on the Arts. Support is also provided by Dominion, Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation, Thomson Reuters, Hammer Packaging, the Estate of Estelle B. Goldman and two anonymous donors..

v. 4/09

Examine the Elements Use the Reading the Art images of the object to Zoom in, look closely, and describe the details! Then use the

background information on the website to help you find some answers.

1. Describe this work of art, using only the details that you can see.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

2. If you could step into this scene, what would it feel like? Describe sounds, smells, weather, etc.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

3. What are the three most important features in this work of art? Identify them in the numbered spaces below. 1. (most important)

2. (important)

3. (least important)

4. How did you decide which was the most important feature? What clues did you use?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

5. What questions do you have, that this work of art cannot answer on its own?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________________

How do they Compare? The Story… … vs. … …The Art Listen to or read the story and write down Examine the artwork closely and write important details. down important details.

Which details appear in both the artwork and the story? Which do not? (Option: translate onto Venn Diagram) __________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Does the artwork give you enough information to recognize the story on its own? _______ Yes _______ No

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Picturing the Story: Narrative Arts and the Stories They Tell is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, with additional support from the New York State Council on the Arts. Support is also provided by Dominion, Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation,Thomson Reuters, Hammer Packaging, the Estate of Estelle B. Goldman and two an

onymous donors.

Where does the story take place? (time, culture, place)

Who is (are) the most important character(s)?

What objects or details appear important to the story?

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date___________

Imaginary Interview

Read or listen to the story, then choose one of the characters to “interview.” Think about their part in the story and imagine what they might say? How would they answer?

Remember you are the one asking the questions, and the character is answering! 1. What is your name? _____________________________________________________________________ 2. Are you male or female? ___________________________________________________________________ 3. Do you live in the city or the country? ________________________________________________________ 4. Describe the place where you are right now. What are you doing there? _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Do you have a job? What is it? ____________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 6. How do you feel right now (at the end of the story)? Why do you feel that way? _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Did you feel differently at the beginning of the story? Why? _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What is your favorite thing to do? ___________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________

9. Describe what you are wearing. Give some details, please! ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Is there any other information that you would like to share about yourself? ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ Imagine what your character looks like, and draw it. Include any details you think might be important.


v. 7/08

Name _________________________________________________ Date _______________________


v. 7/08

Listening to Learn

When did this story happen?

What is the title of this story?

What questions would you ask the storyteller?

What sound effects would you add to bring the story to life?

What kind of story is this?

Where does the story take place?

Who are the main characters in this story? What other characters are mentioned?

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date_____________

Picturing the Story: Narrative Arts and the Stories They Tell is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, with additional support from the New York State Council on the Arts. Support is also provided by Dominion, Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation, Thomson Reuters, Hammer Packaging, the Estate of Estelle B. Goldman and two anonymous donors. v.8/09

Map It! Western Europe

Use an atlas to find:

1. the modern countries of France, Belgium and the Netherlands 2. the region known as Flanders 3. major rivers and important cities

What factors made Antwerp such an important city?

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date___________


v. 7/08

Playing the Parts Take the story you have heard and rewrite it as a play. Use the background information on the website and your imagination to add details. 1. WHO? Identify the main characters in the story, and describe them briefly. How might they look?

2. WHERE? Describe the place where the story happens; time of day, weather, scenery, etc.

3. WHAT? Explain the action of the story. What happens to the characters? How do they react?

4. HOW? Use your notes and ideas to imagine the script.

What would the characters say to each other? How do they feel? What happens next?

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date_____________


v. 7/08

Reading for Meaning A. Read the story from the text provided. Then answer the following questions.

1. What is the title? ____________________________________________________________________

2. Who are the main characters in the story? What other characters are mentioned?

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

3. Where does the story take place? How do you know? _______________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

4. When did this story happen? ___________________________________________________________

5. What happens in the story? ___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

6. What kind of story is this? ____________________________________________________________

B. Read the story again to see if you missed anything.

Turn over

C. What are your ideas about the story?

Use the story and any background information on the website to help you find some answers.

1. What picture do you get in your mind of the characters or the setting or the action in the story?

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

2. If you were reading the story out loud, what sound effects would you add to bring the story to life?

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

3. What changes in the characters or setting or the plot would you make and why?

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

D. What questions would you like to ask the storyteller?____________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

E. Why has this story been told again and again? _________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date_____________


v. 7/08

Storyboard: Picture the Process Look carefully at the work of art. How was it made? What choices and decisions did the artist make? What process did the artist follow to create this work of art? Use the spaces below to sketch out the artist at work, step by step, just as movie makers do.

Object name: __________________________________________________________________

MA

Name______________________________________________ Class________________Date_____________


v. 7/08

Storyboard: Scene by Scene Read or listen to the story. What are the main events, or the most important things that happened, in the story? Use the spaces below to sketch out the story scene by scene, just as movie makers do.

Story Title: __________________________________________________________________

MA

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