Peer Review

Tseng Kwong Chi Collection Educators Guides

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Reviewed:: Feb 5, 2016 by Sociology

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Overview:: This guide includes images from the Tseng Kwong Chi Collection at the Center for Creative Photography. Its content could be used in many subject areas,including social studies, language arts, art, photography, American studies, Asian-American studies,architecture, geography, and history. Suggested issues include: the definition of national identity and stereotyping of outsiders; how art forms are influenced by popular culture; and the truthfulness of a portrait photograph. Related topics include: portraiture and self-portraiture in different art media; the many ways in which we outwardly express our nationality; and a comparison of the artist's portraits of famous places to our own travel photographs. It also includes suggestions for discussing and writing about these images.
Type of Material:: Images from selected gallery programs and displays.
Recommended Uses:: Useful in tying sociology with the visual arts and could be used to show how pictures can "frame" our understanding of issues and contexts. Possible use as supplemental material in the areas of inequality and gender.
Technical Requirements:: Browser and high speed internet.
Identify Major Learning Goals:: 1. Develop an appreciation for the expression of sociological issues in the everyday lives of community and cultural members as expressed in portrait art. 2. Develop an understanding of the artists who used visual media to capture the tone of lifestyles around the world. 3. Develop an appreciation of the circumstances of those who lived and represented key periods in cultural history, including the present. 4. Develop an appreciation of the use of the internet to convey the messages of culture and lifestyle.
Target Student Population:: Since art can be understood at many levels and contexts, this could be used by students from grade school through college. The instructor can pair it to the needs of the particular class.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: For those in an online course, students would need to be familiar with the basic background of the settings being photographed so that the art can add to the tone of the cultural information. It would also help to have some understanding of the artists, although that is covered in the webpages for each exhibit.

Content Quality

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Strengths:: There is a section for educators which will help with student presentation. There at least 12 Galleries online with easy access. Each one has a description of the artist and commentary on what they were attempting to convey. The exhibits have a very diverse expression of artists from all over the world. This can give a rich range of appreciation for varied lifestyles.
Concerns:: The website is not geared to sociology or related fields per se so the instructor would have to connect with sociological theories studied in class.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

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Strengths:: In this one hub, the reader can be connected to various websites across the range of galleries. Each one has a wealth of information and additional links. For those who are artists, the effects of the artistic skills is discussed in detail along with questions the instructor might pose to the students.
Concerns:: Videos would add another dimension of effect for students.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

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Strengths:: On the top horizontal line there are pull down menus for: Collections, Online Galleries, Research, etc. You will find additional resources that are linked to this website including historical data and oral histories. There is a nice mixture of summary information on the artists as well as the social climate they are representing. It seems easy to navigate and consistent throughout.
Concerns:: Some links broken and limited access to some of the noted pictures.

Other Issues and Comments:: The expanded expression of human lives through the use of key photos is an important strength of this resource. This adds the visual to the academic studies of students. This resource can easily be used by students.
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