Unit 9 Cornerstones of Modernism/Overview

Assignment 4: Create a brochure or magazine ad for African or Latin American arts.

You've learned that art reflects the society in which it is created, and one reason American arts today are so vibrant and exciting is that they have been enriched by the cultures of many diverse peoples, across many centuries. Your task is to create a magazine ad or brochure that highlights one of the native arts of Africa or Latin America.  The purpose of the work is to make people aware of the country itself, and its rich artistic traditions.

(1) Here are some countries you can choose from:

African countries:  Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Mali, Ivory Coast, Cameroon

Latin American countries:  Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, Mexico, Panama, Cuba

(2) When you have chosen a country, do a some research for the text box of your page.

Where is the country located? What does the landscape look like? And, very important...what native art forms most interest you and would appeal to a visitor?

(3) Now put it all together on a word document, collage, digital composition...your choice. Begin with a striking arts photo you've scooped off the web.  Add a descriptive text box from the questions above, and top it off with a catchy title.  Voila! You'll have a magazine page that will transport us into the music, dance, theatre, or visual arts of Africa or Latin America.

Note: I launched into this assignment by selecting a country I thought would be interesting, then learning a little about the geography in step-by-step fashion as the instructions suggest.  I knew I'd need an image to anchor the page, so I started searching through Google, Wikipedia, etc.  Once I got the image, I came up with a headline, learned a little about the art, and laid it all out on a word document. Finally I scanned the document.  I wasn't terribly enthusiastic about the project but got into the assignment as I worked on it. I was limited on images because I needed one without copyright restrictions (since I'm blogging)and I was a little disappointed in the print quality of the scanned page. I'd give myself about a C on this one!