Video of the Week:<p/>I Can Fly, Pt. III: Kids, Painting & Modern Art.
RSSFrom SLJ August 2004
Suzanne Libra, Huron Middle School, Northglenn, CO -- School Library Journal, 08/11/2004
videocassette. color. 28 min. with tchr's. guide on Web site. L&S Video. 2004. ISBN 1-882660-20-8. $39.95.
Gr all levels
-This video offers a remarkably concise introduction to modern art. On-screen host Austin Irving is young, hip, and enthusiastic about her subject. She leads viewers through pointillism, fauvism, dadaism, cubism, abstract impressionism, op art, pop art, and photorealism. The video features art by Seurat, Matisse, Picasso, Pollack, and others. The featured artist, Chuck Close, talks about his influences and experiences. Adding a third perspective is Muriel Silberstein Storfer, an art educator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Blue Man Group, the Paper Bag Players, and Stomp add an appropriately modern musical counterpoint to the discussion of modern art. The paintings are well reproduced, with clear close-up shots of details as they are explained. The detail and distance views of Chuck Close's paintings are particularly well done. Onscreen captions separate the different sections of the tape and provide points to pause the video for discussion or for note-taking. Overall, the high energy level, the clear structure, and the use of musical elements make this a superior art video.
