Growing Up Gullah
What is a Lowcountry?
What region is the Lowcounty in?
What are some of the characteristics of this region?
The Gullah or Geechee culture has a language, history, and artistic vision found nowhere else. It is unique to the Lowcountry. During the 1700's the American colonists in South Carolina discovered that rice would grow in this area, but the American colonists had no experience with the growing rice. They needed African slaves who knew how to plant, harvest, and process this difficult crop. The Gullah people are direct descendants of slaves who were brought from Africa. They live in small farming and fishing communities along the coast and on small islands of South Carolina. Because their communities are isolated, the Gullah people have been able to preserve more of their African cultural heritage.
What region is the Lowcounty in?
What are some of the characteristics of this region?
The Gullah or Geechee culture has a language, history, and artistic vision found nowhere else. It is unique to the Lowcountry. During the 1700's the American colonists in South Carolina discovered that rice would grow in this area, but the American colonists had no experience with the growing rice. They needed African slaves who knew how to plant, harvest, and process this difficult crop. The Gullah people are direct descendants of slaves who were brought from Africa. They live in small farming and fishing communities along the coast and on small islands of South Carolina. Because their communities are isolated, the Gullah people have been able to preserve more of their African cultural heritage.
Listen to examples of the Gullah Singing...
http://www.knowitall.org/gullahmusic/journey/history/work.html
Images of Jonathan Green's Art
Jonathan's work tells stories his experiences growing up Gullah. He paints people that he saw around him as a child, like his family and neighbors. The women in his family were very influential to him, so many of his paintings show women.
Video: Jonathan Green Discusses His Inspiration
Start at 1 minute 50 seconds ... Stop at 3 minutes 15 seconds
Jonathan Green's Use of Emphasis
Emphasis is one of the Principles of Design. Emphasis is the focus of the art work; it is what catches the viewer's eye. When an artist uses emphasis it is so that the viewer knows what the most important part or thing of the picture is.
Jonathan Green uses emphasis in his paintings so make the viewer aware that the subject, his family, is the most important things in his work.
How does he emphasize the figures in his paintings?
Jonathan Green uses emphasis in his paintings so make the viewer aware that the subject, his family, is the most important things in his work.
How does he emphasize the figures in his paintings?
- Placing them in the foreground (making them the closest thing to the viewer)
- Making them the largest
- They usually wear bright colors, and the background is darker
Lesson 2: Jonathan Green and the Gullah Culture
Lesson Description: The students will look at the paintings of Jonathan Green and discuss his use of narrative art, art that tells a story. Jonathan draws inspiration from his family and the Gullah Community that he grew up in and illustrates the experiences he had as a child. Next, the students will create a painting inspired by their own stories or origin. They can illustrate members of their family, their friends, or their community, just as Jonathan Green did in his paintings.
Information and Map from Knowitll.org, Gullah Music, http://www.knowitall.org/gullahmusic/content/overview.html#, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Information from University of South Carolina Aiken, Jonathan Green, http://www.usca.edu/aasc/greenjon.htm, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Images of Gullah People from Yale.edu, Gullah, http://www.yale.edu/glc/gullah/06.htm, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Images from Jonathan Green Studios, Jonathan Green, http://www.jonathangreenstudios.com/Jonathan-Green, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Image of Space found from http://www.schoolsliaison.org.uk/kids/access/art/landscapes.htm, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Information from University of South Carolina Aiken, Jonathan Green, http://www.usca.edu/aasc/greenjon.htm, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Images of Gullah People from Yale.edu, Gullah, http://www.yale.edu/glc/gullah/06.htm, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Images from Jonathan Green Studios, Jonathan Green, http://www.jonathangreenstudios.com/Jonathan-Green, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.
Image of Space found from http://www.schoolsliaison.org.uk/kids/access/art/landscapes.htm, retrieved Feb. 20, 2015.