Lesson Plan: Abstract Portraits of People
Masks That Reveal What Is Inside
By Dr. Zoë Brigley Thompson
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Objective:
Students will explore the use of masks in art to express identity and personality. They will create their own masks to reveal aspects of a notable Ohio woman’s life, achievements, and personality.
This art workshop is designed for students 16+ but it could be adapted for middle school students. It could be used to create clay masks, paintings or drawings, depending on a teacher’s needs and resources.
Step 1: Looking Closely at Kimmy Cantrell’s Use of Masks
- Begin by introducing the work of artist Kimmy Cantrell, an Atlanta-based contemporary ceramic artist. Specifically, focus on his Mask Series created in the late 1990s. You might want to watch this video of Kimmy Cantrell talking about his practice.
- Discussion: Traditionally, masks hide the face and emotions, but Cantrell’s masks are vibrant, colorful, and expressive, possibly revealing aspects of the person they represent. Show the students examples of the masks from Cantrell’s website. Perhaps share this quotation with them:
I want to show the beauty within flaws. Imperfections tell stories that are far more compelling than perfection. – Kimmy Cantrell
Ask the students to consider this quotation alongside the masks studied. Emphasize how Cantrell celebrates the uniqueness, originality, and distinctiveness of the individuals he depicts in an abstract fashion.
- Goals:
- Encourage students to think about how the masks reveal more about a person’s identity than just covering their face.
- Consider abstract modes for conveying identity in art.
Step 2: Exploring Frida Kahlo’s Masked Identity
- Introduce Frida Kahlo, the famous Mexican artist known for her self-portraits. Andrea Kettenmann writes in Frida Kahlo 1907 – 1954 (2003), Kahlo’s self-portraits often ‘suggest that the face shown is in fact a mask, behind which her true feelings are hidden’ (46).
- According to Helga Prignitz-Poda, masks can be very effective devices for the woman artist: ‘Masks are ideal for hiding, for protecting oneself from other people’s gazes’ (39).
- In the case of Frida Kahlo, Prignitz-Poda is adamant that masks were ‘a perfect instrument for assuming a different personality’; in her work they ‘skillfully disguise the fact that it was not the obvious that preoccupied her, but rather something inexpressible’ (39).
- Discuss how Kahlo’s face is often impassive and almost mask-like, concealing deeper emotions.
- Art critics have noted that Frida’s self-portraits often serve as a mask, yet her personality and identity are conveyed through the props and symbolism surrounding her, such as animals, flowers, and traditional Mexican clothing.
- Discussion: Reflect on how Kahlo uses external elements (props, background) to express her inner self, despite her mask-like expressions.
Case Study: Frida Kahlo’s Painting ‘Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird’
Look carefully at the painting with students, bearing in mind the following information:
Useful Facts:
- Kahlo suffered physical ailments all her life due to a debilitating accident suffered as a teenager on a trolley-bus, as well as disability caused by suffering Polio as a child.
- In the biography Frida, Hayden Herrera entitles a chapter focusing on Kahlo’s husband, Diego Rivera, and his infidelity ‘A Necklace of Thorns’, after the Kahlo self-portrait. Does Herrera imply that the painting expresses Kahlo’s feelings about this infidelity?
- According to Maria Longhenna in Maya Script: A Civilization and its Writing (2000), the Aztecs believed that ‘the soul of a warrior who fell ill in battle became a hummingbird’ (162).
- The monkey is reminiscent of the Aztec god, Ozomatli, described by Longhenna as ‘the patron god of scribes, artists, and mathematical calculation’ (162).
- According to Helga Prignitz-Poda in Frida Kahlo: The Painter and her Work (2003), the black cat may represent Kahlo’s interest in ‘imagery of voodoo and magic’ (41).
- Prignitz-Poda also suggests that in showing the reverse of leaves, Kahlo echoes the Mexican phrase, ‘“turning a leaf” which means “changing the subject”’; she concludes that ‘[t]he inverted leaf . . . always indicates another level of meaning behind the apparent one’ (33).
- Birds and butterflies in Self Portrait with a Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird might relate to what Margaret A. Lindauer mentions in Devouring Frida (1999) when she explains that for indigenous cultures in Mexico they represent ‘the souls of warriors’ (164).
Ask the students to try to decipher what the props around Kahlo suggest about her life and experiences. Are there elements of pain and power in the images around her?
Task 1: Research Ohio Women
- Provide students with the list of notable Ohio women from the Women of Ohio website.
- Allow students time to explore the various women and consider which one they find most interesting. Encourage them to choose someone whose life and achievements they would like to represent through a mask.
Task 2: Create an Abstract Mask
- Objective: Students will create an abstract face using clay or cardboard to represent an aspect of the personality or identity of the Ohio woman they have researched.
- Students should think about how their chosen woman’s personality or achievements can be reflected in the design of the mask. Emphasize using color, shape, and texture to represent their chosen subject’s traits.
Task 3: Create a Mask with Symbolism (Alternative Option)
- Objective: Alternatively, students can create a traditional, impassive mask, but they should use props and symbols around the mask to convey the personality, achievements, and life events of the Ohio woman they researched. This can be a project using clay, painting or drawing.
- Encourage students to incorporate symbols or motifs that reflect the woman’s accomplishments or significant life moments. These can be painted, drawn, or added as embellishments around the mask.
Materials Needed:
- Clay or cardboard (for mask-making)
- Paint, markers, or other decorative materials for details and symbols
- Access to the Women of Ohio website for research
Assessment:
- Evaluate students based on their ability to integrate the identity of the Ohio woman into their mask design.
- Consider creativity, symbolism, and effort in representing the woman’s life and personality.
Extension Ideas:
- Organize a mask gallery where students can display their work and explain the significance of the design choices they made.
- Explore other forms of portraiture or self-representation in art, such as photography or digital media.
References
Herrera, Hayden. (1963) 2003. Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo. London: Bloomsbury.
Kahlo, Frida. 1940. Self Portrait with a Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird. Harry Ransom Humanities Research Centre. University of Texas, Austin.
Kettenmann, Andrea. 2003. Frida Kahlo 1907 – 1954. Köln: Taschen.
Lindauer, Margaret A. 1999. Devouring Frida: The Art History and Popular Celebrity of Frida Kahlo. Hanover and Kondon: Wesleyan University Press.
Longhenna, Maria. 2000. Maya Script: A Civilization and its Writing. Trans. Rosanna M. Giammano Frongia. New York: Abbeville Press.
Prignitz-Poda, Helga. 2003. Frida Kahlo: The Artist and her Work. Trans. Bram Opstelten. Berlin: Schirmer/Mosel.
This workshop was based on research in the essay ‘Confessing the Secrets of Others’ on the Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo, by Zoë Brigley.
Women of Ohio 