1. Portrait- an image of a person showing his or her likeness.

2.  A portrait is a drawing, painting, or photograph of a person. A good portrait not only shows a person’s likeness, but also her personality.

3.  Group portraits are images with multiple people as the subject.

4.  Realistic portraits aim to capture every subtle detail of a person. This image is a good example of hyper- realism. We see every body hair, every flaw. It has a strong photographic effect.

5.  Expressive portraits focus a little bit on likeness, but mostly on the mood and emotion they wish to communicate.

6.  Grant Wood is a famous American artist who painted “American Gothic.” This painting is of a farmer and his daughter.  This painting is iconic because it featured American life as people knew it in the early 20 th century.

7.  Grant Wood’s art is loved by Americans. At a time when modern and abstract art was becoming popular, Grant Wood painted American Gothic. It was during the Great Depression. It struck the heart of Americans who worked hard for living.  At a time when many people were losing their jobs and savings, his paintings reminded Americans to be proud of their hard work.

8.  “American Gothic” featured a farmhouse with a gothic window in it.  It was also an example of how many lived simply.

9.  “American Gothic” remains popular even today. Artists copy it all the time and appropriate it with pop culture icons.

11.  Sometimes “American Gothic” can be appropriated to reflect changes in our society, such as the obesity epidemic. Here, the skinny farm people have put on the pounds and the pitch fork is replaced with a fork.

12.  Artists create their own meaning on a common theme: life in America.

15. Search magazines and the internet for famous couples *husband and wife *actors *sports teammates (OR RIVALS!) *must be actual people, no cartoons YOUR PICK!!!!

16.  Change American Gothic to the times!  Appropriate the farmer and his daughter.  Change them altogether!  Must be real people, not cartoons.  Change the object they are holding, too, if it fits into the new context (microphone, basketball, etc).  Farmhouse may also be changed (white house, circus tent, etc)  Use pencil to render for full value.