InsideOut

It has been said that history is, not was. In this exhibition, comprised of portraits of individuals holding the treasured images of family members accompanied by personal narratives, photographer Darryl Sivad captures a present nurtured by the past. In documenting 31 people from diverse backgrounds and beliefs, Sivad reveals the value these treasured heirlooms have in their owners' lives.
                                                                          -- from AAACC Press Release

Exhibition runs October 15th, 2008-January 9th, 2008
Thursday, October 16th, 6:30-8:30 PM: Exhibition opening reception
Friday, October 17th, 3:00-5:00 PM: Artist-led youth workshop (teachers and students welcome)
November 21st: Deadline to submit student work
To schedule a fieldtrip or exhibit student work contact Samara Rivers, Visual Arts Coordinator at 415-922-1995 or samara [at] aaacc [dot] org

Sivad's exhibition lends itself well to the classroom. Engaging Twice-taken Pictures is a great way to get your students to reflect on their family histories, while also honing their visual and language arts skills. California Content Standards in the Arts, Language Arts, and History/Social Studies at grade levels 1-8 can be applied to our lesson plans, or to similar activities. The best way to take advantage of all the opportunities from the collaboration of the AAACC and the SFAC Arts Education Program is to bring your students to the exhibition for a fieldtrip, use our activity ideas in your classroom to engage the art, and then contact AAACC about presenting your students' work in the gallery, next to the original works of art.

Possible Lesson Plans and Classroom Activities:

Meet My Ancestors
For 1st-3rd grade
Materials Needed: picture of each student's ancestor, colored pens or pencils, cameras optional

Before the Activity:
Ask each student bring in a picture of someone in his or her family. It can be someone from many generations ago, or it can be someone they are close with now. It must be someone they know stories about, or about whom they have specific memories. Suggest that they ask a parent or guardian to look at photos and tell them stories or background about the person before choosing which photo to bring in.

Visual Art Activity:
Ask students to draw a picture of themselves with the photo of their ancestor. Have them pay special attention to their background and location, how or where they pose themselves, and position of the photograph. Tell them they are welcome to incorporate parts of their family history or stories into the photograph. For example, if their picture is of a student's grandmother who emigrated from Mexico, ask him or her to incorporate things they associate with Mexico. They can use flags, symbols or objects to express their history.

For classrooms with access to cameras: Ask your students to photograph each other and conduct interviews in the style of Darryl Sivad (see Playing Darryl Sivad activities). For more advanced classes, teachers may want to incorporate writing activities from the lesson Playing Darryl Sivad.

Presentation:
Ask students to present both their drawing and their ancestor's portrait to the class. Ask them to explain why they chose this particular person in their portrait, and to describe family history or memories they have with the person in their picture.

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Playing Darryl Sivad
For 4th-8th grade
Materials Needed: picture of each student's ancestor, writing materials, cameras optional

Before the Activity:
Before the activity, ask each student bring in a picture of someone in their family. It can be someone from many generations ago, or it can be someone they are close with now. It must be someone they know stories about, or have memories of. Suggest that they ask their parents or guardians to look at photos and tell them stories.

Visual Art:
Divide your class up into partners or small groups. If you have access to cameras, give one camera to each group or pair of partners. Ask your students to photograph each other and conduct interviews in the style of Darryl Sivad. If you do not have access to cameras, you can still do the interview activity and writing assignment.

Interview and Writing Activity Worksheet:
Either explain the following, or make it into a worksheet for your students:

For this exhibition, Sivad took pictures of people with a picture of someone from their families. He wrote a short essay about their life, and the ancestor they posed with, to be shown next to the photo. Before you photograph your partner with his or her picture, ask him or her some questions. Find out about their relationship to the person they have a picture of, and why they chose this person. Take notes. What they tell you will form the basis for an essay you will write about them, as well as the way you take the picture. Try to use the information they give you to decide how to ask them to pose and where to take the photo. Some sample questions:

• Tell me about your ancestors. Where are they from? When did they emigrate to the U.S.? Or move to California? What happened on their journey?
• Tell me about the person in the photo you brought in. What is their name? Does their name have a special meaning? What is this person's relationship to you? Do you have a favorite story about him or her? Do you remember any stories that the person in your photograph used to tell you? What were they like as a child? Are they like you?
• Why did you pick this photo to bring in today? What makes this photo special to you?
• Tell your story. Where did you come from? What do you like to do?

After you are done with the interview, take a series of photos. Later, you can choose the one that best represents your partner and his or her ancestor.

Writing Assignment for Students:
Using the essays from the exhibition as a model, write an essay (less than one page) about your partner and his or her ancestor. Focus on important details! You can choose one part of his or her story, or personality, or you can incorporate multiple parts of what you discussed during your interview. Since the essay is meant to be short, prioritize the information you put into it-what you write is meant to represent your partner for the purposes of the exhibition.