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Tableaux vivant with people
Learning Objective: Create tableaux vivant art that has humans using objects found in your home. For the tableaux vivant with people, Ms. Schlein found a painting by Leonardo da Vinci. Lady with an Ermine, 1489-1490.
I knew that I wanted to take a picture with my dog Jasper Johns (JJ). I began to think about famous paintings that had animals and remembered this DaVinci painting. If I hadn't remembered this image I would have done a Google image search and typed in paintings of ladies with animals and chosen one from there.
To style this image I put on a burgundy shirt and threw a blue towel over my shoulder. I put on a black beaded necklace that I borrowed from my sister. The part that took the longest was stylish my hair/makeup. I took a brown eyeliner pencil and gave myself a unibrow. I put the back of my hair in a low ponytail. I couldn't get my hair to stay under my chin with hair product so I wound up taping it under my chin. The black band around my head is a stretchy elastic headband that I use when I wash my face.
Common question(s):
1) How do I find an image? Do an image search or look at one of the suggested art museums listed in the article.
2) Is there a certain image I need to do? NO! but you can’t do the Mona Lisa by DaVinci. Girl with a Pearl Earring by Vermeer. The Scream by Munch.The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo. Those paintings are all too easy.
3) Can I do a comic? YES! But you can’t put on some outfit that you bought for Halloween
4) How do I recreate the image that I chose? Use whatever you have, food, toys, clothes, tools…seriously whatever you have.
5) Do you have to be in the picture? No, you can be the stylist but it is fun to play dress up.
6) Do I have to upload my Image on Twitter or Instagram? NO! Just upload your image onto Google Classroom.
Tips for making your own tableaux vivant
from the article:
Getty Artworks Recreated with Household Items by Creative Geniuses the World Over by
SARAH WALDORF AND ANNELISA STEPHAN | MARCH 30, 2020
1. Find Great Art You Like
The only tools you need for this activity are your imagination and a picture of a work of art you like or find interesting. Browse our online Getty Museum collection and search the keyword field for ideas (for example, “portrait” or “dog”). If you have a certain unusual item that you think would work well—like the globe Ann described above, Tracy’s easel, or a special outfit, hat, or even a melted clock like Rich—you can start by searching for that, too.
Many museums have great online collections with images available to download and use for free: try LACMA, The Met, Cleveland, Indianapolis, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Walters, or the National Gallery.
And of course, you could try a Google Image search for “painting [keyword],” “sculpture [keyword],” or whatever else you like. You might even try a reverse image search: upload an image of yourself or your object to Google Search and see what it thinks it looks like. (It’s often way off, but let that be part of the fun.)
Pose 3 Objects, Pets, or People
Now that you’ve found your inspiration, pick the objects you’d like to use. Any objects are fine: from a blank piece of paper to your most elaborate hat. You can stick to 3 and see what you come up with, but you’re welcome to use as many as you like. Here are a few tips:
Enlist a pet. Get your dogs, cats, bunnies, and even ferrets into the mix. Here’s an example of a furry companion pretending to be a fox, complete with her toy used as a prop, and here’s a very attentive pup bringing a classic composition into the iPod era. Bonus if you have an acrobatic cat.
Pay attention to lighting. Try to imagine where the light in the artwork is coming from, and orient your composition so a window or lamp is casting similar light onto the scene. In bright daylight, windows offer a blue-tinged light, while most lamps cast a warmer glow. Here’s a beautiful example of thoughtful portrait lighting.
Think abstractly. If you’re having trouble re-creating an artwork’s appearance, try focusing on shapes over colors. For example, did you know you can suggest the Venus de Milo, one of the greatest sculptures of ancient times, with a Boost bottle and a torn Subway receipt? You can, and Wendy did it!
Make it snackable. Edible art counts too. Why not make a Magritte on toast or even a pancake? Or how about a sculpture out of strawberry?
Photograph your Creation
Use a smartphone camera or a digital camera to take a photo (if you’re posing, have a member of the household do it for you; if you live alone, use the front-facing camera on your smartphone, or the camera on your computer). You may want to do several and pick the best one. Then share with your family and friends the way you enjoy best!
If you want to unite the two photos—the original and the re-creation—into a single image, you can use photo-editing software like Photoshop (here’s an online tutorial) or use a phone app like PicCollage (an example).
Examples made by MHS students
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