Nostalgia Lesson

For our lesson in Theory and Practice, Jen and I are working with the theme of nostalgia.  This is an important concept because our memories shape who we are.  As times change, people look back to good memories and values, especially from childhood.  It is not only comforting, looking at the past is a way of telling how far we have come. 
"One must always maintain one's connection to the past and yet ceaselessly pull away from it.  To remain in touch with the past requires a love of memory.  To remain in touch with the past requires a constant imaginative effort"  --Gaston Bachelard

The first artist we explored in our presentation was Greg Simkins. This painting is called Give Me a Name, Bastian!  The painting evokes nostalgic feelings for The NeverEnding Story. 

We asked the class how the artist achieved the feeling of nostalgia.  They responded that the candle and smoke signified memories for them.  The imagery of the characters coming out of the book also made the painting feel like a memory. 


The other artist we explored in our presentation was Aaron Jasinski.  This painting is called Super Mario Brothers.

 The nostalgic memory that Jasinski explores here is a popular video game from the 80's and early 90's.  He chose to use a similar style of Norman Rockwell because Rockwell produced many iconic images of nostalgic memories.  Using Rockwell is also a bit ironic because Rockwell's pieces depicted American life in a simple and idealized way.  Jasinski's subject is more modern, and Rockwell would probably rather see a group of young boys playing basketball than sitting in front of a television. 

The activity in our lesson will involve a writing activity that draws upon the senses.  There is a very powerful connection between the five senses and memory.  A particular smell especially can bring someone back in time and connect them to a specific memory.  We are going to ask the class to think of a fond memory and probably hand out a worksheet to help them brainstorm.   The worksheet will have categories of the senses, where the class will write descriptive words for each sense.  This will be used to help them write a nostalgic poem.  We also want to work with the concept of semiotics and explore how pictures can stand for words.  We are in the process of creating the lesson and figuring out exactly how it will work, but we are excited to see what happens.