Exploration 3: Narrative Inquiry

"Our rituals of interhuman communication make special that which we value most and want to share. These rituals bind us to one another in a life lived together.  In our mutual search for knowledge, our stories show us another way of seeing and understanding" - Elizabeth M. Delacruz

Artworks are such a beautiful resource for self-reflection. In order to help my students develop their own voice, I am utilizing Voice Thread as a platform for students to explore a personal experience in their lives through a piece of art that we are studying this semester. By exploring the piece and its points of connection with their own lives, students gain insight and understanding into the artist, his/her intent, while imagining the possible meanings of the piece. This process aids students in developing a "relationship" with the piece of art as well as those who view, comment and critique their exploration. This examination of self also encourages students to find relevance in art where they may not have seen it before. This self awareness, as Sheri Klein contends, is "necessary for breaking one's silence and moving toward public disclosure of one's personal and professional struggles that can no longer remain private." This disclosure is a step in the process of finding their voice.  Using one of my own personal experiences at the beach on Kiawah Island, South Carolina, I explore and connect with the Edward Potthast painting of four little girls frolicking at the beach on summer holiday, Children at the Beach. This piece has additional personal meaning for me as it was previously a part of  the Westervelt Warner private collection (my former employer). Having had the opportunity to see it almost daily for the years of my tenure there, I experienced deep emotion when revisiting it for this assignment. This visual exploration is a mix of music, video, text, and images sewn together using Voice Thread. 

Here is my own visual exploration of Edward Potthast's Children at the Beach, 1910

Here is the voice thread link, just in case you cannot access the embedded video above.

http://voicethread.com/share/5468572/


Resources:

Educational Agents for Positive Change

2011 © Sheri Klein, Elizabeth Delacruz, Karen Keifer-Boyd