Canvas of George Washington

medium_washington--peale-1779
medium_washington--peale-1779
  This is a canvas of George Washington after the Battle of Princeton. It was painted by none other than Charles Wilson Peale. In 1764, Charles gained a reputation for his art during the Revolutionary movement. He was very eager to bring his fame to Virginia, but the Governor sent him to go study more art under a fellow american with a studio in London. His patriotic passions were also heightened during those years. So he resolved to dedicate himself to helping to secure America's freedom. 

   This painting was very important because this was the time America was battling for their freedom. Peale had to keep a close eye on Washington in variety of situations. An example of that is when Washington conferred with the Congress in Philadelphia to discuss a war strategy for the future. Peale was painting the canvas of Washington while he was serving with the Continental Army. Basically he had a certain amount of hours to get it finished. 

   This canvas is related to any other pantings in art history. The reason is because canvases are painted in a variety of mediums. They all have different shades of colors. For example in the Peale's painting of Washington is in a brighter tone on the canvas while the background has a darker tone. That is common aspect in a canvas, which is the person having a lighter tone and the middle ground and background having darker tones to make the person stand out more. You need to have darker tones on the background because the first thing your eyes need to hit it the most important thing, which is the person who is being assembled. 

   There is a reason why I choose this exact piece of art. Its because I like American history. A common thing that comes up in my mind about American History is George Washington. I wanted to do research and find a specific piece of artwork of George Washington. This one Charles Wilson Peale painted is one of the common ones because remember this was the time Washington was leading the Continental Army. 

   Basically what I learned from this was that when a person is being painted on canvas they have to be in brighter colors to actually make your eyes catch them first before they start moving everywhere around the canvas. I also learned little history about Peale and how served and painted this exact canvas at the same time. Usually when anyone looks at art you need to know the certain aspects of it was created. Also the history of because every type of art has history to it!


LINKS TO MY RESEARCH

http://www.mountvernon.org/research-collections/digital-encyclopedia/article/charles-willson-peale/ 

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-battle-of-princeton 

http://www2.vcdh.virginia.edu/lewisandclark/biddle/biographies_html/peale.html 

Music Therapy

Music Therapy


Most people today, for better or for worse, know what therapy is—either because they need it or because someone they know does.  Few people think of therapy as being anything except talking to a therapist about one’s feelings and problems, which is called psychotherapy or “talking” therapy.  Less common forms of therapy, such as art and play therapies, offer more engaged and less abstract ways to connect with the same problems.  They use physical and visual tools, such as creating paintings in the case of art therapy (“What Is…?”), and using puppets to represent real life situation in the case of play therapy (“How Does…?”).  Even lesser known than these therapies is music therapy, which uses music in several ways to achieve similar goals as art therapy, play therapy, or psychotherapy.  It is not often heard about in the everyday world, making it at first seem much less professional or official than other forms of therapy.  However, music therapy actually is a well-researched and effective form of therapy.  Although music therapy is not yet widely known, it can be a more effective tool for those who need a more concrete way to connect with their emotions than standard "talking" therapy.

Every music therapist must have completed an accredited program for a Master’s degree in Music Therapy.  Strategies used in music therapy include expressing emotions through playing a variety of instruments, uninterrupted listening sessions of music chosen by the patient, and combined listening and discussion sessions with music chosen by the therapist (“Music Therapy and…”).  One might assume that music therapy is purely used for psychological and emotional problems, as many popular forms of therapy are.  Surprisingly, though, music therapy can be used for physical and social problems as well.  This therapy can be and is used with people of all ages, and on a huge variety of patients.  Some examples of when music therapy is used and who it is used on are people with Alzheimer’s disease (elderly people), young children (as young as two or three years), and people diagnosed on the autism spectrum.  In one type of music therapy session, the patient will use easy

The first acknowledgements of the value of “talking” psychotherapy were in the 1800s (Haggerty), and the first documented instance of music therapy was in 1789 (“History of…”).  However, music had been thought of as potentially healing as early as the writings of Aristotle and Plato (“History of…”).  Talking therapies are pretty much exclusively just what they sound like—talking to a trained professional about one’s problems (“Talking Therapies”).  In contrast, music therapy incorporates both playing music and listening to music, as well as some discussion components.  Talking therapies generally only work with cognitively developed/present people, eliminating both young children and elderly people with severe Alzheimer's disease or similar conditions.  Music therapy, however, can be used in such a way so that it does not require completely developed or healthy minds, opening the range of possible patients greatly.  

A  more specific and concrete example of a group of people who can be helped with music therapy is people diagnosed on the autism spectrum.  In 1995, three scientists tested the effectiveness of music therapy on an autistic three-year-old girl, and her interactions with her mother (Khetrapal 12.).  At the end of the experiment, the little girl showed significant signs of improvement in several social areas, including eye contact with her mother.  When they checked back with her after two years, the improvements had stayed with her.  This sort of case is a combination of both a very young patient and a mentally and socially disabled patient, neither of which could have been helped much by talking therapy.  

People who need a more concrete way to connect with their feelings and emotions need and deserve the same level of therapeutic attention as everyone else.  Music therapy is one way to achieve social and mental goals with these sorts of patients that are important to their qualities of life.  Most people, don’t go into a therapist’s office knowing how to perfectly express their thoughts and feelings.  But everyone has a natural emotional response to music that can be a powerful way of connecting with unconscious thoughts and worries.  





Works Cited


Haggerty, Jim, M.D. "History of Psychotherapy." Psych Central.com. Psych Central, 30 Jan.

2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2014.

http://psychcentral.com/lib/history-of-psychotherapy/000115.


"History of Music Therapy." American Music Therapy Association. American Music Therapy

Association, n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. http://www.musictherapy.org/about/history/.


"How Does Therapeutic Play Work?" PlayTherapy.org. Play Therapy International, n.d. Web.

06 Oct. 2014. http://www.playtherapy.org/playhowdoestpwork.html.


Khetrapal, Neha. "Why Does Music Therapy Help in Autism?" Empirical Musicology Review 4

(2009): 11-12. Knowledge Bank. Web. 5 Oct. 2014.

https://kb.osu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/1811/36602/EMR000065a_Khetrapal.pdf.


"Music Therapy and Mental Health." American Music Therapy Association, Inc. (n.d.): n. pag.

American Music Therapy Association. American Music Therapy Association. Web. 5

Oct. 2014. http://www.musictherapy.org/assets/1/7/MT_Mental_Health_2006.pdf.


Silverman, Michael J. "Psychiatric Patients' Perception of Music Therapy and Other

Psychoeducational Programming." Journal of Music Therapy 43.2 (2006): 111-19.

Pubmed. Web. 5 Oct. 2014.

https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/#folders/0ByDxnS1HotqDNENYdkFsMkJNOE0.


"Talking Therapies." Mental Health.org. Mental Health Foundation, n.d. Web. 04 Oct. 2014.

http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/help-information/mental-health-a-z/T/talking-therapies/.


"What Is Art Therapy?" ArtTherapy.org. American Art Therapy Association, 2013. Web. 6 Oct.

2014. http://www.arttherapy.org/upload/whatisarttherapy.pdf.

Support SLA and Vote for Pia Martin!

SLA Health and PE teacher Pia Martin is a finalist for the Be Well Philly Health and Hero Challenge, and of course, her challenge is Science Leadership Academy! So log on and vote for her once a day through December 1st! 

It is a wonderful way to recognize the amazing work Ms. Martin does for all SLA students and support SLA in the process! 

Q1 Art

Over the past quarter, I have been doing a lot of new art work.For instance the ceiling tile was something I always wanted to do. I saw everyone else's work and was inspired to do one of my own.Being the first piece of art work I did this quarter, it was my favorite. I also loved working with paint and though it was different painting a ceiling tile I still enjoyed it. I think that art should be fun to do, no matter how it is done.

Quarter One Passive Portfolio Alexis Dean

When I first started art, I choose the more lax path choice because I was nervous to be in senior art because I really feel like I lack artistic ability. I was really excited when Ms. Hull introduced the track system because it allowed me to express myself through art without having to be Picasso. I do not come from an artistic background so this was a little new to me. 

What I like about art is that I can be free to produce a medium in any way that I like, however there is no judgement. I don't have to worry about people questioning my work because it is how I see what I portrayed through my view. I enjoy having the freedom to look at the assignment list and create my own work. 

I choose to do two ceiling tiles because I really got into them. It was something that allowed me to show off how artistic I can be and have it displayed for the world to see. 

I look forward to the future of my art class because I will be able further express myself and become a better artist even when I didn't think I could. 

PIAA State Cross Country Championships

cross country pix
cross country pix
Congratulations to Juniors Javier Peraza and Desmond O'Donovan and Senior Thomas Jeffcoat for awesome runs in 41 degrees at the PIAA State XC championships in Hershey, PA. Des set a PR and broke the 18 minute barrier, and Thomas set a PR and broke the 20 minute barrier. Javier had a strong finish on the last 1/4 mile and he and Des are eligible to return next year. Great job on a great season!

Q1 Art Todd Samuels

Art Q1 final

All of the pieces I made were a reflection of what I did in quarter one with each of my drawings and how I represented them. I tried to stray away from color. The picture of the urban scene was a picture of Ritten house Square. I like the black and white urban look. No color inspires my art; aside from the ceiling tile which is very colorful.

Briana Bailey: Senior Art Q1

Briana Bailey's Art Q1
Experiencing this class made me push myself to draw. It got me excited, and thrilled, so instead of choosing the just passing track of the class I chose the medium level. Im on this opening my artistic side out a little more and this class is helping me a lot. We started the year some some art history, then dove into making our own art. Im mostly proud of the features on my self-portrait (of someone else not me). Also of the detail I put into the owl drawing. I look forward to the rest of the year in "Senior Art."

Q1 Artwork

When it comes to art, I can see myself improving more and more. Even though it may me progressing slowly, the progression is still there. I do like that I am getting better at detail and other origins that make art what it is because when I enter college I do hope to involve myself into forensic art. What this is, is when a forensic chemist reconstructs a skull or creates some sort off face in order to solve a crime. SInce this is one of the things that I hope to do in college, I do want to maintain working on getting better and better at art, as well as learning it. Over all, my goal for each quarter is to constantly find something new that I'm working on to better progress myself. I know I can do it and I hope to get it done.  

Antoinette's Art Slides

Q1 Art Medium Level Sydne

This quarter I decided to take things a little slower so I was in the medium category that wasn't easy and wasn't hard. Each week or weeks we got a new assignment that tought us new things about art and process. This quarter I went out of my comfort zone and tried a lot more things I would never do. The self portrait was the hardest because eyes and noses are the hardest thing on the face for me. Looking in a mirror and trying to add the little details to everything. My favorite part of this quarters art was my ceiling tile. Since I came to SLA and saw the ceiling tiles I knew I wanted to make one. In the end I was really proud of my tile, it was a huge art accomplishment for me.



I can't say I'm a artist because I'm not. Everytime I draw or paint I learn something new that expands my skills in the art room.. I'll admit that I am proud of my work but I wish I could do better.. I know, I compare my work to others which discourages me because it seems like everyone is doing better than me and I'm over here like I drew a circle. But everytime I draw something I learn to love what I do and I grow from every experience.


I learned that it's okay to make mistakes and that's why you draw lightly in pencil. You can simply erase and keep it moving. I made so many mistakes drawing everything from my 3 hour sketch to the self portrait. I actually went through a whole eraser throughout this whole process and it's okay. If you don't like the way something you drew looked it's okay to start over. Who knows maybe famous artist from all over the world had the same issue I did. Practice makes perfect well not perfect but better and eventually better becomes great work and great work becomes a work of art that you're really proud of.


I don't really have a lot to say about my art because I really don't like talking about myself and my work, I rather get constructive criticism about my work that will help me grow as person in a advanced art class. Well I hope you enjoy my art

My Art Pieces

Artist Statement (also included in slideshow): 
Its exciting coming into a class where you have a lot of freedom, a freedom to create something in your perspective. There are so many choices to choose from, there are so many ways the given task could be handled and it’s all up to you and thats the beauty in an art class. Throughout this class so far, several unique pieces have been produced. The first task we received was to create a drawing on a large ceiling tile. What we wanted to draw was up to us, so whatever our creative little mind could generate and agree on was our ceiling tile. In my process of this task, I was not quite sure what I wanted at first but as I started thinking more deeper and I came to the idea of integrating my country, culture and religion to my drawing. In our next task or my next piece, I decided to draw a snowflake. The earlier day, I was left in wonderment by some of the intricate pictures of snowflakes and so I came to my conclusion of drawing a snowflake with my own intricate design. In the pumpkin assignment, I wanted to draw again but I did not want it to be a plain drawing, so I decided to make it a puzzle pumpkin. Instead of using one sheet of paper to draw the whole pumpkin, I drew it on four pages and when you put the four pages together, you get one scary pumpkin. Our final piece was a self-portrait in any medium. Here, something different I tried out was taking one color and using it in different shades to create details. Altogether, the four pieces of art I created, I am very proud of it!

My Art Pieces


Artist Statement (also included in slideshow): 
Its exciting coming into a class where you have a lot of freedom, a freedom to create something in your perspective. There are so many choices to choose from, there are so many ways the given task could be handled and it’s all up to you and thats the beauty in an art class. Throughout this class so far, several unique pieces have been produced. The first task we received was to create a drawing on a large ceiling tile. What we wanted to draw was up to us, so whatever our creative little mind could generate and agree on was our ceiling tile. In my process of this task, I was not quite sure what I wanted at first but as I started thinking more deeper and I came to the idea of integrating my country, culture and religion to my drawing. In our next task or my next piece, I decided to draw a snowflake. The earlier day, I was left in wonderment by some of the intricate pictures of snowflakes and so I came to my conclusion of drawing a snowflake with my own intricate design. In the pumpkin assignment, I wanted to draw again but I did not want it to be a plain drawing, so I decided to make it a puzzle pumpkin. Instead of using one sheet of paper to draw the whole pumpkin, I drew it on four pages and when you put the four pages together, you get one scary pumpkin. Our final piece was a self-portrait in any medium. Here, something different I tried out was taking one color and using it in different shades to create details. Altogether, the four pieces of art I created, I am very proud of it!

Donesha Lee Q1 Advanced Art

Throughout this quarter I have mostly stuck to the medium of drawing with standard paper and pencil. I have always preferred this medium, due to the easy clean up and accurate design. 

The first assignment was a step in a different direction. Creating a ceiling tile with my partner was interesting. We worked efficiently throughout the task of constructing Timmy Turner. Although, I’m not a big fan of paint, the artwork still came out flawlessly. The character was chosen based on our love for the show. He was just another symbol on our ceiling for the remembrance of our childhood. 

Another assignment I created was my final piece, the “College”. It was an older picture I had taken of myself in my freshman year. At the time I used to play around with Iphoto. Just like then, I was feeling overwhelmed and distant. Thus, the reason for the picture editing to have been done. The drawing was a representation of how I had felt the exact same way once again. It was another way to reflect my emotions through a different medium. 

Overall, the beginning course of this class has been great. I look forward to learning more mediums, a little more history, and creating something new.

Brandon's Art Work


Artist Statement 

I draw my pictures to express myself. I want people to know when they see what I draw, they see more than just a picture, but a story. I draw because it gives me something enjoyable to do. I make art because I can and I like it. Art is way for me to express my outlook on life, my mind and my ambitions. Art helps me also my likes.
Art project

Senior Art Portfolio: Tytianna Broadwater

The first quarter in senior art was do make a variety of things. I painted, I carved a pumpkin, a drew things. It was quite intriguing, mainly because I have never been 'good' at drawing. However doing these assignments allowed to push myself to do new things and I learned more. I traced things which taught me how to make more accurate lines. 
My work represents me. Its not serious, it does have any deep meanings. Its fun and a little juvenile but it shows who I am and what I like to do and I think that message is better than anything.  
Art Portfolio

Lauren Thomas Q1 Art

The reason I create art is to express myself. Even though the art may not be something amazing or profound, it is something I am proud of and happy that I created. When I look at my art, I see myself being reflected. I create what I love and I tend to prefer to keep my art simple, minimal, almost modern, with lots of lines and shapes. I feel that my ceiling tile is the perfect representation: it shows something I love, but also the way I like to create my art - simple/minimal and bold.

Q1-Advanced Art- Lisa Kang

This year, the advanced art class separated into 3 different groups, Passing, Middle and FAS. I was in the middle group because I enjoy doing art but I am not as dedicated to fit into the FAS group. According to which group you were in, the assignments varied. One assignment typically takes up two weeks therefore the work should be nice and polished.

Since I took advanced art last year as well, I was able to use previous skills in my art work this year as well. There were five assignments this quarter that explored different mediums of art. Although the mediums were different, most of my work was based of of childhood memories. I wanted to put a piece of my past into my current work because these memories were times that made me happy and that was something that I wanted to express. This quarter, we did plenty of sketches and drawings but we were also able to paint and explore other mediums.

I am most proud of my self portrait because I think that it is very similar to the actual picture that I based it off of. I enjoyed using and furnishing my drawings with pencil skills. The portrait gave me the opportunity to explore shading and hatching. I was surprised that it it did not take long to complete the portrait but it still looks amazing because I had this class last year as well.

I look forward to the art work that I will have to do next quarter because I know that there will be a lot of variety. I hope to further improve my art skills and to just have fun as well.