Texas History: Cowboy CultureDue January 29th, 2016
An integral part of the story of America, the cowboy is a national icon, a romantic, rugged metaphor for America's frontier past, Westward expansion and creation myths. Sensationalized by Hollywood and by real-life bad boys, the heroic, hard-working, hard-riding, free-thinking cowboy is inseparable from American history itself.
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Early 1800s - the Vaquero Age |
America's first cowboys came from Mexico. Of course, in California the cattle business emerged with settlement itself. But to the east, beginning in the 1500s, vaqueros -- the Spanish term for "cowboy" -- were hired by ranchers to drive and tend to livestock between Mexico and what is now New Mexico and Texas. During the early 1800s, and leading up to Texas's independence from Mexico in 1836, the number of English speaking settlers in the area increased. These American settlers took their cues from the vaquero culture, borrowing clothing styles and vocabulary and learning how to drive their cattle in the same way.
The vaquero influence persisted throughout the 1800s. Cowboys came from a variety of backgrounds, and included European immigrants, African Americans, Native Americans and Midwestern and Southern settlers. In the nineteenth century, one out of three American cowboys in the south was Mexican and one out of four was African American. From PBS - independent lens |
The Modern Cowboy |
On the ranch, the cowboy is responsible for feeding the livestock, branding and earmarking cattle (horses also are branded on many ranches), plus tending to animal injuries and other needs. The working cowboy usually is in charge of a small group or "string" of horses and is required to routinely patrol the rangeland in all weather conditions checking for damaged fences, evidence of predation, water problems, and any other issue of concern. They also move the livestock to different pasture locations, or herd them into corrals and onto trucks for transport. In addition, cowboys may do many other jobs, depending on the size of the "outfit" or ranch, the terrain, and the number of livestock.
In addition to cowboys working on ranches, in stockyards, and as staff or competitors at rodeos, the category includes farmhands working with other types of livestock (sheep, goats, hogs, chickens, etc.). About one-third of cowboys are listed in the subcategory of Spectator Sports which includes rodeos, circuses, and theaters needing livestock handlers. |
Cubist Cowboy Still Life
Due January 29th, 2016
Objective 1: Design a western sculpture inspired by the work of the Cubists. Focus on Form, Color, Movement.
Objective 1: Design a western sculpture inspired by the work of the Cubists. Focus on Form, Color, Movement.
Process:
1. Select an area of your still life to "zoom" in on-- choose a spot with 3-4 items.
2. Enlarge that subject to fit 12" X 18" inch (30.5 x 46 cm) paper using the grid method.
3. "Shatter" the subject in some way by breaking it up with lines or shapes or patterns of some sort. These lines will overlap your first drawing. (There are numerous methods you could use…be creative. Think of various ways that lines break up objects: shattered glass, wavy lines of water, spiral lines as seen on a snail shell, geometrical divisions of shapes.) The objective is to create more shapes in your drawing, like a giant puzzle. (Look at examples of Cubism for inspiration.)
4. Create two value scales in your sketchbook with one with Ebony pencil the other with a monochromatic paint scale. One will be divided into separate hues in the boxes, and one will be a blended value scale from black to white in the long box.
5. In your drawing, focus on each individual shape you have created, and apply the entire range of value (from black to light gray) in each shape. Proceed from shape to shape, deciding which part should be the richest black and which should be the lightest gray. Sometimes you may want to alternate from one shape to the next. You may also want to vary the direction of your shading inside your object from that outside your object in order to emphasize it.
6. Fill the entire paper with values, including positive shapes of the object and negative background shapes.
7. Critique your work. Compare and contrast to cubist work studied.
Requirements:
• Complete shading practice exercise.
• 4 sketches of still lives. 1 in pencil/ 1 in tempera paint
• Focus on use of Shape, Value,Movement and Contrast
•Self assessment
Materials:
Tempera Paint, ebony pencil, paper, ruler, pencil, brushes.
1. Select an area of your still life to "zoom" in on-- choose a spot with 3-4 items.
2. Enlarge that subject to fit 12" X 18" inch (30.5 x 46 cm) paper using the grid method.
3. "Shatter" the subject in some way by breaking it up with lines or shapes or patterns of some sort. These lines will overlap your first drawing. (There are numerous methods you could use…be creative. Think of various ways that lines break up objects: shattered glass, wavy lines of water, spiral lines as seen on a snail shell, geometrical divisions of shapes.) The objective is to create more shapes in your drawing, like a giant puzzle. (Look at examples of Cubism for inspiration.)
4. Create two value scales in your sketchbook with one with Ebony pencil the other with a monochromatic paint scale. One will be divided into separate hues in the boxes, and one will be a blended value scale from black to white in the long box.
5. In your drawing, focus on each individual shape you have created, and apply the entire range of value (from black to light gray) in each shape. Proceed from shape to shape, deciding which part should be the richest black and which should be the lightest gray. Sometimes you may want to alternate from one shape to the next. You may also want to vary the direction of your shading inside your object from that outside your object in order to emphasize it.
6. Fill the entire paper with values, including positive shapes of the object and negative background shapes.
7. Critique your work. Compare and contrast to cubist work studied.
Requirements:
• Complete shading practice exercise.
• 4 sketches of still lives. 1 in pencil/ 1 in tempera paint
• Focus on use of Shape, Value,Movement and Contrast
•Self assessment
Materials:
Tempera Paint, ebony pencil, paper, ruler, pencil, brushes.