2009 Global VillageStudent Art Exhibition

Life Along the Silk Road

Pertinent Details

Saturday, March 13, 2010

AM Collaborative teacher/student workshop

PM Opening reception: student gallery (student docents), interactive program

GV classes select pieces for display

Teachers, students (neighbor islands: 1 teacher/1 student), family friends, school administrators invited

Student artwork

2-D or 3-D pieces; Create simulation of traveling along the Silk Road. Backdrops (artistic renderings of Silk Roads); stations along Silk Road with artifact from this station (Chang’an; Dunhuang; Khotan, Kashgar; Samarkand, Merv, Antioch)No size limitation on art piece (within reason)Beginnings of Silk Road (200 BCE, height of Silk Road 700 – 900, Mongols/Marco Polo, modern times)Due: GV PD workshop Saturday, February 13, 2010 with required DOE forms (on GV weblog)

Theme: Life Along the Silk Road

Broad, overarching theme to encompass art, architecture, music, animals, people, dance, any aspect of way of life, e.g., currency, trade, religion. Based upon the book of Susan Whitfield, Life Along the Silk Road -- tales of the merchant, soldier, horseman, princess, monk, courtesan, nun, widow, official, and artistOther ideas: Central Asian dancers, storyteller, musicians

Benchmarks: 6th Grade

6.3.1 Examine written and physical evidence from ancient societies in Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus River Valley and the Yellow River Valley6.1.1 Define causal relationships in historical chronologies6.3.4 Describe key figures and major beliefs of the major religious and philosophical traditions of ancient and classical times including Judaism, Confucianism, Daoism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Greek philosophy, Christianity and Islam6.8.1 Describe trade networks, including the Silk Road and Saharan caravan trade . . . etc.

Benchmarks: 10th/11th Grade

11.3.1: examine the relationship between cultural traditions and the larger societies . . . Etc.

11.3.2 Examine the effects of global interactions in pre-modern times . . .

11.3.4 Explain the effects of global exchanges in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa . . .

Theme: Life Along the Silk RoadInteresting, fascinating historical figures

Princess of the Han Dynasty –http://history.cultural-china.com/en/48History5989.htmlhttp://www.hometownchina.com/han1.htm

Zhang Qian – Chinese diplomat

Imperial envoy in 2nd Century during Han DynastyBrought back reliable information about Central AsiaMade China aware of kingdoms and products outside of China

Zhang Qian

Interesting siteshttp://monkeytree.org/silkroad/zhangqian.htmlhttp://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_701843471/zhang_qian.htmlhttp://earlychinesedynasties.suite101.com/article.cfm/zhang_qian_the_chinese_marco_polohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhang_Qian

Xuanzang: Chinese monk

7th Century monk sought out to study the great Buddhist masters

Visited important sites

Gathered Buddhist texts, artifacts

Xuanzang

Insight into life along Silk RoadBuddhist principlesBuddhist art and ritual objectshttp://sites.asiasociety.org/arts/monksandmerchants/silk.htmhttp://sites.asiasociety.org/arts/monksandmerchants/temples.htmhttp://www.silk-road.com/artl/buddhism.shtml

Persian Merchant and Central Asian Dancers

Where did they originate and why did they travel along the Silk Road?What kind of topography or environment did they see along the road?Why did they make this journey?Describe goods/dances and their origins, influences. Who would buy the goods?

Merchant’s Tale: Nanaivandak, Sogdian merchant from Samarkand

Description of himself, origins, familyBirthplace (detailed description)Travels . . . How long has he traveled?Caravanserai (stopping places for itinerant merchants; warehouse for goods, courtyard for animals, bazaar bustling with people and animals);10 or more languages heard, haggling over silks, spices which dazzled the senses with colors and smellsWore distinctive Sogdian clothes: Phyrygian hat, knee-length, belted overjacket of deep blue brocade with decorative roundrel enclosing two deer facing each other; narrow trousers;His cargo of wool, jade and gems His trips to the jeweller, the tailor, evening of dining and entertainment

Make up a character

Muslim silk merchant who travels by boat to the Red Sea and then joins a camel caravan to CairoA Turkish calligrapher and book-binder who needs leather for repairing manuscripts and heads for Samarkand for the leatherA Buddhist scholar seeking to learn more about Islam because more Muslims are moving into his part of the world

Make up a character

Write a travel journal with illustrations. Name your character, your gender, date and place of birth, information about your hometown, important sites in your hometown, name rivers, desserts or mountain ranges, your religion, why you are traveling, what cities you wish to go to, how you plan to get there and the obstacles you encounter.

Role of animals along the Silk Road

Horses and Camels – Essential part of the Silk Road story – key to international relations and tradehttp://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/culture/animals/animals.htmlhttp://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/exhibit/trade/horcamae.html

Animals Along the Silk Road

Why were the animals important?What roles did they play?What were the conditions of the environment that made these animals suitable for daily life along the Silk Road?How do you know they were important commodities?What are the characteristics of the animal which made them valuable to the daily lives of people along the Silk Road?

Art ideas2-D and 3-D piecesTravel journalsMaps, collages (find photos of art, architecture, mosques, etc), make up a song as a musician traveling from Chang’an to Central Asia, Buddhist chants, build a model of mosques or city along Silk Road, posters about lives of characters, write poetry about long journeys, chart of chants from various religions along the Silk Road, make costumes Dioramas, drawings, models, illustrated chants/poems, sculptures

Resources

The Silk Road: trade, travel, war and faith by Susan Whitfield, Ursula Sims-Williams, British Library (entire book online)http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761579956/Silk_Road.html

Lesson plans (for different learning styles) from Council of Islamic Educationhttp://www.cie.org/ContentsDetail.aspx?id=N&m_id=28&cat_id=28&item_id=135&con_id=2848&corder=10&src=Global Village weblog:iws.punahou.edu/department/wocenter/ib/gv/2009/