Meeting Individual Needs
Absolute Self-Expression
Jeff Bertoncin
One common characteristic of adolescents is
their eagerness to express
themselves. Their clothing, their hairstyles, the vocabulary First Steps
they use, even the way they decorate To begin our self-portraits, I took a
their lockers are all opportunities to few digital photos of each student
tell the rest of the world something outside against the blank sky. We
about their unique identity. Because used photo-manipulating software to
of the individuality and introspection blow out the contrast in the photos.
of a self-portrait, adolescents usually We had to adjust the controls care-enjoy this type of fully to make sure
art. The difficulty, Using a somewhat obscure eyes, nostrils,
all art projects and ancient art form called mouths, or other
is allowing their important details
micrography, my students
perceived skill didn’t completely
used the qualities of writing
level to be engaged disappear.
in something so Once the pho-
to create a very personal
meaningful to tos were changed
form of self-expression.
them. to black and
These challenges are no different white, they were ready to project
for the students in my alternative art and outline. We hung large sheets of
class. These at-risk students who have paper from the top of the whiteboard
struggled to find success in school, and adjusted the size of the photo by
are often not easily motivated, but moving the projector closer or farther
they are drawn to nontraditional or away.
offbeat art and any opportunity that
offers them the chance to speak their
mind. Using a somewhat obscure and
ancient art form called micrography,
my students used the qualities of
writing to create a very personal form
of self-expression.
they look as if they were filled with
the more traditional method of adding value.
have had students start writing some
rambling story or idea and keep going
until I inform them that we are out
of time. I also encourage them to use
symbols.
Reflections
The most enjoyable aspect of this
project is watching the way students
express themselves. The self-portraits
reveal some of their personal thoughts
and background, as many students
open up and write things they normally wouldn’t express. From a distance, the likeness can be seen, but
it is only after someone approaches
the artwork and spends time learning
about that person that the individual’s personality is revealed.
Jeff Bertoncin is an art teacher at Belton
High School Freshman Center in Belton,
Missouri. jbertoncin@bsd124.org
Sugar, grade nine.
Micrography
Micrography, also called microcal-ligraphy, was first practiced in the
Middle East in the tenth
century. It uses small
letters or characters to
fill in certain areas of a
design—areas that normally would be shaded
or decorated using other
methods. Some of the
examples we look at in
class are so intricate
that, from a distance,
Creating the Micrographs
Students used pencils to trace
the lines where dark areas met
lighter areas. They used permanent ink to fill in the outlined
dark areas with words that
described them.
Ideas for words include song
lyrics, poetry, quotes, nicknames, or family and friends. I
