an awesome resource with an awesome (albeit not-so classroom-friendly) name:

while probably not something that you could pull up in your classroom to share with your students directly, fuck yeah, advertising! is an incredible resource for advertising that showcases traditional art-making techniques in real-life contexts:

(ad for the new google chrome browser)

...that ilustrates the relationship between form, function, and idea:

(ad for hair loss program)

...that can act as an introduction to other big ideas/questions:

(ad for the american red cross)

...that opens discussion about where the line between life and culture is (if there is one) and how/if we control our relationship with consumerism:

(ad for hp photo paper - what's real, what's not?)

...and that can be used/taught in countless other ways. advertising is a rich and relevant (and often controversial) area of visual culture that is really accessible, often self-referential, and endlessly applicable in the classroom. also take a look at the slightly less profane but still worthwhile creative criminals - both blogs are excellent, frequently updated resources (that are really great about citing their sources and creative/art directors as well).

making art about material culture: obsessive consumption

i recently purchased (hey, irony) a print from kate bingamin-burt, who maintains the blog "obsessive consumption," where she draws the things she buys on a daily basis. kate is another artist whose work directly addresses issues of our material-based culture:

while visual culture is a teaching tool that can be used to engage with countless big ideas, it can also be the very content being explored.