Week 6-hum 106

Can Modern Art Make America Great Again?

Social movements often use modern art and artists to accomplish an end goal. In this way, the art communicates a movement’s ideas to its members and to the wider world. 

In this assignment, you will examine a contemporary social movement and the art associated with it to determine its effect on you and on others.  

Using the Can Modern Art Make America Great Again? Template [DOCX] , write a 2–3-page paper in which you: 

1. Choose a contemporary social movement that matters to you and provide your rationale for selecting this movement. In other words, what is it about this movement that moves you? Why does it matter to you? (1/2 page). 
   • You may select from any of these contemporary social movements:  women’s issues; border crisis; gender/identity issues; voter’s rights; covid masks/vaccines. 
   • You may select another contemporary social movement if you wish, but you must first obtain your instructor’s approval before you begin writing.  
2. Identify art (photography, sculpture, graffiti, propaganda, artwork, etc.) that has been created to embody this particular social movement.  

• Copy and paste an image of this art in your assignment. This image is not included in the required page count for the assignment.  
• You have already shared an image of this art in your Week 5 discussion post and obtained some of your classmates’ responses to it.  

1. Summarize the message you believe the artist hoped to convey (1/2 page).  
2. Describe what you see in this artwork and your personal response to it (1/2 page).  
3. Summarize how your classmates responded to the work of art you shared in the Week 5 discussion post (½ page). 
4. Explain how this assignment changed your view of the role of art in social movements (1/2 page).      
5. Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements: 

• This course requires the use of Strayer Writing Standards (SWS). For assistance and information, please refer to the Strayer Writing Standards link in the left-hand menu of your course. Check with your professor for any additional instructions. 
• Preferred method: Typed, double-spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides. 
• Include a cover page containing the assignment title, your name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length. 

The specific course learning outcome associated with this assignment is: 

• Recognize the influence of social conditions on the production and reception of modern art. 

Wk7

Journal Entry: Your Favorite Artwork From a Museum or Cultural Event

Your Favorite Artwork From a Museum or Cultural Event 

In your first journal entry, Art in Everyday Life, you explored art that exists all around you in your everyday life. Art also exists around you in more traditional settings, such as museums and cultural events. In our increasingly connected world, we have access to more art than ever before. Many major museums offer virtual tours so that that people can enjoy art wherever they live. 

Begin Work on Your Favorite Artwork From a Museum or Cultural Event Journal Entry

To begin work on Your Favorite Artwork from a Museum or Cultural Event journal entry:

1. Visit a museum or cultural event featuring modern art in your area, select a piece of art that you can’t stop looking at, and explain why you selected this piece of art. 

                                                       OR

         Take a virtual tour of one of the below modern art museums, select a piece of art that you can’t stop looking at, and explain why you selected this piece of art: 

• Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. 
• Museum of Contemporary Art Australia.  
• San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.     
• Tate Modern.   

        Note:Nothing beats seeing art up close and personal. You are strongly encouraged to visit a museum or cultural event in person. 

1. Share an image of the artwork you selected and provide identifying information about the artwork and the artist.
2. Respond to these writing prompts on the Your Favorite Artwork From a Museum or Cultural Event Template [DOCX]:

• Why did you select this piece of art to share and to write about?
• What do you see in this artwork? 
  • Be sure to provide sufficient details.
• What do you think and feel about this piece of art? 
• What meaning does this artwork have for you? 
• What message do you think the artist wanted to convey? 

1. Ensure your journal entry is clear and demonstrates good writing mechanics.
2. Submit an image of your piece of art and your journal entry to the assignment area.  

“America’s West Coast offered an especially sympathetic audience for early experiments in Pop art, as evidenced by the reception of Warhol’s first major exhibition in 1962. The region’s investment in the film industry as well as its comparatively young cultural institutions tended to mitigate the influence of traditional aesthetic hierarchies and expectations. The four Californian artists discussed here—Wayne Thiebaud, Edward Kienholz, Jess, and Edward Ruscha—made work that is only tangentially related to Pop” (1). 

To prepare for this discussion:

• Read Chapter 19, “Poetics of the “New Gomorrah”: West Coast Artists,” pages 483–486.  
  • These pages cover the artists, Thiebaud, Kienholz, Jess, and Ruscha.  
• View the four artists’ artwork contained on these pages.  
• Select one piece of artwork from one of these artists that speaks to you.   

Please respond to the following in a post of 150 to 200 words:

• Post a screen shot of the artwork you selected. 
• Describe what you think the artist’s intent was in creating the work.  
• Offer your best artistic reaction, using the seven elements of art, to what speaks to you about this piece of art.  

Note: To help get you started, you might want to view one person’s response to Edward Kienholz’s The State Hospital. Please do not feel constrained by this example. This is just one person’s artistic reaction to a piece of art. Also, it goes without saying: don’t use this person’s language in your response. That’s called plagiarism.

In a post of 60 to 75 words, please respond to at least one other post. Choose to respond to those who have few or no responses.

Sources

1. H. H. Arnason. 2013. History of Modern Art (7th ed.). p. 483. Pearson.

Wk 8

To prepare for this discussion:

• Read Chapter 21 in your text, “Architecture and Engineering,” pages 556–557, to learn about architect Richard Buckminster Fuller and the Dymaxion House. 
• Read the article titled, “Future Man From Venus,” to learn about Jacque Fresco, inventor, artist, futurist, and his life’s work building the city of the future.  

Fuller and Fresco were artistic visionaries. 

Please respond to the following in a post of 150 to 200 words:

• Describe the political, economic, and cultural influences at work in Fuller’s and Fresco’s architecture.  
• Based on your reading about modern architecture and two of its visionaries, identify and explain, incorporating the seven elements of art, the most important characteristics modern architects employ in their designs and innovations. 

In a post of 60 to 75 words, please respond to at least one other post. Choose to respond to those who have few or no responses.

Your Favorite Modern Sculpture 

For this journal entry, you are going to explore modern sculpture. Like architecture, sculpture is three dimensional. Viewing sculpture gives you a different experience than two-dimensional art, such as a photograph or a painting. 

Like everyday art, you will find that modern sculpture exists all around you. You can find it in a museum or at a cultural event. You can also find it in much less formal settings. Consider a fountain at one of the parks in your area. Many businesses feature sculptures in their lobbies. Likewise, some of our famous monuments are works of modern art. Consider the Statute of Liberty, Mount Rushmore, the Charging Bull on Wall Street, and the Fearless Girl, also on Wall Street. 

The purpose of these journal entries is to improve your recognition and observation of the art that is all around you.  

Begin Work on Your Favorite Modern Sculpture Journal Entry

To begin work on Your Favorite Modern Sculpture journal entry:

1. View Check Out the Top 25 Sculptures at MoMA, which describes sculptures in the Museum of Modern Art, New York. Then select a piece of sculpture that draws you in and explain why you selected this particular sculpture.  

OR

         Identify a piece of modern sculpture that exists near you or one that you have always dreamed of visiting that draws you in. Explain why you selected this particular sculpture. 

• To stimulate your thinking, see the examples listed in the introduction to this journal entry, but don’t be afraid to find modern sculptures that might exist in your own backyard, so to speak.

1. Share an image of the sculpture you selected and provide identifying information about the artwork and the artist.

• If your selected sculpture is one that exists in your community, you may not be able to locate information about the artwork and the artist. If this is the case, be sure to note this.  

1. Respond to these writing prompts on Your Favorite Modern Sculpture Template [DOCX]:

• Why did you select this piece of sculpture to share and to write about?
• What do you see in this sculpture? 
  • Be sure to provide sufficient details.
• What do you think and feel about this sculpture? 
• What meaning does this sculpture have for you? 
• What message do you think the sculptor wanted to convey? 

1. Ensure your journal entry is clear and demonstrates good writing mechanics.
2. Submit an image of your sculpture and your journal entry to the assignment area.  
    

Wk 9

From the onset and throughout this course, you’ve been introduced to the seven visual elements of art as the basic components of art making. These elements include: line, color, shape, form, value, space, and texture. It is impossible to create a work of art without using at least one of the seven visual elements of art. 

Your Week 10 assignment requires you to select a piece of modern art from your textbook that you would like to hang on your wall at home or in your office, and then analyze your selection based on two of the seven visual elements. 

To give you a head start on this assignment complete the following:  

• Review the Apply the Seven Visual Elements to Art: How Do You Organize and Harmonize Your Art? assignment instructions and its scoring guide so that you understand what is expected of you. (See Week 10.)
• Select the piece of modern art from your textbook that you would like to hang on your wall in your home or office, and that you will feature in your assignment due in Week 10. 
• Watch the seven short videos (most are 2–3 minutes long; the longest is 7:20) on The Elements of Art. 

Please respond to the following in a post of 150 to 200 words:  

• Post a screen shot of the piece of modern art you selected that you would like to hang on your wall. 
• Explain your reason for selecting this particular piece of modern art. In other words, what, specifically about this piece of art speaks to you?
• Identify the two visual elements that are most prominent in the piece of art you’ve chosen. 
• Describe how you see these two elements displayed in your selected work of art.    

Note: You will be using this information from this post in your assignment due in Week 10.

In a post of 60 to 75 words, please respond to at least one other post. Choose to respond to those who have few or no responses.

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Week 7 -jgr 300

DISCUSSION

Think about an organization you work for, or have worked for in the past. What are the organization’s goals and objectives? Is the organization focused on the right goals? If not, what goals should they focus on?

WEEK 8

DISCUSSION

Briefly describe the core values at your current or former workplace. Discuss a recent decision made at your company and explain how the decision was aligned with the core values.

ASSIGNMENT

Formative Activity 3: Organizational Change and Challenges

Due Week 8 and worth 80 points. 

Introduction

This week, you will address changes and/or challenges recently faced by a company. For this activity, you may select an organization from the list below with linked articles, or you may select an organization of your choice. If you choose your own organization, you will need to locate an article to complete the activity.

• Nordstrom – article: Nordstrom Rises as Chain Avoids Department-Store Woes.
• Domino’s – article: Domino’s Bets on Agile and Voice.
• Lululemon – article: New Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald Faces Two Giant Challenges: Fix Culture, Maintain Growth.
• United States Postal Service – article: Fear Grows Postal Pick Is Risk to Mail-In Vote.
• Any organization of your choice – article located by you.

Instructions

For this activity:

1. Download the Formative Activity 3 – Organizational Change and Challenges Template and save it to your computer.
2. Follow the outline in the template to complete the activity.
3. Select an organization of your choice or from the list above and answer the questions in the template.
   1. Describe the changes or challenges the company experienced.
   2. Explain the changes that occurred, if they occurred.
      • i.Were they successful?
      • ii.Why or why not?
   3. Explain the challenges that occurred, if they occurred.
      • i.How did the company overcome the challenges?
      • ii.What team or stakeholders were involved in addressing the challenge?
        1. Were they successful?
        2. Why or why not?
4. Identify two changes you would recommend for your selected organization.
   1. Explain why you selected these changes.
   2. Share how these changes would help the company.
5. Explain what you learned from the research. Is there anything you would have done differently?
   1. Justify your response with resources from the course or other resources that are credible, relevant, and appropriate.

WEEK 9

DISCUSSION

Reflect on your role at your current or former workplace. Are you able to provide input when decisions are made? Do you have a formal or informal avenue to provide suggestions? Discuss.

ASSIGNMENT

Case Study – BJ’s House of Fitness: A Business on the Ropes

Read the following case study and complete the assignment.

BJ’s House of Fitness is a gym owned and operated since 1991 by Barry J. Jerrod in a working-class area of Pittsburgh, PA. Barry grew up in Pittsburgh and worked in the steel industry. As a hobby, he participated in amateur bodybuilding competitions, gaining a small but devoted local following. In 1990, he set up weights and a stationary bike in his garage so neighborhood friends could work out. He charged 25¢ per day to work out and sold neon pink sleeveless T-shirts that read, “I Get Big at the Garage.” Word of Barry’s gym spread, and it quickly outgrew his garage. Barry opened BJ’s House of Fitness in a storefront on Cherry Street, his neighborhood’s retail district. 

The gym is well-equipped with treadmills, ellipticals, weight machines, heavy bags, and free weights but lacks premium amenities like a sauna, juice bar, and towel service. There are no personal trainers. In 2002, Barry expanded to the adjacent retail space, knocking down a wall to double the gym’s size and add a studio space for exercise classes. His last price update was in 2011; it costs $35 per month to be a member. There is no joining fee and no annual contract. Barry’s members are mostly longtime residents of the neighborhood, and many are retirees.

Barry’s business is modestly successful, providing him a comfortable lifestyle without requiring significant marketing, strategic planning, or capital investment. He feels the success of his business relies on his strong values, mission, and vision. 

BJ’s House of Fitness was founded on his values of fairness, hard work, and helping others, and those values are the reason Barry has always run slim margins to provide his clients with a low monthly membership cost without fees or penalties. 

His mission is to share his lifelong love of fitness with members while maintaining a high level of personal customer service. He is at the gym seven days a week and employs a small staff— many of whom have worked there for more than 10 years. 

Barry’s vision is to a provide members with a simple, no frills gym experience (what Barry calls, “the old school”) that maintains some of the neighborhood feel of the garage gym that started it all. BJ’s House of Fitness does not have a website. Instead, Barry shares his passion for fitness by working out at the gym daily and writing motivational quotes on the walls in chalk. Barry’s passion is infectious and is frequently cited by members as their favorite part of belonging to BJ’s. 

The past year, however, has brought a series of disruptive challenges that threaten the survival of BJ’s House of Fitness. 

Barry’s landlord doubled the rent on the gym’s location, citing higher city property taxes, national brands moving into the Cherry Street business district, and gentrification in the neighborhood. 

A national chain of fitness centers, Pump It! Gyms®, have opened a location three blocks from BJ’s House of Fitness. Their equipment and facilities are brand new and state-of-the-art. Pump It! has blanketed the neighborhood in marketing and promotional offers. Pump It! memberships cost $55 with a $34.99 joining fee and an annual “service” fee of $18.99. Late payment or denied credit cards incur a $120 billing fee.  

Barry’s new sign-ups have been flat. He notices most of the new members are drawn from the affluent young professionals moving to the neighborhood. Comments from the newer members have been mostly negative: he has received complaints about cleanliness, broken equipment, and a lack of exercise class options. Barry has lost approximately 50 percent of new members since the start of the year and his online rating has fallen from 4.5 to 2.5 stars. 

Barry has verbally encouraged his staff to clean better and engage in proactive customer service. Requests to his staff have not been followed up with training, written performance goals, or performance-based bonuses. Staff have responded with increased absenteeism and low morale. One longtime employee recently quit, citing the lack of pay raise and a higher cost of living in the neighborhood. 

It has not been all bad news for Barry. The biggest local paper featured a glowing profile of BJ’s House of Fitness, including a professionally shot photo spread. The photographer, a neighborhood resident, has approached Barry about using the photographs for promotional materials. The newspaper profile also attracted the attention of a local documentary filmmaker, who wants to make a short film about Barry’s life as a bodybuilder and the quirky regulars at the gym.

Recently, Barry was approached by another national gym chain, 4 Minute Fitness, about rebranding BJ’s House of Fitness as a 4 Minute Fitness franchise location. Barry would have to pay hefty franchise fees and give 50 percent of revenue to 4 Minute Fitness. In exchange, 4 Minute Fitness can connect Barry to business financing and centralized billing and scheduling software to streamline his operation. 

Nationally, U.S. economic growth has slowed, but the $27.6 billion gym and health club sector has continued to grow. The newly released Pittsburgh City Economic Report notes continuing population growth of 1.5 percent, fueled by young, college-educated workers moving to the city for its rising tech sector and low cost of living. 

With his reserve funds rapidly draining from the increased rent, Barry fears he may have to close BJ’s House of Fitness unless changes are made, and fast.