Palm PortraitS

My Citizenship Palm Portrait

Now that you understand more about the meaning of citizenship, it’s time to dig a little bit deeper and see just where you fit in. You are a citizen in many different ways and in different places after all. You are going to create a palm portrait to display exactly what citizenship looks like just for you!

If you’ve never heard of a portrait, a portrait is a painting, drawing, sculpture or photograph of a person. Usually, a portrait is only the face or head and shoulders, but sometimes more of a person is shown. Portraits are used to tell us about the people in the image. Sometimes you can tell their mood, where they are from, even what their career may be from a portrait.

One very famous portrait artist was Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669). He was a Dutch artist and is considered one of the greatest artists in the history of art. Rembrandt is well known for painting portraits of himself and other people. He put a great deal of effort into really showing the viewer who the person was, not just what they looked like. To learn more about Rembrandt and see more of his work, check out this video.

For this art project, you are going to create a portrait with a twist, a palm portrait...a portrait you create using a tracing of your hand. Each one of your fingers will help identify you as a citizen and the space around your fingers will be filled with images of things that relate back to your role. For example, your thumb will be planet earth, because first off, you are a citizen of our planet. The space around your thumb will be filled in with images or colors related to planet Earth and a sentence or word explaining how you can be a good citizen of the planet. You are the main character and your palm portrait will describe your traits as a citizen.

Steps:

Watch the instructional video on creating your palm portrait. Check out this sample of a completed palm portrait for some inspiration.
Begin by gathering up your materials and setting up your work space.
Lay your hand on the paper and trace around it. It may be a good idea to have an adult help you with this part. You can trace your hand right in the middle or off to one side, the choice is yours.
Label each finger according to the different places you are a citizen ( EX: Earth, North America, the United States, Texas, Houston). You could choose to do a more focused palm portrait and choose the United States, Texas, Houston, your neighborhood, your home). You can choose any combination for your fingers.
Divide up the space that separates the fingers. In each space, write a word or a sentence explaining how you can be a good citizen in that place. Fill in extra space with images and designs that explain what you mean.
Design your palm portrait using the Elements of Art and the Principles of Design. For this project, consider focusing on the elements of line and color and the principle of pattern (repetition). There is more information on these design concepts in the instructional video.
When you are finished, show your completed palm portrait to a friend or a family member. Point out the important design elements you used and why you made your choices. Seek input from your audience, ask them if they have any other ideas about how to be a good citizen in the different areas you identified.
Last, complete your Artist’s Statement. You can use this form, you can write about your work on your own or you can just tell someone. Be sure to discuss the process of your artwork, how you created it, explain the artistic choices you made, share one thing you love about your piece and one thing you would change if you could.

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