DESCRIPTION: Students learn about the artists and artworks in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden by exploring the Garden via a computer-generated virtual environment.

OBJECTIVES: To learn about the artists and sculptures in the Walker Art Center's collection and become oriented in the virtual representation of the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.

PROCEDURE: In this activity, students explore a three-dimensional virtual reality modeling language (VRML) representation of the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. The three-dimensional model is a realistic simulation used to guide students through information on the artists and artworks displayed in the Garden. By approaching or clicking on an artwork, students can read about the art, listen to the artist talk about the work, and interact with the sculpture.

Through the exploration of this computer-generated world, students should think about the "real" versus the "virtual" respresentation of a natural environment. A possible extension of this activity may include the creation of a sculpture that could be added to a real sculpture garden, or the conceptualization of ideas for a sculpture that could only exist in a virtual garden.

GO TO THE INTERACTIVE ACTIVITY

MINNESOTA GRADUATION STANDARDS:
(1) Read, View, Listen
(3) Literature and the Arts
(5) Inquiry
(7) People and Cultures

Age level: Appropriate for children at grades 4-5.
Artworks used: All artworks in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden
Props needed: No props needed.
Related to Minneapolis Sculpture Garden: Yes.
Notes: Make sure that you continually relate your theme to the artworks.

© 1998 WALKER ART CENTER