Starting very soon, and continuing through the end of the semester, we're going to try something new for "Fine Art Fridays." Rather than trying to coordinate art/music/poetry/etc. with our history studies, we're going to focus on modern Latin American art/music/poetry (thus, my daughter has re-named the day "Fiesta Fridays"). We will continue to study the Medieval arts during history.

Since we're all usually dragging by the end of the week, we needed something lively and fun to look forward to, a break from our usual routine - hence this rather unconventional idea. The idea is that we'll study and discuss a piece of art, read a little about the artist, have some dessert (inspired by Latin American flavors), read some poetry, and then do an art or craft project (while listening to music, of course!). Once in awhile there will be a video segment to watch as well.

I haven't worked out all of the details just yet, but my plan is that we'll have two primary artists to study: Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo (not going into their lives too deeply since certain aspects wouldn't be suitable for children); we'll also touch on Pre-Columbian art, Jose Guadalupe Posada and study Mexican folk art (a source of inspiration for both artists), especially that pertaining to Our Lady of Guadalupe and Dia de los Muertos.

Below are some of the initial ideas I've compiled; I'll also be borrowing from the resources listed in my posts Fiesta de la Virgen de Guadalupe and El Dia de los Muertos. My hope is that we'll be able to further enhance this unit by a road trip to New Mexico to view some folk art first-hand!


Books

Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera:

• Getting to Know the World's Great Artists: Frida Kahlo by Mike Venezia
• Frida Kahlo: The Artist in the Blue House by Magdalena Holzhey
• Me, Frida by Amy Novesky
• Frida Kahlo (Artists in Their Time) by Jill A. Laidlaw
• Frida by Jonah Winter
• Frida: Viva la vida! Long Live Life! by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand
• Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera: Their Lives and Ideas, 24 Activities by Carol Sabbeth
• Getting to Know the World's Great Artists: Diego Rivera by Mike Venezia
• Diego by Jonah Winter
• Diego: Bigger Than Life by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand
• My Papa Diego and Me by Guadalupe Rivera
• The Journey of Diego Rivera (Art Beyond Borders) by Ernest Goldstein

Folk Art:

• Folk Treasures of Mexico: The Nelson A. Rockefeller Collection by Marion Oettinger
• Posada's Popular Prints by Jose Posada
• Mexican Folk Art Coloring Book by Marty Noble
• ABeCedarios: Mexican Folk Art ABCs in English and Spanish by Cynthia Weill
• The Crafty Chica Collection by Kathy Cano Murillo
• Guadalupe: Body and Soul by Marie-Pierre Colle

Art Projects

• Retablo-Style Self-Portrait
• Self Portraiture with Pets
• Parrot Paradise: Drawing Project
• Mexican Folk Art Projects: Lots of great project ideas
• Art of Mexico: Projects from Incredible @rt Department

Lesson Plans and Miscellany

• Studying the Biographies of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera
• The Legacies of Mexican Artists, Diego Rivera and Frieda Kahlo A really excellent set of lesson plans
• The Life and Times of Frida Kahlo: Teacher's Guide from PBS
• Frida Kahlo Artist Study: How one homeschooling mom handled teaching Frida Kahlo
• Feeling Like Frida: A story about how one elementary school art teacher taught about Frida Kahlo
• Frida Kahlo WebQuest from NYLearns (worksheet here)
• Frida Kahlo Study (.PDF) based on the book Frida by Jonah Winter
• "Self Portrait on the Borderline Between Mexico and the United States" Lesson Plan from PBS
• "The Two Fridas" (.PDF) Lesson Plan
• Frida Kahlo Notebooking Pages: (.PDF) A gorgeous free set from Jimmie's Collage 
• Frida Kahlo Cursive Copywork Pages: (.PDF) Also from Jimmie's Collage
• Fruits of the Earth by Frida Kahlo: Coloring Page
• Roots by Frida Kahlo: Coloring Page
• Diego Rivera: A Three-Week Unit for 3rd-5th Grade Students
• Diego Rivera's Murals (.PDF)
• "The Flower Carrier" Diego Rivera Lesson Plan from Garden of Praise
• "Agrarian Leader Zapata" Diego Rivera Lesson Plan from MOMA
• "Flower Festival: Feast of Santa Anita" Diego Rivera Lesson Plan Diego Rivera Lesson Plan from MOMA
• Latin American and Caribbean Modern and Contemporary Art: Handbook for Teachers from MOMA

Websites

• The Virtual Diego Rivera Museum
• Frida Kahlo Fans: Complete Gallery of Artwork

Desserts

• Alfajores Artesanales (Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies)
• Besos (Kisses)
• Banana Macarons with Coconut Cream
• Banana Cream Pie with Chocolate and Cinnamon
• Capirotada (Mexican Bread Pudding)
• Chocolate Flan
• Churros with Spiced Chocolate (Adapted here)
• Flan with Caramel Cream Cheese
• Guava Apple Crisp
• Mexican Ice Cream Sundaes with Cinnamon-Chocolate Sauce
• Oaxacan Chocolate Cake
• Oaxacan Hot Chocolate (Can also be ordered here)
• Pastelitos de Boda (Mexican Wedding Cookies)
• Pineapple Muffins
• Rose Petal Flan
• Sopapilla Cheesecake Pie
• Stuffed Pineapple
• Sugared Fritters
• Tres Leches Cake
• Virgin Banana Margaritas

Pablo Neruda:

• The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan, Peter Sis
• To Go Singing Through the World: The Childhood of Pablo Neruda by Deborah Kogan Ray
• When I Was a Boy Neruda Called Me Policarpo: A Memoir by Poli Delano
• Lesson Plans: Tribute to Pablo Nerudo, Part I (.PDF; 57 pgs), Part II (38 pgs), Part III (25 pgs)

On this day, December 12th, people from all parts of Mexico make their way to Mexico's chief religious center at the Basilica of the Virgen of Guadalupe, located in Villa de Guadalupe Hidalgo, a northern neighbourhood of Mexico City. There, they will celebrate the Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe (Our Lady of Guadalupe) with a mass ceremony and a traditional fair in her honor.


The Dia de la Virgen de Guadalupe became an national holiday in 1859. At the plaza the fiesta starts after the mass ceremony with delicious food, vendors selling crafts and clothes, along with many performences of music and dance. In other parts of Mexico, similar festivities are organized with some unique variations of the celebration. In some places, altars of flowers are built in her honor. Other parts have traditional food prepared like buñuelos, raspados and tortas as well as activities like parades, rodeos, and bullfights. (Source)

Books/DVD

• The Lady of Guadalupe by Tomie dePaola (Ages 9-12; 48 pgs)
• Saint Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe by Josephine Nobisso (Ages 9-12; 120 pgs)
• A Handbook on Guadalupe by Sister Mary Francis
• The Wonder of Guadalupe: The Origin and Cult of the Miraculous Image of the Blessed Virgin in Mexico by Francis Johnston

Religious Goods

• MexGrocer.com has a variety of Guadalupe items
• Our Lady of Guadalupe at Etsy
• Guadalupe Papel Picado Banner
• See Also: eBay

Websites

• Our Lady of Guadalupe at Sancta.org
• Proyecto Guadalupe (in Spanish, requires Google Translate)
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Feast Day Plans at O Night Divine - very comprehensive!
• Our Lady of Guadalupe at Domestic-Church.com

Crafts

Tomie dePaola has a great story on his website about Our Lady of Guadalupe as the Patron of Artists and I could not agree more! Without a doubt, she has been inspiring artists (Catholic or not) for the past 500 years. To explore Our Lady of Guadalupe in art:

Articles:

• Chasing Virgins
• Virgin With a Rebel Vibe
• The Virgin Had This Homeboy's Back
• Virgin as Muse
• Virgin as Spin-Mistress
• Icons of the Virgin (in Spanish)

Books:



Art/Craft Projects:

• How to Draw Our Lady of Guadalupe (.PDF) from CHC
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Coloring Book by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (Coloring page here)
• Our Lady of Guadalupe and Juan Diego Coloring/Paper Dolls at Paper Dali
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Ornament at 4Real Forums
• Clay Guadalupe at Crayola

Supplies:

• Virgin of Guadalupe Plaster Craft Mold (9.75" H)
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Fabrics at Some Art Fabric
• Virgin of Guadalupe Sugar Mold at Mexican Sugar Skulls
• Virgen de Guadalupe at Silver Crow Creations
• Virgin of Guadalupe Hand-Carved Rubber Stamp at Etsy
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Stamp at Catholic Rubber Stamps
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Marian Grotto Kit at Illuminated Ink
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Cut 'n Color Book at Illuminated Ink

Food

• Sopapillas with Chile Verde Con Carne
• Bunuelos (Mexican donuts; traditional food)
• Pan Dulce (Sweet bread; traditional food)
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Recipes at Catholic Cuisine
• Cupcakes - See below (Rose Picks, Foil Baking Cups)